The HEAT Act: Federal Emergency Funds Now Cover Bridge Damage from Extreme Heat Waves

The “Heat Emergency Assistance for Transportation Act of 2025,” or the HEAT Act, is pretty straightforward: it officially adds "extreme heat" to the list of natural disasters that qualify for federal emergency relief funding for roads and bridges. Right now, if a massive storm or flood takes out a section of highway, states can tap into the Federal Highway Administration’s emergency funds (23 U.S.C. 125) to fix it fast. This bill simply updates the law to include heat waves, recognizing that extreme, long-duration heat can buckle roads, crack concrete, and jam up critical infrastructure like movable bridges (Sec. 2).

The New Disaster Checklist

Think about the last time you saw a news story about a city spraying down a drawbridge with water to keep it from sticking—that’s the problem this bill is trying to solve. The findings section of the HEAT Act points out that extreme heat is actively degrading our aging infrastructure, particularly the 85,000+ bridges over 50 years old. By amending the emergency relief program, the bill ensures that state departments of transportation (DOTs) can immediately seek federal money to repair damage caused by an acute heat event, just like they would for a tornado or wildfire. This is a big deal for supply chains and commuters because it means faster repairs when a heat wave shuts down a critical freight route or a bridge connecting two parts of a metropolitan area (Sec. 3).

The Fine Print on Funding

While the bill is about getting fast cash for fast fixes, there’s a crucial limitation tucked into Section 3. The emergency relief funds cannot be used to repair a bridge if its physical deterioration was “substantially caused by exposure to extreme heat” before the acute event. Essentially, if a bridge was already slowly cooking and falling apart over years of neglect, the state can’t wait for a record-breaking heat wave to suddenly claim federal emergency money to fix the long-term problem. This provision aims to prevent states from using emergency funds for deferred maintenance, forcing them to address the underlying issue of aging infrastructure resilience rather than waiting for a crisis. However, this could lead to some sticky arguments between state DOTs and the federal government over what counts as 'acute damage' versus 'pre-existing deterioration.'

Mapping the Heat Damage

Beyond immediate funding, the HEAT Act mandates two forward-looking reports. First, the Secretary of Transportation must commission a study by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) to figure out the real cost of extreme heat damage and, crucially, how to track it. Right now, it’s hard to separate heat damage from regular wear and tear, making it difficult to plan and budget for climate resilience. The TRB study will provide recommendations on how states, transit systems, and freight rail can better track damage specifically caused by heat waves (Sec. 4). This data is essential for anyone who budgets for infrastructure—from city planners to construction companies—because you can’t manage what you don’t measure.

Second, the Secretary must issue a report within one year on the best management practices for highway and bridge safety related to extreme heat (Sec. 5). For the engineers and construction workers out there, this means updated guidance on materials and techniques designed to withstand higher temperatures. For everyone else, better practices mean less risk of your commute being shut down because a bridge expansion joint failed in August. Overall, the HEAT Act is a smart, proactive move that fills a clear gap in disaster preparedness, ensuring our infrastructure funding catches up to our changing climate.