Frequently Asked Questions

There were many noteworthy bills pertaining to transportation that occurred during the 2023 legislative session. A full summary of those bills can be found on the Wasatch Front Regional Council 2023 Legislative Session Wrap-Up document. As it pertains to the TIF/TTIF funding, the most notable adjustment that was made during the 2023 session was the adjustment of the match requirement for the TTIF programs from a required 40% match to a required 30% match. This was outlined in SB27, Transportation Revisions. This new match amount will not be applied retroactively, but will apply to all TTIF programmed projects moving forward.

Another notable aspect of the 2023 legislative session was the creation of the ATIF (Active Transportation Investment Fund) and the Utah Trail Network (UTN). This process, and especially the TIF Active, does not include ATIF and the UTN, that program will be managed by a separate UDOT group and more information be be available in the future.

The Utah Transportation Commission uses a project prioritization process to inform funding decision-making for the Transportation Investment Fund (TIF) and the Transit Transportation Investment Fund (TTIF). This includes a project nomination process following requirements set out in Utah Code Section 72-1-304 and Utah Administrative Code Section R940-6 (both available for review here). 

A ranked list is provided to the Transportation Commission as a decision support tool in selecting projects to receive funds. The Transportation Commission, in consultation with UDOT, may use other considerations in funding decisions for capacity projects.

No, although if the Transportation Commission funds one project over another project that has a higher prioritization rank under the criteria set forth in R940-6-4, the Transportation Commission will identify the reasons for the decision and accept public comment on that decision at a public meeting.

The RTPs are the four plans developed by the state’s four Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) that forecast the state’s transportation needs for the next 20-plus years. For areas outside of the MPOs, UDOT produces an LRP which serves the same purpose. Plans can be found on each agency’s website.

• Cache MPO

• Wasatch Front Regional Council

• Mountainland Association of Governments 

• Dixie MPO

• UDOT Planning

A project is a good candidate to be nominated for the TIF/TTIF programs if:

• It is on a locally adopted and agreed upon plan

• Has very clear extents or limits

• It has a recent cost estimation completed - we highly recommend nominating with design level costing not planning level costing!

• There has been careful consideration of any environmental impacts that could occur as a result of the project. Projects will be delayed and will likely go over budget if this doesn't occur.

• There is a staff member at the local community level who is available to champion the project through construction 

Local governments and districts may nominate projects for consideration in the prioritization process. The nomination information can be found here. The projects are then prioritized and ranked using the decision support models described in the New Transportation Capacity Project Prioritization Process document (available here). The Utah Transportation Commission then uses the ranked list as a decision support tool to determine which projects to fund. 

Utah Code Section 72-1-304 allows a local government or district to nominate a project for prioritization. Nominations are required for TIF Active and TTIF projects since a match is required as part of the eligibility. TTIF Transit and TIF Highway programs also open a nomination window, but for those programs phase one projects from the Unified Transportation Plan are automatically considered.

Duly authorized representatives of local governments and districts, including transit districts, may nominate a project into the prioritization process.

If a project falls within a community that is required to comply with the Moderate Income Housing (MIH) requirements the project can be programed for funding only if the community or area is in compliance with the requirements. This applies for both TIF and TTIF funding. Division of Workforce Services (DWS) oversees the MIH tracking.

TIF Active Project Eligibility Requirements

An eligible project must:

• Be a paved pedestrian or paved nonmotorized transportation project

• Be a part of the UDOT Active Transportation Plan

• Mitigate traffic congestion on the state highway system

• Be maintained by the local government or district

• Have a 40% match. The match can be:

  • Non UDOT managed state funding

  • Federal funding

  • Local funding (including MPO, or county, etc.) 

  • In-kind or right-of-way contribution

TTIF Transit Project Eligibility Requirements

An eligible project must:

• Be a public transit project that adds capacity to a public transit system within the state

• Have an ongoing funding plan for maintenance and operations of the project. If the project sponsor is a local government, this will require consultation with the transit operator to determine if the plan is consistent with the transit operator’s maintenance and operations planning

• Have a 30% match. The match can be: 

  • Non UDOT managed state funding 

  • Federal funding

  • Local funding (including MPO, or county, etc.)

  • In-kind or right-of-way contribution

• Be identified on phase one of the appropriate Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) or Long Range Plan (LRP) if the project would provide new fixed-guideway public transit service. Or must have been determined as a phase one need in the long-range planning process.

TTIF First & Last Mile Project Eligibility Requirements

An eligible project must:

• Be a pedestrian or nonmotorized transportation project that provide connection to a public transit system

• Be maintained by the local government or district

• Have a 30% match. The match can be:

  • Non UDOT managed state funding

  • Federal funding

  • Local funding (including MPO, or county, etc.) 

  • In-kind or right-of-way contribution

For TIF active projects and TTIF transit and first/last projects, a match is required. This match cannot be from a UDOT administered state funding source, but most other funding sources (i.e. local, county, federal, private) are eligible. In addition, the match can be in-kind, meaning non-cash matches including services (labor), right-of-way, construction, materials, and/or labor/equipment time valued at fair market value.

The match is calculated as simply 40% of the total project cost for TIF active projects, and 30% of the total project cost for TTIF first/last mile projects and TTIF transit projects. An inflation calculator is available here.

See this tab for information on nominations.

For the 2023 cycle, all projects need to be resubmitted.

The Transportation Commission will automatically prioritize an input list made up of state highway capacity projects identified in phase one (fiscally constrained) of the Regional Transportation Plans (RTP) and Long Range Transportation Plans (LRP) that are over $5,000,000. In addition, the Commission may also consider projects that have been determined as a Phase 1 need in the RTP or LRP.

As an exception, a local government may nominate a highway project for the Transportation Commission to consider adding to the input list. If the Transportation Commission makes a motion and approves a project being added to the input list all the projects are then prioritized and ranked using the decision support model.

 See below for a TIF Highway Project flowchart

An eligible project must:

• Be a transportation capacity project that is or will be part of the state highway system

• Have an estimated project cost of more than $5,000,000

Funding usually becomes available the next fiscal year from whenever the projects were programed. UDOT operates on a June 30th - July 1st fiscal year. However, funding availability and projected revenues may change as projections are updated so a UDOT representative will provide more information on this question.

There is no set dollar amount or percentage of TTIF set aside for Transit and First & Last Mile projects.

No, it can be spent over multiple years. A UDOT representative will work with you to determine a schedule that works for the project. This schedule will be articulated in the project agreement that will be signed to initiate the project.

This question is best addressed with the UDOT project manager assigned to your project. 

No. However, there is a 40% match requirement for TIF active projects and a 30% match requirements for TTIF first/last mile and transit projects no matter the total project project amount.