Congress funds wildlife crossings to save lives—human and animal

What it does

This bill reauthorizes and expands the federal Wildlife Road Crossing Program, which funds infrastructure projects that help animals safely cross highways. It allocates $200 million per year from the Highway Trust Fund for fiscal years 2027–2031, removes the program's 'pilot' status to make it permanent, provides 100% federal funding for tribal projects, and sets aside up to 1% of funds for technical assistance to tribes and grant administration.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core function is straightforward: it reauthorizes and expands a federal program funding wildlife crossing infrastructure on highways. It is a routine authorization of appropriations with modest administrative provisions.

What the text implies

• Permanent elevation of wildlife crossings from pilot to ongoing program may signal long-term federal commitment to ecosystem connectivity, potentially influencing future land-use and transportation planning at state and local levels.
• 100% federal funding for tribal projects may create expectation or precedent for full federal cost-sharing on other tribal infrastructure initiatives, with budgetary implications beyond this program.
• Technical assistance carve-out (0.5%) may improve tribal access to federal funding streams more broadly if tribes gain capacity to navigate other grant programs.

Who it affects

The bill funds infrastructure that reduces wildlife-vehicle collisions, protecting both animals and human safety on roads. Tribal communities receive full federal funding and dedicated technical support, addressing a historically underserved population. The program has broad public benefit with no apparent private-sector carve-outs or hidden costs to taxpayers.

Who stands to gain

• construction and engineering firms (wildlife crossing design/build)
• transportation infrastructure contractors
• tribal governments (direct funding recipients)

Named in the bill

Highway Trust Fund, Section 171 of Title 23 USC, Indian tribes / tribal governments, U.S. Department of Transportation (Secretary), Federal, state, regional, and tribal government entities, Private contractors and nonprofit entities

Where it stands

3 cosponsors: 2 Republicans, 1 Democrats.

• Dec 16, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• Dec 16, 2025 — Referred to Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

5 lobbying clients named this bill on 5 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $820,724 in lobbying spend. A filing names 29 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 78% of bills with at least one filing.

Martin Heinrich, the sponsor, reported $455,777 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company — $370,000 on 1 filing
• World Wildlife Fund, Inc. — $220,000 on 1 filing
• National Parks Conservation Association — $150,724 on 1 filing
• Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership — $50,000 on 1 filing
• Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation — $30,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.