Have Questions About this Program?
Todd O'Brien, PE
Grant and Special Projects Manager
todd.obrien@crab.wa.gov
360-485-1266
A new grant program is coming to county roads!
Over a third of Washington's road system have had no dedicated grant funding source, leaving counties with limited or no options for critical projects. At over 78,000 lane miles, Washington's entire county road system is enormous - it is enough to go around the equator three times! While vast and diverse in its needs, by far the biggest funding gap facing our road system today has been our local roads.
At 48,917 lane miles, county local roads are 2.5 times bigger than the entire state highway system and provide primary access to residential, industrial, agricultural, and commercial areas in all 39 counties.
Unfortunately, due to declining gas tax revenues, increasing inflationary measures, and decades of underinvestment in preservation in maintenance by the state, counties have been in no position to address significant projects on these roads and there has been no dedicated grant funding source to help.
Based on the recommendations of a 2024 study, the County Road Administration Board proposed a new program for the first time in 30 years: a competitive grant program for local roads flexible enough to meet the diverse needs of counties. The legislature agreed, creating the program and providing $21 million in much needed funding for the 2027-2029 biennium.
So, what happens now?
We at CRAB are working hard behind the scenes to stand up the program so our counties are ready to break ground in Summer 2027:
- New Staff: In October 2025 we brought on Todd O' Brien, PE to manage the program. He comes to the agency with decades of experience in county public works and grant experience.
- New Rules: Our staff is drafting WAC rules for a well-rounded, straightforward program for board review and approval. We are taking many aspects of what has made the RAP Program successful over the last 40 years and building the application process. It will help us demonstrate and quantify the need for the program for policymakers as we request short-term funding as we stand up the program and fully funding it at the requested $40 million level for the 2027-2029 biennium.
- New Technology: Using the same platform as the agency uses for other reporting and grant applications, an application form is being developed for using in the spring call for proposals.
- Lots of Communication: Todd and staff are hitting the road to meet with counties and stakeholders, solicit feedback, and answer questions about the program as it is being developed. Additional information will be added below as it becomes available.
Grant Application Schedule
The program is being implemented using a phased-in approach to recognize the realities of establishing a new program; priority will be given to projects that will be shovel-ready by Summer 2027. The program will be built using a fair, non-partisan scoring criteria that will drive investments to the highest need and priority projects.
| STEP | INFORMATION | DATE | |
|---|---|---|---|
| WAC Rules Drafted | The initial draft of WAC rules was drafted by the engineering staff, presented to the board for review and feedback, and a public hearing has been scheduled. | October 2025 | |
| County Outreach | Counties were met with in-person and virtually to collaborate on program needs, adjustments to drafted WAC rules, and project scoring criteria. | November 2025 | |
|
Final Draft WAC Published |
With consideration and adjustments made with the feedback of stakeholders, a final version of the WAC rules was published for a public hearing and solicitation of comments. Information about the public hearing was made available on our board meeting page. | December 2025 | |
|
WAC Rules Approved |
Following a public hearing on the published WAC rules, the board reviewed and adopted the WAC rules during the January board meeting. Additionally, a first call for projects was authorized by the board. | January 2026 | |
|
Call for Proposals |
A call for project proposals will be issued with an application deadline of April 1, 2026. | February 2026 | |
|
Proposal Review |
The staff will review and score applications for projects, perform field reviews and develop a project array for the board's review. |
April to July 2026 |
|
|
Project Approval |
The project array will be reviewed and approved during the July board meeting. Project awards will be announced and a budget will be submitted in September for the 2027-2029 biennium. | July 31, 2026 | |
| Awards Announced | Staff will mail out notice of awarded projects and contracts, subject to budget appropriations. | August 3-7, 2026 | |
| Contracts Due | Counties will sign and return project contracts no later than September 21, 2026. | September 21, 2026 | |
|
Projects Break Ground |
Funding for projects will be released July 1, 2027 as part of the 2027-2029 biennium. | Summer 2027 |
Eligible Projects
Eligible projects for the program will include 2R, 3R, reconstruction, bridge replacement, fish passage barriers, and pedestrian facilities on county local roads.
For the 2026 call for projects two project types will be prioritized, with 60% of the appropriation going to 2R projects (estimated $13.2 million) and 40% going toward pedestrian projects (estimated $8.8 million).
- For 2R projects, 67% of the appropriation will go toward rural areas with an FCC 09 (estimated $8.8 million) and 33% toward urban areas with a FFC 19 (estimated $4.4 million).
- For pedestrian projects, 75% of the appropriation will go toward urban areas (estimated $6.6 million) and 25% of the appropriation toward rural areas (estimated $2.2 million).
Ineligible Projects
Arterials and collector-designated roads and non-county roads are ineligible for the program.
Who May Apply
The program is available to all 39 counties in compliance with the Standards of Good Practice, demonstrated by a current Certificate of Good Practice or Conditional Certificate of Good Practice.
Funding
Funding for the program will come from the Move Ahead Washington transportation funding package.
Grant Limits
The total award limit for counties will be $1.5 million and whole project funding will be prioritized to facilitate completion within the 27-29 biennium. .
Match Details
- For 2R projects, the project funding limit will be $1 million with a 0% matching requirement for total projects estimates less than $750,000 and a 10% matching requirement for total project estimates over $750,000.
- For pedestrian projects, the project funding limit will be $750,000 with a 0% matching requirement for total projects estimates less than $500,000 and a 10% matching requirement for total project estimates over $500,000.