WASHINGTON -- Infrastructure, affordable housing and neighborhood safety were focus points for Little Rock Mayor Frank Scott Jr. as he visited the nation's capital last week to attend the winter meeting of the United States Conference of Mayors.
Governments at the state and local level can expect expanded and new competitive grant programs under the sprawling infrastructure package signed by President Joe Biden last year, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Under the infrastructure measure, Arkansas is expected to secure more than $4 billion in funding for a variety of broad infrastructure sectors over five years, according to past White House estimates.
Scott, who leads the most populous city in Arkansas, said he spoke about the infrastructure bill with White House officials and members of the senior team for U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Cities are looking to draw more infrastructure money for their municipalities and conversations with federal officials are about building a connection, he said.
"That's the whole point in making these types of trips," Scott said in an interview Friday. "So there's a face with the name. That they understand the application. They understand the city."
The mayor said he received a call from the White House about Biden infrastructure czar Mitch Landrieu wanting to visit Little Rock.
"So that's a great example of why we make these connections and why we come to D.C. to advocate on behalf" of Arkansas' capital city, Scott said.
In November, Biden announced that Landrieu, the former mayor of New Orleans, would be responsible for coordinating the implementation of the infrastructure measure.
Mayors attend conference meetings to raise their city's profile for companies looking to do business in their municipalities, Scott said.
It also gives mayors the opportunity to connect and learn from one another on issues they all experience, he said.
With the infrastructure bill, cities will be able to apply for competitive grant programs, including a safe streets program that aims to help advance efforts to decrease deaths and crashes, particularly for pedestrians and cyclists, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Speaking at the winter meeting, Buttigieg struck a tone of cooperation.
"What we want to get to is a level where the cities and the local communities can tell us what you're trying to achieve and then we can guide you into the kinds of things you ought to apply for, instead of you having to master that federal roster of every corner of every program," he said.
It's anticipated the Natural State would get nearly $3.6 billion for highway programs and $278 million to replace and fix bridges based on formula funding, according to a past White House analysis.
The infrastructure law will provide an estimated $246 million to bolster options for public transportation in Arkansas over five years, the Biden administration previously reported
Affordable housing is an issue in Little Rock, Scott acknowledged in an interview Friday. The city is working with members of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to figure out how to continue to bring in more federal dollars, he said.