Dear John,
Last week I voted to support hard infrastructure for our state that is desperately needed—however there has been a lot of misinformation put out there about what is in the bill.
To be clear, I voted for the 2,702-page BIPARTISAN bill, which has not changed since the Senate passed it in August. There is much disinformation out there from people who are intentionally trying to confuse constituents.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act:
- Contains $550 billion in new spending. (Itemized below)
- The rest ($650 billion) is normally allocated each year for highways and other infrastructure projects through existing taxes and fees for the Highway Trust Fund, Inland Waterways Trust Fund, etc.
- Is supported by 70% of this district and Sens. Deb Fischer and Chuck Grassley.
- Has support from the U.S. Chamber, Nebraska Chamber, Omaha Chamber, Nebraska Farm Bureau, Nebraska Cattlemen, dozens of Labor Unions, manufacturers, etc.
- Uses unspent COVID dollars as its primary source of funding.
THIS is the new spending in the hard infrastructure bill I voted for:
$110 billion for roads and bridges.
- Includes $2.5 billion for Nebraska’s roads and highways
$65 billion for broadband. Includes funding to expand broadband in rural areas and in low-income communities.
- Nebraska will receive a minimum allocation of $100 million to help provide broadband coverage across the state
- 449,000 or 24% of people in Nebraska will be eligible for the Affordability Connectivity Benefit, which will help low-income families afford internet access.
$55 billion for water infrastructure.
- Includes $216 million to Nebraska for water revolving funds through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund program and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
- This bill provides opportunities for funding for many water infrastructure projects in Nebraska
$66 billion for railroads. Funding includes upgrades and maintenance of America’s passenger rail system and freight rail safety, but nothing for high-speed rail.
$39 billion for public transit. Funding here provides for upgrades to public transit systems nationwide. The allocation also includes money to create new bus routes and help make public transit more accessible to seniors and disabled Americans.
$65 billion for the power grid. The bill would fund updates to power lines and cables, as well as provide money to prevent hacking of the power grid. Clean energy funding is also included.
$47 billion for cybersecurity and climate change. The Resilience Fund will protect infrastructure from cybersecurity attacks and address flooding, wildfires, coastal erosion, and droughts along with other extreme weather events.
$25 billion for airports. This allocation provides funding for major upgrades and expansions at U.S. airports. Air traffic control towers and systems would receive $5 billion of the total for upgrades.
$21 billion for the environment. These monies would be used to clean up superfund and brownfield sites, abandoned mines, and old oil and gas wells.
$17 billion for ports. Half of the funds in this category would go to the Army Corps of Engineers for port infrastructure. Additional funds would go to the Coast Guard, ferry terminals, and reduction of truck emissions at ports.
$11 billion for safety. Appropriations here are to address highway, pedestrian, pipeline, and other safety areas with highway safety getting the bulk of the funding.
$8 billion for western water infrastructure. Ongoing drought conditions in the western half of the country will be addressed through investments in water treatment, storage, and reuse facilities.
$7.5 bill for electric vehicle charging stations. The Biden administration asked for this funding to build significantly more charging stations for electric vehicles across the nation.
$7.5 billion for electric school buses. With an emphasis on bus fleet replacement in low-income, rural, and tribal communities, this funding is expected to allow those communities to convert to zero-emission buses.
https://www.investopedia.com/here-s-what-s-in-the-usd1-trillion-infrastructure-bill-passed-by-the-senate-5196817
What’s NOT in the bill:
In short, I voted in the best interest of Nebraska’s 2nd district…for our roads, bridges, water infrastructure, rural broadband, and jobs.
I do NOT support the Biden-budget busting “Build Back Better” plan or the reconciliation plan that does add more IRS agents, taxes, and cradle to grave welfare programs.
As always, please contact our office at (402) 938-0300 or visit my website at https://bacon.house.gov/contact/.
Sincerely,
Don Bacon
