Democrats propose a new $1.5 trillion infrastructure plan

Last month the House of Representatives approved the HEROES Act amid the coronavirus pandemic but that bill was called ‘dead on arrival’ by the Republican-controlled Senate. As both parties are trying to discuss a bill that they both can agree on, the House Democrats have now proposed the Moving Forward Act, which is set to be voted on before the 4 July Congress break.

Democrats look to keep Moving Forward 

This new infrastructure plan is worth $1.5 trillion and calls for an increase in funding to repair roads and bridges while expanding broadband access in rural areas. Democrats proposed this new bill in an effort to fight climate change.

The bill will dedicate $300 billion to build and fix roads and bridges and would invest $100 billion in transit options. There are two aspects of the bill that are significant. First is that it doesn’t specify how the programs will be paid for. Second, it will invest in programs, projects and materials that emphasize resilience while reducing carbon pollution from the transportation sector.

“The Republicans have been a bit critical at points during the markup and saying this is the Green New Deal 2.0. This is the application of the principles of the Green New Deal," said Rep. Peter DeFazio.

The bill is also focusing on giving $100 billion for housing, $100 billion for broadband coverage, $25 billion for clean drinking water and $25 billion for the United States Postal Service. As the House Democrats unveiled this new plan, the Majority Leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, made it clear he was not too keen on including this bill in a coronavirus relief package.

The legislation is the latest attempt to advance an infrastructure package that has been discussed since the early days of the Trump administration but continuously failed to gain traction. Republicans on the committee have nicknamed the legislation the “my way or the highway bill,” airing frustrations that they were excluded from its crafting.