Agreement paves way for the strongest investment in Arizona’s critical infrastructure in a century without raising taxes
Passage would mean major upgrades to roads, bridges, rail lines, water systems, power grids, broadband access, public transit, airports
WASHINGTON – Months of bipartisan negotiations led by Arizona senior U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema and Republican Senator Rob Portman (Ohio) have succeeded. A group of Senators in both parties and President Biden reached final agreement on legislative text to make the strongest investment in America’s critical infrastructure in a century.
“While bringing both parties together can seem impossible these days, Arizonans elected me to do the hard work. Our historic legislation would make the strongest investment in America’s critical infrastructure in a century—creating Arizona jobs, expanding economic opportunities for our state, securing our water future, and protecting our communities from wildfires,” said Sinema.
The newly announced Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act would make major upgrades to roads, bridges, rail lines, water systems, power grids, broadband access, public transit, airports, and other critical infrastructure—all without raising taxes on everyday Americans, with $550 billion in new spending over the coming years.
Investments include:
- Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act, investing $23.4 billion for water resource projects that include aging infrastructure, new technologies, and water security for Arizona and tribal communities.
- $110 billion for roads, bridges, and major projects.
- $65 billion in broadband grants to expand broadband access, support broadband affordability, expands eligible private activity bond projects to include broadband infrastructure, and supports middle-mile deployment efforts.
- $11 billion in highway and pedestrian safety programs, including a significant investment in Safe Streets programs that prevent death and serious injury on roads and streets.
- $39.2 billion investment in the nation’s transit system repair backlog, which the U.S. Department of Transportation estimates is more than 24,000 buses, 5,000 rail cars, 200 stations, and thousands of miles of track, signals, and power systems.
- $17.3 billion in ports and water ways, including land ports of entry through the Army Corps, Department of Transportation, Coast Guard, General Services Administration, and Department of Homeland Security.
- $25 billion for airport improvement grant program for runway, gates, and taxiways, as well as a new Airport Terminal Improvement program for terminals, concessions, and multimodal connections, and improvements to Air Traffic Control Infrastructure.
- $47 billion investment in resiliency, which includes $340 million for 5 years (total of $1.7 billion) for Indian Health Services Sanitation Facilities Construction Enhancement that provide for the planning, design, construction, modernization, improvement, and renovation of water, sewer, and solid waste sanitation facilities that are funded in whole or part by the Indian Health Service.
- $7.5 billion for expanding Electric Vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure.
- $7.5 billion in EV and Low-Carbon school buses and ferries for the production and procurement of electric vehicles and low carbon school buses and ferries.
- $66 billion for passenger and freight rail, including funding for the Amtrak National Network, expanding intercity passenger rail to new routes, and making highway-rail crossings safer.
- Enhancement to Fixing America’s Surface Transportation law (known as FAST-41), which reformed federal infrastructure permitting process, allowing for efficient and timely completion of larger infrastructure projects.
- Energy Infrastructure Act, investing in the reliability and resilience of America’s electric grid and expand transmission capabilities, building domestic supply chains for clean energy technologies, and strengthening Western Water security.
- Long-term spending for capital assets that will improve economic efficiency, productivity, GDP and revenue, and will not increase inflation.
The legislation will proceed to debate on the Senate floor over the coming days.