President Joe Biden’s $1 trillion infrastructure bill seeks to increase funding of federal projects

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris rejoice as they watch the Senate pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill. WikiCommons

After months of negotiations, the bipartisan infrastructure bill was officially signed by President Joe Biden Nov. 15. The historic $1 trillion bill includes funds for public infrastructure, transportation, water works and rural internet access.

"(Americans will) see the effects of the bill — this bill — probably starting within the next two to three months," Biden told reporters after the bill passed. “(The bill is) going to have a profound impact over time."

The bill allocates $65 million specifically to increasing broadband internet access in rural areas around the country. When the country shifted to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, many families lacked the accessibility and reliable internet access to adapt to the digital environment. The U.S. Census Bureau found approximately 4.4 million households with children did not have consistent access to internet for online learning. 

Rocio Avila, a second grade Spanish teacher at Burleson Elementary School, had multiple students who struggled with internet access and were forced to miss multiple days of school as a result. 

“Students who were struggling academically got even more behind,” Avila told the Panther. 

Currently, around 30 million Americans are living in areas without broadband internet access. The infrastructure bill plans to lower the cost of internet services to help close the “digital divide” being experienced by many Americans, and states will be able to apply for grants to fund broadband infrastructure. 

The bill also outlines a $55 billion investment to bring clean drinking water to households, schools and childcare centers in communities where it's needed most. The money will specifically be used to build water infrastructure that will replace lead pipes. 

“You’ve got all of these municipalities, all of these states, with water projects, but because that fund was never authorized at a higher level, it never has enough money to fund all the projects,” Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) said.

About $110 billion will go toward rebuilding and repairing roads; additionally, this money will be used to fund the “Safe Streets and and Roads for All” grant program, which works to reduce traffic fatalities. 

The bill is putting $39 billion into improving the United States’ public transit systems. The legislation will expand public transit options across every state in the country and replace thousands of deficient transit vehicles — including buses — with clean, zero emission vehicles. This move will also improve accessibility for the elderly and people with disabilities.

U.S. residents can also expect upgrades to the nation’s airports and ports to strengthen supply chains in order to prevent disruptions causing inflation. This will improve U.S. competitiveness, increase job accessibility and quality at these hubs and reduce carbon emissions.

“Supply chains are something that most of our citizens never think twice about until something goes wrong,” said Biden at an Oct. 30 G-20 summit. “During this pandemic, we’ve seen delays and backlogs of goods from automobiles to electronics, from shoes to furniture.”

$17 billion will be invested in improving ship port infrastructure, and $25 billion will go toward airport maintenance, with the goal being to make the country’s supply chain efficient. 

The bill is giving $66 billion to better fund railroads. These funds aim to fix the Amtrak maintenance backlog. 

$7.5 billion is going toward building a national network of electric vehicle (EV) chargers across the United States. The legislation will provide funding for EV charges to be built along highways to make them more accessible. 

$65 billion will be put toward investing in clean energy transmission and grid. The bill seeks to lower the cost of renewable energy. The funds will also go towards new programs that are working to create new clean energy technologies.

“I view (the investment) as a good start and a decent down payment on what is going to be needed,” Larry Gasteiger, the executive director of WIRES — which oversees the international trade association’s initiatives for transmission development, told Climatewire. “It is going to require a moonshot effort for this to be successful. We’re moving in that direction. But we’re nowhere near where it needs to be.”

$50 billion will be put toward investing in weatherization which will make the country better prepared for natural disasters such as raughts, hurricanes, and wildfires. The funds will be used to protect against cyber attacks. $21 billion will also go towards fighting pollution. 

“This deal means millions of good-paying jobs, fewer burdens felt at the kitchen table and across the country and safer, healthier communities,” said Biden back in a June 24 briefing where he explained the significance of the bill. “But it also signals to ourselves and to the world that American democracy can deliver. And because of that, it represents an important step forward for our country.”