In November of 2021, President Joe Biden had signed an infrastructure bill into law, as the beginning piece of a multi-trillion dollar “investment in America,” which he plans to enact over the next several years. America’s greenhouse gas emissions, the millions of miles of dilapidated roads, and utility disasters, such as the recent Texas power blackout, are among the many issues Biden hopes to tackle through his improvement in infrastructure. With this large-scale investment, the President is looking to put the country on par with other developed nations in the areas of green energy, public transit, healthcare systems, and domestic manufacturing.
As citizens continue living their daily lives, a large part of America’s infrastructure lies in ruins. According to remarks made by the White House,“ in the United States, 1 in 5 miles of highways, major roads, and 45,000 bridges, are in poor condition.” In addition, power failures cost America around 70 billion dollars annually. The President also mentioned the country’s failing public transit system, which is subpar to other prominent and developing nations. This lack of proper public transportation affects the poorer communities more profoundly, as they are more likely to use it. Lack of proper infrastructure widens the opportunity gap between advantaged and disadvantaged families. Biden believes the bill “will make the most important investment in public transit in American history.”
In his plan, the President outlined 10 main issues in American infrastructure that he hopes to address. One of his priorities is to eliminate all lead pipes. These lead pipes poison drinking water and cause neurological degeneration, particularly among the young. Currently, up to 10 million American households, 400,000 schools, and child care centers lack access to safe drinking water. The White House had reassured that the bill will improve water infrastructure, including water in underprivileged communities that need it the most.
The administration also pointed out that with an evolving work environment, where much takes place online, access to a more stable internet is a necessity. To address this fundamental requirement and “close the digital divide,” Biden promises that his bill will ensure all citizens have access to more affordable pricing for broadband services.
Moreover, a large portion of the infrastructure bill is aimed to improve overall transportation. Not only does rebuilding our transit system benefit the average American, the President points out that it is also a necessity in order to support the economy with shipments across the country and international trade. These investments include better roads and bridges, public transit, airports and seaports, passenger rails, and a network of electric vehicle chargers.
Although these improvements are beneficial, they come with a hefty price tag; in this case, a several trillion dollar one. As the Biden administration faces scrutiny over how the bill is to be funded, the President proposed several methods — the predominant one relying on hiking corporate taxes and cracking down on tax evasion. In addition, Biden argues that the investments would pay for themselves in the long run. According to a 57-page summary of the legislation, lawmakers leaned heavily on repurposing unused Covid-19 relief funds to pay for the bill. Furthermore, the infrastructure proposal relies on generating $56 billion in economic growth from a 33% return on investment on the long-term projects. Money would also be saved by delaying, and possibly reversing, a corporate tax cut signed into law by former President Donald Trump.
Despite Biden’s proposals for how the bill is to be paid, some feel that it is still under-funded. Critics from both parties, and non affiliates, calculated that even with the President’s corporate tax, and other provisions, the amount of money generated would fall short of the 1.2 trillion dollars needed to pay for the bill. “While lawmakers claim the package pays for itself,” CNN said in a statement, “it would instead add billions of dollars to the deficit over 10 years.” Not only are critics pointing out that the proposed methods of generating money are inadequate, the methods themselves are being attacked as “dangerously misguided.” Non-partisan groups, such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, fear that the increased corporate tax will have negative reverberations in the market.
Regardless of possible funding issues, experts agree that investment in infrastructure, such as roads and bridges, is imperative. That said, some questioned why only a disproportionately smaller amount of the bill was directed toward transportation, while mixing in “other types of policies” into legislation designed to upgrade the nation’s infrastructure. “They have a giant definition of infrastructure,” R. Richard Geddes said, an economist who advised former President George W. Bush. “These social issues are very important, but they aren’t nuts and bolts. We need to focus like a laser beam.” The social issues described include closing the opportunity gap, aiding the Tribal Nations, and a “dislocated worker program.”
This “once in a generation investment in America” has garnered bi-partisan support in both the House and Senate, and it is only one in Biden’s series of initiatives to build a better America.
Article by Huan Changvu of Cabin John Middle School
Photo courtesy of Creative Commons