By Kimberlyn King-Hinds
Washington Examiner
AS the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee prepares to advance a new surface transportation reauthorization bill, Congress faces a consequential question: Are we prepared to invest in infrastructure not only as an economic necessity, but as a pillar of American national security? For those of us representing America’s territories, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, the answer must be yes.
Too often, surface transportation debates in Washington focus narrowly on congestion, commuting times, or domestic commerce. Those are important issues. But for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, transportation infrastructure carries a far greater strategic significance. Roads, ports, freight corridors, and logistics networks in the territories are essential to America’s military readiness, disaster response capabilities, and geopolitical posture in increasingly contested regions. That reality is especially clear in the CNMI.
Located in the Western Pacific, the Northern Mariana Islands sit in one of the most strategically important regions in the world. As the United States continues strengthening its posture in the Indo-Pacific, our islands are becoming increasingly important to force mobility, logistics, and regional deterrence. Military investments in the Marianas are growing, training activity is increasing, and the region’s strategic importance has never been higher.
But military readiness cannot exist independently from civilian infrastructure. The same roads used by our residents every day are the roads needed for emergency response, supply movement, and access to critical facilities. The same port infrastructure that sustains our economy is also essential for maintaining operational flexibility in the Pacific. When typhoons damage transportation corridors in the CNMI, the consequences are not merely local inconveniences, they expose vulnerabilities in America’s broader regional preparedness.
That is why surface transportation reauthorization must include a stronger territorial and national security lens. For decades, federal transportation formulas have failed to adequately account for the realities of island jurisdictions. Existing funding models rely heavily on population metrics that overlook the extraordinary costs associated with building and maintaining infrastructure in remote, import-dependent environments. Construction materials must travel thousands of miles. Equipment mobilization is expensive. Supply chain disruptions are frequent. Skilled labor is scarce. And severe weather events routinely accelerate infrastructure deterioration.
Yet despite these challenges, territories are often expected to compete for discretionary grants against large states with vastly greater administrative capacity and resources. Congress can and should do better. The next surface transportation bill should include targeted provisions that recognize the strategic importance of U.S. territories. That means strengthening formula funding for insular areas, expanding technical assistance for territorial governments applying for competitive grants, and prioritizing resilience investments for infrastructure located in disaster-prone and strategically significant regions.
Resilience must be viewed through both a civilian and defense perspective. In the Pacific, a damaged roadway or compromised port can affect local commerce, emergency operations, humanitarian assistance, and military logistics. Ensuring reliable and redundant infrastructure has become essential.
This conversation also extends beyond the Pacific. Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands serve critical roles in the Caribbean, where transportation infrastructure is similarly vulnerable to natural disasters and supply chain disruptions. A truly national infrastructure strategy cannot exclude America’s territories from full consideration.
Importantly, investing in territorial infrastructure is not charity. It is a strategic investment in America’s long-term security and economic resilience. The United States cannot credibly project strength in the Indo-Pacific while neglecting the infrastructure of the very American communities that anchor our presence there. Nor can we expect territorial governments to support growing federal missions without modern, resilient transportation systems capable of sustaining them.
The upcoming reauthorization bill presents Congress with an opportunity to think beyond traditional infrastructure politics. We can continue treating territorial transportation needs as an afterthought, or we can recognize that the roads, ports, and logistics systems in places like the Northern Mariana Islands are directly tied to America’s strategic interests abroad.
In an era of global competition and growing instability, infrastructure is no longer just about what connects us economically. It is about what secures us nationally.
Delegate Kimberlyn King-Hinds represents the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands at-large in the U.S. House of Representatives and serves on the House Transportation and Infrastructure, Veterans’ Affairs, and Small Business Committees.
