Build Up Local February Newsletter

Thank you for joining Build Up Local, an effort to make sure all business owners are aware of and can learn about resources and programs made available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). 

Today, we are pleased to announce the launch of our regular Build Up Local Newsletter. During each edition of this newsletter, we will share what’s upcoming in the Build Up Local community, and we’ll package recent updates and opportunities from federal, state, and local entities so that members of the Build Up Local community can learn more about how to access contracting opportunities. 

Build Up Local works to ensure that all business – with a special focus on minority-owned businesses – have the resources and information to access inclusive infrastructure contracting opportunities, 

This February, as we celebrate Black History Month, the work of Build Up Local is particularly relevant. According to the Equity in Infrastructure Project, Black-owned businesses generate only 1% of the revenue generated by white-owned businesses in the United States, a key driver of the racial wealth gap. The work of the Build Up Local is part of the change we need to ensure that Black-owned businesses have the information and resources to access exciting new opportunities, build Black wealth, and thrive. 

Below, you’ll find more updates and information about the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and inclusive contracting opportunities from across the country. 

Stay tuned to our homepage to keep up with what Build Up Local has planned this month. 

Best,

The Build Up Local Team

About the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law makes available billions of dollars of investment towards infrastructure projects across the country. For business owners of color, this means access to contracts, to workforce development programs, and to growing relationships with important stakeholders in both your local government and with the federal government. This means creating new jobs and building up communities that have previously been left behind by federal investments, and uplifting the next generation. 

While the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is a federal investment, the vast majority of the funding will be funneled through state and local governments, who will then open contracting opportunities to businesses like yours. Below, you’ll find information and resources from federal, state, and local entities, all of which stem from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. 

News & Updates From Federal Agencies

U.S. Department of Transportation: 

• U.S. Department of Transportation Notices of Funding Opportunity. In order to provide stakeholders with more visibility into upcoming funding opportunities, DOT is publishing a list of anticipated dates for upcoming Notices of Funding Opportunity (NOFOs) for key programs within the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), as well as adjacent programs that support BIL and IRA objectives. This list is not comprehensive and will be updated periodically with additional programs and revised dates as appropriate. Learn more and view the  FY23 upcoming NOFO chart here.
  
  
• Biden-Harris Administration Announces $1.5 Billion Available through the 2023 RAISE Grant Program. The U.S. Department of Transportation has published a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for $1.5 billion in grant funding through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program for 2023. The popular program helps communities around the country carry out projects with significant local or regional impact. As was the case last year, the Department is encouraging applicants to consider how their projects can address climate change, ensure racial equity, and remove barriers to opportunity. Learn more here. 
  
  
• FRA Makes More than $11 Billion Available to Modernize the NEC and Other Passenger Rail Corridors. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced the availability of nearly $9 billion in funding to upgrade and expand passenger rail services along the Northeast Corridor (NEC). The NEC, stretching from Washington, D.C. to Boston, is one of the highest-volume rail lines in the world, and accounts for 20 percent of our nation's GDP. Learn more here. 
  

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency:

• EPA Announces $6 Million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Funds to Support Tribal Nations in Reducing Nutrient Pollution. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of $6 million in funds from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to support Tribal Nations across the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin (MARB) in reducing nutrient pollution on Tribal lands in the Basin. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes $60 million for actions to support water quality improvements in the Mississippi River watershed and Gulf of Mexico through the Gulf Hypoxia Program (GHP) over five years. EPA is allocating 10 percent of this funding – a total of $6 million – to 21 eligible Tribes to support capacity building activities and nutrient reduction demonstration projects that advance the goals of the Gulf Hypoxia Action Plan. Learn more here.

Business owners can learn more about this resource and the opportunities presented by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law at builduplocal.org.

Sincerely,

The Build Up Local Team