Executive Summary

This whitepaper analyzes increases in construction costs from the pandemic to contemporary period. Factors include pandemic-based supply chain issues, labor market changes, petroleum price increases, and increased demand for contractors. The paper looks at competing metrics of construction inflation and their implications for the power of federal transportation funding, including Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) dollars, in the 2022-2024 timeline. The paper also explores potential implications of a higher baseline for project costs and how the industry is adapting to continued uncertainty.