11.8.21 Advocacy Alert: House Passes Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill
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Josh Veronica
November 8, 2021
This weekend, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the bipartisan infrastructure bill, known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The bill’s passing is a significant milestone after months of contentious negotiations.
The bill would invest in roads, bridges, water and wastewater systems, airports, broadband, and the electric grid. It would also enable our region to pursue numerous priority infrastructure projects and create jobs in the process. Importantly, the bill is funded by repurposing existing revenue sources, not tax increases.
The BNP communicated our support for this legislation with our regional representatives.
The bill was supported by Rep. Tom Reed and Rep. Brian Higgins, with Rep. Chris Jacobs voting against it. Sens. Schumer and Gillibrand both supported the bill when it passed the Senate in August. The BNP thanks our representatives who supported this landmark bipartisan legislation.
The bill now heads to President Biden’s desk. The White House has indicated that the President wants to wait to sign it until Congress passes the Democrats’ partisan reconciliation bill, known as the “Build Back Better Act.”
The reconciliation bill has a much larger price tag than the bipartisan infrastructure bill. Although it still lacks full analysis from the Congressional Budget Office, the reconciliation bill is expected to include substantial tax increases.
The BNP has strong concerns with the reconciliation bill. In advocating for the bipartisan infrastructure legislation, the BNP made it clear to representatives that it should be advanced independently from the reconciliation bill. The fate of this critical investment should not be linked to a polarizing laundry list of unrelated issues.
The BNP will keep you informed of progress on this monumental legislation. Ensuring an efficient, equitable distribution of these funds will be a top priority of the BNP’s in the coming months.
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