Federal highway funds sweeten the deal for states hiring school-safety coordinators
H.R. 3931 — Kids on the Go Act of 2025 · Filed by Hillary Scholten (D-MI) · 15 cosponsors · Introduced Jun 11, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill amends federal highway funding rules to reward states that hire a dedicated 'safe routes to school' coordinator. If a state employs such a coordinator, the federal government will cover 95% of eligible project costs instead of the standard share, effectively reducing the state's financial burden for safe-routes-to-school infrastructure and programs.
Why we flagged it
The bill uses federal cost-share adjustment as a policy lever to encourage state hiring of safety coordinators. It is a straightforward incentive mechanism tied to a public-health objective (safe routes to school), not a subsidy, carve-out, or deregulation.
What the text implies
- States without existing safe-routes-to-school programs may need to establish new administrative capacity to hire and manage a coordinator, creating upfront costs that could deter participation in lower-capacity or lower-income states.
- The 95% federal share is higher than typical federal highway funding ratios, which may create pressure on the federal highway trust fund or require reallocation from other transportation priorities.
The full analysis lists 3 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
state and local governments (reduced project costs); construction and engineering firms (increased project volume if states pursue more safe-routes proje