3 Infrastructure Areas to Watch in 2021

Dec. 9, 2020

The Biden administration is eyeing a major infrastructure package as a way to boost the economy and advance its climate priorities, the Hill reports. Lawmakers on “both sides of the aisle” are eager for progress.

The coronavirus pandemic has created an opening for large spending bills, and infrastructure proponents are hoping there will be momentum for legislation early next year to help the faltering economy. According to the article, Democrats are likely to push for bigger investments in clean energy, transit, broadband, and more. 

Green initiatives: A $1.5 trillion package passed in July, but not taken up by the Senate, tied funding to states’ carbon reduction efforts and provided billions for drinking water, transit, and clean energy. The measure would also “create jobs between the construction ones normally associated with infrastructure by focusing on design, engineering, and small business.”

Transit: According to the article, the Biden administration aims to boost public transportation as a key way to reduce emissions, since the broader transportation sector is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. under the Democratic plan from earlier this year, the federal government would provide “significant funding for rail and transit,” as well as incentivize more frequent service—a key feature for recruiting riders—rather than lower operating costs. 

Broadband: The pandemic has highlighted disparities in broadband access, and the need to get high-speed internet into rural areas, and any household where children are attending school virtually. Biden has called for “universal internet access through either broadband or wireless 5G.”

Source: The Hill