Rural Access Infrastructure Fund Program

The South Dakota Legislature created the Rural Access Infrastructure Fund to help townships and counties repair and replace culverts and bridges on township and county secondary roads. Six legislative bills passed in 2021 – 2024 define RAIF:

Year	Bill	Effect
2021	HB1259	Created RAIF; allocated $3M in FY22 to local agencies to inventory their culverts and small bridges; allocated $3M in FY23 for improvements to culverts and small bridges; defined eligibility requirements for agencies, roads, culverts and small bridges, and improvements; defined requirements for improvement plans and grant applications
2022	HB1070	Clarified provisions of HB1259 and adjusted dates for improvement plans and grant applications
2022	HB1306	Allocated $25M ($8.33M in FY23, FY24, and FY25) to local agencies for improvements to culverts and small bridges
2023	SB145	Reduced the mill levy required for townships to be eligible for RAIF
2024	SB124	Made culverts and small bridges on Minimum Maintenance Roads eligible for RAIF
2024	SB188	Requires funding currently authorized by RAIF to be spent or obligated no later than June 30, 2029

Important ANNUAL Dates and Deadlines

May 31	The South Dakota Department of Transportation determines the number of eligible culverts and small bridges in each county, based on the content of the South Dakota Small Structure Inventory. Counties and townships should ensure that their inventories are accurate and up to date.
August 1	The South Dakota Department of Revenue distributes RAIF funding to counties, in proportion to the number of eligible culverts and small bridges in the county
August 31	Local agencies must submit 5-Year Small Improvement Plans to their county
October 31	Local agencies must submit funding applications to their county
January 15	County boards of commissioners must decide which funding applications to approve

Resources

The South Dakota Department of Transportation provides several resources to help counties and townships comply with the legislative requirements and take advantage of RAIF funding.

Section	Content
Introduction	Document purpose and content; training and resources.
Rural Access Infrastructure Funding	Enabling legislation and statutes; funding distributions; agency and structure eligibility; annual calendar
Small Structure Inventory	Processes for collecting, maintaining, and retrieving inventory data
Small Structure Improvement Plans	5-Year Improvement Plan requirements and guidance
Funding Applications	Funding application requirements and guidance
RAIF Template Spreadsheet	Instructions for using the RAIF_Templates spreadsheet to verify inventory data and to produce documents required for improvement plans and grant applications
Appendices	Rural Access Infrastructure Funding statutes and legislation; Glossary; Small Structure Inventory items; cross-section areas of standard culvert shapes

Rural Access Infrastructure Fund Program

Important ANNUAL Dates and Deadlines

Resources

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