Fast Facts for August 10, 2021
We’re one step closer to better roads, bridges, and internet. The senate passed the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill today.
And both republicans *and* democrats voted for it!!!
This bill is related to but totally different than the $3.5 trillion infrastructure bill.
I know it’s confusing – I’m going to explain it all in a minute. But first — here’s what’s going on.
This morning Senate passed the bipartisan infrastructure bill with a final vote of 69 to 30 with 19 Republicans voting yes – including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
The bill is more than 2700 pages long.
Total price tag — $1.2 trillion including $550 billion in new federal spending over the next five years.
It funds all kinds of traditional infrastructure projects like…
Rebuilding roads and bridges, the power grid, upgrading and installing high speed internet/broadband throughout the country, improvements to the railways, cleaning up our national water pipes, improving public transit, airport infrastructure and building electric vehicle infrastructure like charging stations
Just to name a few.
But there’s a catch and here’s where some of you may be getting confused.
There’s a much bigger $3.5 trillion bill – the Biden Administration calls the “human infrastructure” bill that is considered to be the companion bill to this one. That bill would continue the monthly child tax credit, it would expand the social safety net, invest in schools, child care and elderly care just to scratch the surface.
Here’s where the politics comes in.
This $3.5 trillion bill has zero Republican support – so if they want it, the Democrats have to use the political maneuver called budget reconciliation that requires only democrat support. Whether all 50 of them will stay in line and vote yes is unclear.
But – remember both bills also have to pass the house. And at this point the House Speaker and Progressives say they won’t pass the Senate $1.2 trillion bi-partisan bill unless the Senate also passes the bigger one.
Read all 2702 pages here.
