Across the United States, a wave of disappointment and confusion has washed over local officials and residents as the Trump administration, backed by GOP majorities in Congress, rescinded more than $2.2 billion in federal infrastructure grants. These funds, once earmarked for critical projects ranging from pedestrian safety improvements to major highway reconstructions, were pulled back as part of a sweeping legislative package signed into law last month. The fallout has been felt in communities large and small—including many that voted solidly Republican—leaving leaders scrambling for answers and solutions.
Nowhere is the impact more acutely felt than in western Montana, where two high-profile projects were abruptly halted. In July 2025, Missoula County lost a $24 million federal grant for safety and infrastructure upgrades along the Highway 200 corridor in East Missoula. Just a month later, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe (CSKT) saw a $75 million grant for reconstructing a hazardous stretch of Highway 93 in the Ninepipe area rescinded as well. Both grants had been painstakingly assembled over years and were awarded through the 2023 Neighborhood Access and Equity Fund, a component of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
According to Missoula Current, the reason for the rescinding boiled down to a single word: "equity." The program’s title, which included the term, became a lightning rod for GOP criticism, with opponents labeling it as an outgrowth of “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” (DEI) initiatives. Missoula County Commissioner Dave Strohmaier voiced his frustration, stating, “The programs through which these many millions of dollars of funding would have flowed to the local community to do important infrastructure work was nested in a program that, by some accounts, was a function of 'Diversity, Equity and Inclusion' because the word 'equity' was in the program.”
Strohmaier’s sense of defeat was palpable. “It has taken years to get to this point,” he said. “We thought we were over the finish line by getting this federal grant to compliment local and state funds. Yet here we are.” The county, he explained, is now back to square one, forced to consider piecemeal approaches or seek new, more politically palatable grant programs—an effort that could take years. “We’re going to need to retool our approach and find existing grant programs that have not been eliminated, or funding for which hasn't been rescinded, and go after that,” Strohmaier told Missoula Current.
The story is far from unique to Montana. As POLITICO reported on August 20, 2025, the new law clawed back unobligated dollars across the country from the Biden-era Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant Program. In St. George, Utah, an $87.6 million grant intended to reconnect neighborhoods split by Interstate 15 was erased. City Council member Jimmie Hughes described the loss as “a little bit heartbreaking, but we’re not giving up.” The grant would have helped address severe congestion on a two-mile stretch of highway that divides the rapidly growing city. “There’s a 2-mile stretch of that highway where you can’t get through,” Hughes said. “The project really was an answer to a lot of congestion.”
In Bowling Green, Kentucky, 93 percent of an $11 million pedestrian safety grant was canceled, leaving residents—many in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods—without a clear path forward. Brent Childers, the city’s director of neighborhood and community services, explained that the road in question “cut through the heart of an economically disadvantaged community,” making it difficult for people to simply walk from one side of their neighborhood to the other.
Maryland’s Eastern Shore was hit as well, with over $4 million in funding for two municipalities suddenly gone. Zack Tyndall, mayor of Berlin, Maryland, told POLITICO, “It felt like the carpet was pulled out from underneath of us. We’re still trying to figure out how we can move forward.”
The rationale for rescinding the grants has been hotly debated. A U.S. Department of Transportation official told POLITICO that “Congress was right to cancel” the Utah grant, arguing it “prioritized [diversity, equity and inclusion] and Green priorities while ignoring the core infrastructure needs of our country.” The Department said it is now “removing Biden-era requirements that tied critical infrastructure funding to woke social justice and climate initiatives that diverted resources from the Department’s core mission.”
This justification has not sat well with many local leaders, who insist that the projects were anything but ideological. “I would challenge the administration to look at what the actual projects did on the ground,” Strohmaier said. “This project was all about bricks and mortar. What this project would do is rebuild a railroad crossing, construct sidewalks and build essential infrastructure that sets the stage for economic development.” He added, “This has been identified as a huge safety hazard for literally decades.”
On the Flathead Indian Reservation, the rescinded $75 million grant would have funded three new bridges, intersection improvements, and a wider roadway—measures tribal officials say are desperately needed to improve safety. In a statement, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe called the news “sad” and added, “Our various staff met weekly trying to expedite the design, so we could get the dollars that were awarded on the ground. We will continue to look for funding to make this highway safe for all of us to drive.”
Republican lawmakers have offered a range of responses. Rep. Ryan Zinke of Montana blamed the Biden administration, claiming it made “no funding move without ideological buzzwords completely unrelated to the actual goals of the project.” Senator Steve Daines said he was “in close contact with local leaders and with relevant federal agencies on the path forward for these projects.” Senator Tim Sheehy praised the Trump administration for “reining in spending” and promised to “work to ensure cost-saving measures are targeted responsibly and the critical resources Montanans rely on are protected.” Notably, Sheehy made no mention of the East Missoula project specifically.
Even communities represented by lawmakers who voted for the GOP legislation are feeling the sting. In Utah, Rep. Celeste Maloy and Sens. John Curtis and Mike Lee, all Republicans, supported the law that ultimately cost their state the St. George grant. Maloy had previously touted the bill for “rescinding wasteful IRA dollars,” highlighting the political complexity of the situation.
Democratic lawmakers have also been affected. In upstate New York, a project to tear down an elevated section of Interstate 81 in Syracuse lost 16 percent of a $180 million award. Rep. John Mannion, who represents the area and voted against the reconciliation package, called the move “bad policy and a betrayal of Syracuse and our region.”
The sudden loss of funding has left local governments and agencies scrambling for alternatives. Some, like the CSKT and Missoula County, are exploring whether their projects might fit into other federal transportation programs less likely to be targeted by political opposition. Others, like St. George and Berlin, Maryland, are looking to state partners or scaling back plans while searching for new funding sources.
Meanwhile, Missoula County faces additional uncertainty after losing $1 million earmarked for a "home improvement hub" designed to help residents make energy-efficient upgrades—another casualty, it seems, of the new administration’s opposition to climate-focused initiatives.
For now, the future of these infrastructure projects remains uncertain. Local leaders are left to navigate a labyrinth of shifting federal priorities, hoping that their communities’ needs can rise above the partisan crossfire. As Strohmaier put it, “Nobody should be terribly surprised with how this has all played out given the priorities of the administration. But we're not giving up.”