A group of nearly two dozen Democratic and Republican senators are now putting together the final pieces of what is expected to be a $1 trillion infrastructure bill, seen as a compromise between Congress and the White House.
In talks with various Biden Administration figures, the lawmakers are pushing for $110 billion in spending on road and highway infrastructure projects, $66 billion on passenger and freight rail work; and another $48 billion on public transit construction and upgrade projects.
A statement endorsed by the senators said, “We support this bipartisan framework that provides an historic investment in our nation’s core infrastructure needs without raising taxes.”
The statement added: “We look forward to working with our Republican and Democratic colleagues to develop legislation based on this framework to address America’s critical infrastructure challenges.”
Although the group’s $1 trillion offering is markedly less than Biden’s original nearly $2 trillion proposal, the President has indicated that he is interested in seeing the details of a compromise bill before committing himself.
As negotiations over the legislation continue, individual lawmakers have been touting initiatives they say should be included in any final bill. Last week, New Mexico Senator Martin Heinrich said of the infrastructure package: “We can’t afford to shortchange investments in climate resilience and in clean energy.”
Describing the original Biden bill as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to power our economic recovery,” Heinrich added: “We can’t afford to let this opportunity pass us by. And we shouldn’t allow ourselves to get bogged down in bad faith negotiations or accept any deals that would shortchange or entirely leave out climate action.”
Arizona Senator Krysten Sinema, one of the leaders of the group of senators forging a compromise, has declared that if a consensus can be reached between members of both parties, it will “help show everyday Americans that we can work together to modernize and make our infrastructure resilient, and expand economic opportunities.”
By Garry Boulard
