Governors praise bipartisan deal on infrastructure

(Source: Progressive Railroading 06/28/2021)

The National Governors Association lauded the infrastructure agreement reached last week between a bipartisan group of 10 U.S. senators and President Joe Biden.

The agreement creates a framework for a five-year, $973 billion package to fund the nation’s infrastructure. Of that amount, $579 billion is new spending that was not allocated though other projects. The proposal calls for $109 billion for roads and bridges; $49 billion for public transit; $66 billion for Amtrak, commuter- and freight-rail; $25 billion for airports and $55 billion for water infrastructure.

The agreement would establish “historic new investments in American infrastructure,” according to a statement issued jointly by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson. Cuomo is chairman and Hutchinson is vice chairman of the association.

“As Congress prepares to write the major infrastructure investment package based on this framework, governors will work in a bipartisan manner to ensure state and territory needs are addressed, such as investing to modernize and make more resilient our transportation system; supporting innovation to make our energy system more efficient; and addressing the significant backlog in critical water infrastructure projects,” they said in a press release.