39-1365.02. State highway system; federal funding; maximum use; department; report on system needs and planning procedures.

(1) The department shall apply for and make maximum use of available federal funding, including discretionary funding, on all highway construction projects which are eligible for such assistance.

(2) The department shall transmit electronically to the Legislature, by December 1 of each year, a report on the needs of the state highway system, the department's planning procedures, and the progress being made on the expressway system. Such report shall include:

(a) The criteria by which highway needs are determined;

(b) The standards established for each classification of highways;

(c) An assessment of current and projected needs of the state highway system, such needs to be defined by category of improvement required to bring each segment up to standards. Projected fund availability shall not be a consideration by which needs are determined;

(d) Criteria and data, including factors enumerated in section 39-1365.01, upon which decisions may be made on possible special priority highways for commercial growth;

(e) A review of the department's procedure for selection of projects for the annual construction program, the five-year planning program, and extended planning programs;

(f) A review of the progress being made toward completion of the expressway system, as such system was designated on January 1, 2016, and whether such work is on pace for completion prior to June 30, 2033;

(g) A review of the Transportation Infrastructure Bank Fund and the fund's component programs under sections 39-2803 to 39-2807. This review shall include a listing of projects funded and planned to be funded under each of the three component programs; and

(h) A review of the outcomes of the Economic Opportunity Program, including the growth in permanent jobs and related income and the net increase in overall business activity.

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