Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Some $40 million from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding has been announced and is headed to American Samoa — where this year alone American Samoa will receive more than $8 million for transportation to invest in roads, bridges, public transit, ports and airports and nearly $31 million for clean water.

This is according to the White House’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Fact Sheet on American Samoa released last week and also includes the update on funding for states and territories from this federal law.

ROADS & BRIDGES

Through the federal Territorial Highway Program, American Samoa would expect to receive approximately $24 million over five years to rebuild its roads and bridges, according to the Fact Sheet, which also states that to date American Samoa has been allocated $4.6 million through this highway program.

INTERNET

American Samoa will receive a minimum allocation of at least $25 million to help ensure high-speed internet coverage across the territory. Additionally, the federal law’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) provides eligible households $30 per month off their internet bills. ACP-eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers.

Progress to date, according to the Fact Sheet, is that about 2,000 households in American Samoa are enrolled in the ACP with more signing up every day. (Households can check their eligibility, sign up, and find fully covered internet plans at GetInternet.gov).

Samoa News notes that the American Samoa TeleCommunications Authority and Bluesky Communications are the local telecom providers participating in the ACP program, administered by the U.S Federal Communications Commission (https://www.fcc.gov/acp).

WATER INFRASTRUCTURE

To date, approximately $31 million is available in fiscal year 2022 to provide clean and safe water across the territory. Of this funding, over $10 million is dedicated to lead pipe and service line replacement, with another $6.7 million for safe drinking water investments that can also support lead pipe replacement in fiscal year 2022.

PUBLIC TRANSIT

Based on formula funding alone, American Samoa would expect to receive more than $7.5 million over five years to improve public transit across the territory, according to the Fact Sheet, which notes that transit formula funding amounts are subject to changes resulting from the 2020 census or from annual transit service data reported to federal’s National Transit Database.

CLEAN ENERGY & POWER

The federal law provides investment to upgrade power infrastructure by making the grid more resilient and building thousands of miles of new transmission lines to deliver clean, affordable electricity. It also provides funding for weatherization to improve energy efficiency of homes and lower energy costs.

To date, more than $820,000 has been allocated to American Samoa in 2022 for weatherization and more than $698,000 to help prevent outages and make the power grid more resilient in 2022. Additional grid funding will be made available in the coming months.

The Fact Sheet also states that to date:

• American Samoa has received more than $1.2 million in 2022 for airports.

• $300,000 has been allocated to American Samoa for infrastructure resilience in 2022.

According to the Fact Sheet, many more projects will be added in the coming months for American Samoa, as funding opportunities become grant awards and as formula funds become specific projects. “By reaching communities all across American Samoa, the law makes critical investments that will improve lives for the people of American Samoa and position the region for success,” it says.