Senate Democrats Offer Welcome Alternative Infrastructure Plan – Statement

The Senate Democrat’s new infrastructure proposal is a welcome alternative to the Administration’s proposal earlier this year. Over the next ten years, the plan would fund a $1 trillion investment in infrastructure and job creation.

The new proposal, the Jobs and Infrastructure Plan for American Workers, cuts in half the 10-year investment gap the American Society of Civil Engineers sees as necessary to restore the nations’ infrastructure. As one of the wealthiest countries in the world, the United States has the capacity to provide the funding for necessary modernization and repairs to our roads and bridges, water and sewage systems, and public transportation. The Jobs and Infrastructure Plan goes even further, though, addressing acute needs in rural and urban communities that suffer from a lack of high-speed internet, contend with lead hazards, and that lack affordable housing.

President Trump’s plan would provide little actual funding for infrastructure and would rely on private companies and private equity stepping in via public-private partnerships. This would likely come at an increased cost to the people and businesses who navigate our nation’s slowly crumbling infrastructure on a daily basis. The Senate Democrat’s proposal would improve lives, ease costs for businesses, and create jobs, all while reducing economic inequities across the country.