Tester Secures Funds For Poplar Path Project
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., has announced more than $26 million in funding for infrastructure projects in rural communities across Montana. The funding will come from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Surface Transportation Block Grant program, which Tester expanded as part of his bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Tester was the only member of Montana’s congressional delegation to support the bipartisan infrastructure law and was one of the lead bipartisan negotiators who crafted the package.
The projects include $1.5 million for Northeast Poplar Multi-Use Path Project for the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes.
“Too many folks in Washington, D.C., don’t understand the challenges rural Americans face and the critical role our roads and bridges play in keeping communities connected,” said Tester. “That’s why I worked with Republicans and Democrats to pass my bipartisan infrastructure law, so we can invest in Montana’s roads, bridges, high-speed internet, water systems and more to help grow our economy and strengthen our rural communities. This funding will help small towns from Sunburst to Whitehall stay connected, and I’m proud to see these federal dollars going to projects that will serve the Treasure State.”
Tester has led the charge to secure funding for infrastructure projects that will increase connectivity across Montana’s rural communities. The STBG grant program specifically sets aside funding for infrastructure projects in communities with fewer than 50,000 residents, and more than $7.7 million of the funding Tester secured will go to projects in Montana towns with fewer than 5,000 people.
Tester worked across the aisle for months to negotiate the IIJA with a group of five Republicans, four Democrats, and the White House. Tester’s law is projected to create more than 800,000 American jobs and lower costs for businesses by making targeted investments that will strengthen our nation without raising taxes on working families.
