(The Center Square) — The Georgia Department of Transportation said it awarded 31 projects in July, and a list of projects released by the agency shows the awards total $196.7 million.
So far in fiscal 2025, which began on July 1, officials said they have awarded projects totaling $325 million.
At roughly $85 million, the largest project is to widen and reconstruct nearly 4.5 miles on State Route 162 in Newton and Rockdale counties. The project is one of 20 safety projects that account for more than half — 55% — of the total awarded funds, GDOT officials said.
Rising construction costs have been a concern for officials, and some jurisdictions are weighing whether they should change their plans to save taxpayer dollars. However, those concerns are not limited to Georgia.
An analysis by the Associated Builders and Contractors conducted of the Producer Price Index from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that construction inputs have increased by 1.1% over the past year and 39.9% since February 2020.
The analysis revealed that commodity prices have increased since February 2020, including the prices of concrete products by 38.2% and iron and steel by 44.8%.
Like all states, Georgia relies on a mix of state and federal tax dollars for its transportation projects. The $66.8 billion fiscal 2025 budget that Republican Gov. Brian Kemp signed earlier this year includes roughly $4.2 billion for GDOT, including nearly $2.4 billion in state money.
“The federal government and the state government both spend on infrastructure, but actually, believe it or not, the state and local governments combined spend way more on infrastructure than the federal government does, and that’s even excluding federal grants going to the state and local governments,” Thomas Savidge, a research fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, told The Center Square. “That being said, of course, federal money is still coming in, and state and local governments are extremely happy to take it because it means they can [spend] without having to raise tax rates themselves.
“Inflation and construction costs are going up,” Savidge added. “And state and local governments are starting to reconsider how much they’re spending because they realize they’re not getting as much bang for their buck. So, they have to reprioritize projects in order to really grapple with the construction costs lest they incur the ire of taxpayers.”
