$1.2 trillion will be invested in the nation’s infrastructure for all modes of transportation.
On August 10, 2021, the Senate passed the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act (IIJA). IIJA provides $550 billion in new spending over five years (FY 2022 through FY 2026) and $1.2 trillion over an eight-year timeframe to invest in the nation’s infrastructure. Included in IIJA is funding for all modes of transportation (roads, bridges, rail, transit, ports, and airports), environmental remediation, power and energy, water systems, and broadband, among other priorities. It is the result of months of negotiations between the Biden Administration and a bipartisan group of 22 Senators on the infrastructure component of Biden’s original American Jobs Plan.
Specifically, IIJA would provide $110 billion in new spending for roads and bridges; $73 billion for power grid upgrades; $66 billion for passenger and freight rail; $65 billion for broadband expansion; $55 billion for water infrastructure; $50 billion for resiliency and western water storage; $39 billion for public transit; $25 billion for airports; $17 billion for ports and waterways; $15 billion for electric vehicles; and, $11 billion for road safety. The full text of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act can be accessed here.
FY2022 Budget Resolution
On August 11, 2021, the Senate passed a $3.5 trillion budget resolution that includes investments in the environment, working families, health care, and the elderly. The House will review the budget resolution the week of August 23. If the resolution passes, Democrats can use the budget reconciliation process to pass the legislation on a party-line vote and move to a reconciliation plan for consideration in the Fall. Details of the budget resolution are below:
FOR HEALTH CARE
- Adds a new dental, vision, and hearing benefit to the Medicare program
- Extends the recent expansion of the Affordable Care Act in the ARP
- Invests in home and community-based services to help seniors, persons with disabilities, and home care workers
- Creates a federal health program for Americans in the “Medicaid gap”
- Reduces prescription drug costs for patients and saves taxpayers billions of dollars
FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
- Creates a new Clean Electricity Payment Program
- Develops tax incentives and grants for clean energy, manufacturing, and transportation tax incentives
- Imposes new polluter fees (methane and carbon imports)
- Invests in climate smart agriculture and forest management
- Creates coastal and ocean resiliency programs
- Invests in drought and wildfire mitigation and the Department of Interior
- Provides rebates for home electrification and weatherization
- Promotes environmental justice and climate resilience
- Electrifies the federal vehicle fleet and buildings
FOR FAMILIES
- Establishes universal pre-K for three- and four-year-old children and a new childcare benefit for working families
- Makes community college tuition-free for two years
- Extends the largest tax cut for families with children ever—Child Tax Credit, Earned Income Tax Credit, Child, and Dependent Care Tax Credit
- Increases the Pell Grant award and makes investments in Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Minority Serving Institutions, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Institutions
- Creates federal paid Family and Medical Leave benefit
CONTRIBUTING TO INFRASTRUCTURE AND JOBS
- Invests in public housing and green and sustainable housing
- Establishes the Civilian Climate Corps
- Invests in workforce development and job training programs
- Provides green cards to millions of immigrants
- Funds smart technology for safe and efficient borders for trade, travel, and migration
- Invests in Native American infrastructure projects
- Rehabilitates aging Veterans Administration buildings and hospitals
- Invests in new economic development to revitalize communities and transform regions
- Invests in research and development to strengthen the U.S. manufacturing supply chain
- Expands access to capital and markets for small businesses