WASHINGTON — Aurora Mayor Steve Hogan and Jefferson County Commissioner Libby Szabo met Thursday with Trump administration officials as part of a White House effort to solicit input from local leaders on how to improve U.S. infrastructure.

The two Colorado Republicans were among a few dozen governors, mayors and other community leaders invited to the nation’s capital for the summit, and both Hogan and Szabo said a key goal of the trip was to tout local initiatives.

It provided a “chance to interact with representatives of the new administration on projects of interest to Aurora; things like the I-70/Piccadilly Interchange, the 6th Avenue extension and the pedestrian bridge over Parker Road at Nine Mile,” said Hogan in a statement.

Szabo spoke of the need to improve I-70 but said she wasn’t sure of the best way to pay for infrastructure improvements. Raising the gas tax was “probably not” an option, she said.

Rather, Szabo suggested cutting other areas of the federal budget, though she didn’t identify a specific program or agency when asked. At the outset of Trump’s administration, rebuilding U.S. infrastructure was seen as one of the few issues where the new president could find common cause with congressional Democrats.

But the rollout of his infrastructure initiative this week, which included a call to privatize the nation’s air-traffic control system, has ignited debate on whether Trump’s budget includes enough money to pay for road, bridge and other improvements — even with contributions from the business sector.