Summary
Most of the roughly $675 billion in grants that the federal government provided to state and local governments in fiscal year (FY) 2017 followed a similar legislative path: Congress created programs through authorizing legislation, and either provided mandatory funding in the same legislation, or appropriated funding through the annual budget.
But federal funding for highways works a little bit differently. This Special Analysis provides a short but comprehensive introduction to federal highway funding, addressing some of our most frequently asked questions on the subject.