Blumenthal Applauds Biden Administration's Infrastructure Proposal

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), a member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, released the following statement applauding the Biden Administration’s new infrastructure proposal, the American Jobs Plan:

“This proposal is historic and momentous—and will revolutionize our economy. The American Jobs Plan will turbocharge our transportation network and create thousands of good-paying jobs here in Connecticut. It’s hard to exaggerate the effect this infrastructure program could have on our state and our economy. This program will help fix our roads, bridges, and highways—long neglected and decades behind other nations. The American Jobs Plan puts us on the right track to modernize and prepare for the future, all while creating millions of high quality jobs and a more equitable and sustainable economy.”

“An investment of $80 billion in Amtrak will ensure much more reliable and quicker service. I’ve long pushed for necessary, long-term investments in passenger and commuter rail, so critical for us in Connecticut and across the bustling Northeast Corridor. I spoke with Secretary Buttigieg right from the start about the need to advance the Gateway Program and about my Intercity Passenger Rail Trust Fund Act to provide dedicated, predictable funding for Amtrak. I’m very pleased to see these priorities reflected in the Biden Administration’s plan. It’s imperative that we fix the decrepit North River Tunnels, modernize Metro-North, and make repairs by investing in major capital projects like the bridge across the Connecticut River in Old Saybrook, to keep our communities moving.”

“Infrastructure in the 21st century goes beyond roads and bridges which is why this proposal includes plans to improve our outdated electric grid, establish nationwide high-speed broadband, secure our critical supply chains, and create new equitable career opportunities in the sciences. By prioritizing investments in affordable, modern housing and improving school infrastructure, American families will need to worry less about affording a home and their kids’ health and safety.”

“Congress must now build on this proposal with bold legislative action, and I look forward to working with my colleagues and the Administration to make sure we deliver for the American people.”

The Biden Administration’s infrastructure plan includes the following proposals:

Repairing highways, roads, bridges, airports & transit systems: The American Jobs Plan sets forth proposals to modernize 20,000 miles of highways, roads, and main-streets. It will fix the ten most economically significant bridges in the country in need of reconstruction. It will also will repair the worst 10,000 smaller bridges, and replace thousands of buses and rail cars, repair hundreds of stations, renew airports, and expand transit and rail into new communities.

The plan includes proposals to invest $80 billion to address Amtrak’s repair backlog, modernize the high traffic Northeast Corridor, improve existing corridors and connect new city pairs, and enhance grant and loan programs that support passenger and freight rail safety, efficiency, and electrification.

Blumenthal is a lead sponsor of the Intercity Passenger Rail Trust Fund Act, which would establish a new federal trust fund and provide approximately $5.4 billion to that fund annually in grants for repairs, trip time optimizing investments, improving service, modernizing the fleet, and other needs throughout Amtrak’s network, both along the Northeast Corridor (NEC) and across the National Network.

Earlier this month, Blumenthal, along with thirteen other Senators, sent a letter to President Biden urging him to support at least $55 billion in long-term funding for passenger rail infrastructure in order to repair the NEC rail network and to expand Amtrak passenger service nationwide. The senators called for at least $55 billion over ten years in dedicated federal funding to expand commuting zones, create better access to jobs, and provide more sustainable transportation to Americans.

Blumenthal has long emphasized the need to move forward on the Gateway Program to advance the modernization of a set of critical transportation infrastructure improvements on the bustling NEC rail network. The program includes the Hudson Tunnel Project, a construction of a new rail tunnel beneath the Hudson River and repairs to the significantly-damaged North River Tunnel. He has discussed the need to advance this project with U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Pete Buttigieg and DOT Deputy Secretary nominee Polly Trottenberg. Last year, Blumenthal led a group of fifteen senators from all eight states along the Northeast Corridor in urging the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to finalize and approve plans to immediately advance the Hudson Tunnel Project, a critical element of the Gateway Project.

The American Jobs Plan also calls for replacing 50,000 diesel transit vehicles, while electrifying at least 20 percent of the classic yellow bus fleet that transports children to and from school each day. Blumenthal is a cosponsor of the Clean School Bus Act, which would provide grants of up to $2 million to replace diesel school buses with electric school buses, invest in charging infrastructure, and support workforce development.

Boosting domestic manufacturing and innovation: The American Jobs Plan will invest in manufacturing, secure U.S. supply chains, invest in science, research, and development, and train Americans for jobs in the future.

Blumenthal has long-called for robust and reliable domestic manufacturing, including the use of the Defense Production Act during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure adequate supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing and vaccination equipment. He also supports efforts to shore up critical supply chains necessary for American workers. In February, he joined a bipartisan group of fifteen senators to call on the Director of the National Economic Council to address the global semiconductor shortage impacting American automobile manufacturers.

Blumenthal is a sponsor of legislation to support early-career researchers whose employment opportunities have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Supporting Early-Career Researchers Act would create a new postdoctoral fellowship program at the National Science Foundation (NSF) to prevent the loss of research talent due to job market disruptions caused by the economic decline during and after the pandemic.

Delivering clean drinking water and improving the electric grid for all Americans: The American Jobs Plan will eliminate all lead pipes and service lines in our drinking water systems. It will also support efforts to monitor and remediate PFAS contamination in drinking water. It will create jobs laying thousands of miles of transmission lines and capping hundreds of thousands of orphan oil and gas wells and abandoned mines.

Making high-speed broadband accessible and affordable: The American Jobs Plan will bring affordable, reliable, high-speed broadband to every American, including the more than 35 percent of rural Americans who lack access to broadband at minimally acceptable speeds.

Blumenthal has long supported efforts to expand broadband and to close the Homework Gap through ensuring that high-speed internet is affordable for all households. Blumenthal has championed legislation encouraging competition in broadband markets through supporting municipal fiber networks and called on federal agencies to address the economic barriers for millions of Americans. Blumenthal is a co-sponsor of the Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act, which would invest over $94 billion to build high-speed broadband infrastructure in unserved and underserved communities to close the digital divide and ensure all Americans have fast, reliable, and affordable internet connectivity.

Improving affordable housing and school infrastructure: the American Jobs Plan will build, preserve, and retrofit more than two million homes and commercial buildings, modernize schools and child care facilities, and upgrade veterans’ hospitals and federal buildings. This will create high quality jobs, improve federal facilities, and increase access to affordable housing, especially those that serve veterans and low-income families.

Blumenthal is a cosponsor of the Impact Aid Infrastructure Act, which would provide $1 billion in supplemental funding for K-12 school infrastructure construction grants in Fiscal Year 2022 through the Impact Aid program. The bill would provide funding for school districts to design, build, improve, renovate and repair school buildings and facilities, which can be used to protect the health, safety, and well-being of students, teachers, school leaders, and school personnel during COVID-19.

Bolstering infrastructure of the care economy: The American Jobs Plan will create jobs and raise wages and benefits for essential home care workers by providing new and better jobs. It will also provide home and community-based care for individuals who otherwise wait for years to get the services they need.

Supporting workers: The American Jobs Plan will bolster good-quality jobs with competitive wages to create a more equitable, safe, and healthy workplaces. The plan seeks to strengthen labor laws and calls on Congress to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, which Blumenthal is cosponsoring, that would ensure workers have a free and fair choice to join a union. The plan also outlines proposals for a Made in America Tax Plan to ensure corporations pay their fair share in taxes and encourage job creation in the country. The plan would reward investment at home, and stop corporate profit and job shifting overseas.

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