Infrastructure bill has much for rural America - Entrepreneur Generations

One square equals $1 billion. (Washington Post chart; click to enlarge)

The $1.2 trillion infrastructure package Congress passed on Friday has much for rural America. Here's some of what we found, and more will likely be forthcoming later as we continue to comb through the gargantuan bill:

• The bill does not raise taxes. It has $550 billion in new spending, which is mostly paid for but would add $256 billion to $350 billion to the deficit over the next decade. Most of the funding comes from unspent pandemic relief and tightening enforcement on reporting gains from cryptocurrency investments. (The National Association of Counties has a more detailed breakdown of the bill's funding sources.)
• Moody's Analytics estimates it could add as much as 660,000 jobs by 2025.
• $21 billion to fund the cleanup of abandoned wells and mines.
• $65 billion to expand broadband to underserved communities, including rural areas, including $14 billion for subsidizing internet bills for the poor, and $2 billion for USDA's Reconnect Loan and Grant Program for rural areas.
• The package includes the Digital Equality Act of 2021, which prioritizes federal broadband funding for rural and other underserved communities.
• Increases the number of counties in the Appalachian Regional Commission and makes ARC eligible for new funding initiatives. 
• $10 million over five years for the new Rural and Tribal Assistance Pilot Program through the Build America Bureau. "The program would provide financial, technical and legal assistance; assistance with development-phase activities; and information on innovative financing practices to rural and Tribal communities. It would sunset after five years," NACO reports.
• $63 billion overall to improve water infrastructure, including $3.2 billion to repair aging water infrastructure, $1.2 billion to build new water storage and conveyance systems, and $618 million for the USDA's watershed programs.
• $110 billion for roads and bridges, with specific earmarks for Appalachian and Alaskan highways (Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, "were instrumental" in crafting the bipartisan package, according to The Washington Post.)
• $66 billion for railroads. Passenger rail gets a lot of that money, but the bill also has funding for freight rail safety. It does not specifically call for high-speed rail investment.
• $65 billion to update power lines and cables and invest upgrades to protect utilities from cyberattacks. It also has funding for renewable energy development.
• $47 billion for "resilience," mainly for cybersecurity upgrades to infrastructure and for addressing droughts, floods, coastal erosion and other extreme-weather issues.
• $55 billion for water infrastructure, including $10 billion to clean up so-called "forever chemicals" known as per- and polyfluoroalkyls. Tribal communities also receive funding for clean drinking water.
• Extends for three years the Secure Rural Schools program, which the Forest Service funds through funds collected for grazing, timber production and special use permits.
• $2 billion over five years to fund the newly established Rural Surface Transportation Grant program for road and bridge projects. Under the new program, counties can apply directly to the Transportation Department for projects. The federal government will cover 80% of the costs for approved projects.

from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/31BfmEy Infrastructure bill has much for rural America - Entrepreneur Generations

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