Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)

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May 19, 2022greenpowerguy, ,

SUMMARY:  Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) H.R. 3684, is a US Federal Statue enacted by Congress and signed into law by President Biden on November 15, 2021.

Background:  The March 2021 American Jobs Plan ($2.3 trillion) was to be combined with the American Families Plan, amounted to $4 trillion in infrastructure spending). The detailed plan aimed to create millions of jobs, bolster unions, expand labor protections, and address climate change.

The IIJA was initially a $715 billion infrastructure package that included provisions related to federal-aid highway, transit, highway safety, motor carrier, research, hazardous materials and rail programs of the Department of Transportation. After congressional negotiations, it was amended and renamed to the IIJA to include funding for broadband access, clean water, electric grid renewal in addition to the transportation and road proposals of the original House bill. This amended version included approximately $1.2 trillion in spending, with $550 billion being newly authorized spending on top of what Congress was planning to authorize regularly.

The amended bill was passed 69–30 by the Senate on August 10, 2021. On November 5, it was passed 228–206 by the House, and ten days later was signed into law by President Biden.

House Provisions authorized by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) for the INVEST in America Act, the original version which passed the House on July 1, 2021:

  • extends FY2021 enacted levels through FY2022 for federal-aid highway, transit, and safety programs;
  • reauthorizes for FY2023-FY2026 several surface transportation programs, including the federal-aid highway program, transit programs, highway safety, motor carrier safety, and rail programs;
  • addresses climate change, including strategies to reduce the climate change impacts of the surface transportation system and a vulnerability assessment to identify opportunities to enhance the resilience of the surface transportation system and ensure the efficient use of federal resources;
  • revises Buy America procurement requirements for highways, mass transit, and rail;
  • establishes a rebuild rural bridges program to improve the safety and state of good repair of bridges in rural communities;
  • implements new safety requirements across all transportation modes; and
  • directs the Department of Transportation to establish a pilot program to demonstrate a national motor vehicle per-mile user fee to restore and maintain the long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund and achieve and maintain a state of good repair in the surface transportation system

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Investment categories ($ billion) in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, adding to about $550 billion over a decade.

According to NPR, the Senate Provisions include:

  • $110 billion for roads, bridges, and other major projects;
  • $11 billion in transportation safety programs;
  • $39 billion in transit modernization and improved accessibility;
  • $66 billion in rail;
  • $7.5 billion to build a national network of electric vehicle chargers;
  • $73 billion in power infrastructure and clean energy transmission and
  • $65 billion for broadband development.