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Oregon will start receiving smaller payments from the Federal Highway Trust Fund starting in August, according to the state’s interpretation of federal changes announced this week.

That is the plan if Congress does not approve legislation to bolster the shrinking pot of money by the end of July, Oregon Department of Transportation Chief of Staff Travis Brouwer said.

Oregon receives about 1.2 percent of the $2 billion to $2.8 billion in trust fund revenues the federal government distributes monthly. In June, Oregon received $39.8 million in federal funding. This past August, typically the peak month, the state received $69 million.

Now, Oregon is likely to receive between $25.4 million and $35.6 million monthly – a significant drop that could result in between $50 million and $100 million in IOUs from the federal government by the end of November, Brouwer said. ODOT should be able to pay for projects through then, he added.

“We’re hopeful that Congress would take action before August and certainly by the end of November, he said.

Also, the state will , rather than a weekly one, starting Aug. 1, according to a that Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx sent to state transportation departments on Tuesday. Typically, the Oregon Department of Transportation sends out reimbursement requests on a weekly basis and receives payment the same day.

Oregon is in better position than others states are to handle reduced funding over the next several months because it has dedicated reserves from bond sales that would not need to be spent in the short term, Brouwer said. The state has more cash on hand than most other states, he said.

“It would not affect current projects or contractors working on them or their workers or suppliers,” he said.

In the long term, however, the state would face challenges because it will rely heavily on federal funding as state-funded bonding programs near completion.

“We are more … reliant (on federal dollars) for new projects than most states,” he said. “So we are in a worse position than other states in terms of what we have to do.”

As a result, many federally-funded bridge and paving projects that would otherwise go to bid this fall will likely be delayed without action by Congress, Brouwer said. However, he thinks efforts by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., to find a short-term Highway Trust Fund patch will be successful before Congress recesses in August.

Wyden, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, agreed to a downsized $8 billion infusion that would carry the fund at least through the end of the year. Congress is expected to vote on the plan next week.