Rouzer was joined by North Carolina Department of Transportation secretary Joey Hopkins, Coastal Beverage Company president Tee Nunnelee, and Rodney Davis from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The congressman was drumming up support for the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill, also called the Highway Bill. He said the bill would grant more money for crucial infrastructure on the federal, state and local levels, and give greater discretion on spending to the DOT secretary.
The bill would reauthorize a previous infrastructure bill which is set to expire in September 2026. Congress has the option of extending the current bill for another year or two. But Rouzer said passing a new law would allow for more funding to cope with inflated construction costs and population growth.
"Those that live around the Wilmington area or in Pender County and certainly in Brunswick County know how much growth this area has seen. And quite honestly, our roads and bridges… we're behind the eight ball," he said.
Hopkins said if passed, the bill could serve as one source of funding to replace the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge.
"We can fund these much needed projects like Cape Fear Memorial Bridge as an example here, and that's very important to us," Hopkins said.
Rouzer didn't say how much funding would be available if the bill were to pass, or what other federal funding could be made available for the replacement, which is projected to exceed $1.2 billion.
"I suspect that that price tag will climb a little bit as time moves forward," Rouzer said. "So it's going to require an innovative approach to address that kind of funding gap, but I can assure you that at the federal, state and local level, we're all working to achieve that."
The congressman did say the bill would need strong bipartisan support. Rouzer hopes to have the Highway Bill ready for the president's signature by early spring or summer of 2026.
