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June 24, 2021
2021-1254

Biden-Senate infrastructure deal outlined

The White House has released high-level details of an infrastructure deal announced June 24 by President Biden and a bipartisan group including Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Mitt Romney (R-UT), and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ). Most of President Biden's tax increase proposals are omitted, but the deal as announced does call for investment toward reducing the tax gap and reinstating Superfund fees for chemicals.

According to a White House fact sheet, the $579 billion in new spending would be invested in roads, bridges, airports, passenger and freight rail, and EV infrastructure, plus non-transportation items like water and broadband infrastructure. Other provisions described in the sheet include an upgrade of power infrastructure, including by building thousands of miles of transmission lines to facilitate the expansion of renewable energy, including through a new Grid Authority; and an Infrastructure Financing Authority intended to leverage billions of dollars into clean transportation and clean energy.

Proposed pay-fors are:

  • Reducing the tax gap
  • UI program integrity
  • Redirect unused UI relief funds
  • Repurpose unused COVID relief funds
  • State & local investment in broadband infrastructure
  • Allow states to use unused toll credits for infrastructure
  • Extend expiring customs user fees
  • Reinstate Superfund fees for chemicals
  • 5G spectrum auction proceeds
  • Extend mandatory sequester
  • Strategic petroleum reserve sale
  • Public-private partnerships, private activity bonds, direct-pay bonds and asset recycling for infrastructure investment
  • Macroeconomic impact of infrastructure investment

How, and how quickly, a bill can move through Congress is unclear. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) suggested during a news conference today that the House would not vote on an infrastructure bill until both that bill and a follow-on budget reconciliation bill are passed by the Senate. "There won't be an infrastructure bill unless we have a reconciliation bill, plain and simple," she said. The latter bill is expected to address issues like health care, caregiving, and climate change. Movement on a reconciliation bill will require the House and Senate agreeing to the same budget resolution with reconciliation instructions.

The fact sheet is available here.

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