Joe Biden

FACT SHEET: One Year into Implementation of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Biden-Harris Administration Celebrates Major Progress in Building a Better America

November 15, 2022

One year ago, President Biden signed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – a once-in-a-generation investment in our nation's infrastructure and competitiveness. While "infrastructure week" was a punchline under his predecessor, President Biden is delivering an "infrastructure decade." One year into implementation, the Biden-Harris Administration is already following through on its promise to deliver results by rebuilding our roads, bridges, ports, and airports, upgrading public transit and rail systems, replacing lead pipes to provide clean water, cleaning up pollution, providing affordable, high-speed internet to every family in America, delivering cheaper and cleaner energy, and creating good-paying jobs.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law represents historic progress, as the largest and most significant investment in:

  • Rebuilding our roads and bridges since President Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System;
  • Public transit in American history and an historic investment to make public transportation accessible;
  • Passenger rail since Amtrak's inception, 50 years ago;
  • Clean water infrastructure;
  • Affordable, high-speed internet;
  • Tackling legacy pollution and advancing environmental justice;
  • Upgrading the power grid to transmit more clean energy and withstand extreme weather;
  • Increasing our infrastructure's resilience against the impacts of climate change, extreme weather events, and cyber-attacks;
  • Replacing dirty diesel buses with clean, electric buses across school bus and transit fleets; and,
  • A national network of EV chargers in the United States and largest investment in domestic manufacturing of batteries and the critical minerals that power them.

ONE YEAR OF DELIVERING RESULTS
To date, the Administration has announced over $185 billion in funding and over 6,900 specific projects, reaching over 4,000 communities across all 50 states, D.C., and the territories. The White House Infrastructure Implementation Team released new state-by-state fact sheets and a new map highlighting projects in all 50 states. The President, Vice President, Cabinet, and senior federal leaders, have taken more than 200 trips to all 50 states, as well as D.C., Puerto Rico, and the territories, to discuss this once-in-a-generation opportunity with community members.

Key highlights include:

  • Launched 2,800 bridge repair and replacement projects across the country.
  • Awarded funds for over 5,000 new clean transit and school buses.
  • Approved state plans for water funding, EV charging networks and high-speed internet deployment.

Upgrading Transportation and Supply Chains

  • Roads & Bridges: The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced approximately $120 billion in Federal Highway Apportionments for highways and bridges for fiscal years 2022 and 2023. To date, over 2,800 bridge projects have launched.
  • Rail: Today, the Federal Railroad Administration announced its Northeast Corridor Inventory, outlining major backlog projects that will get funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, including the East River Tunnel in New York, the Connecticut River Bridge, and the Susquehanna River Bridge and Frederick Douglas Tunnel in Maryland.
  • Local Infrastructure Projects: USDOT made 26 awards totaling $1.5 billion for highway, multimodal freight and rail projects that will make the nation's transportation systems safer and more resilient, eliminate supply chain bottlenecks, and improve critical freight movements. USDOT also announced $2.2 billion in Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grants for 166 projects that will allow urban and rural communities to move forward on projects that modernize roads, bridges, transit, rail, ports, and intermodal transportation and make our transportation systems safer, more accessible, more affordable, and more sustainable.
  • Public Transit: USDOT announced $20.4 billion in Fiscal Year 2022 transit funding and a recommendation of $4.45 billion through the Capital Investment Grants program to advance public transit projects across the nation including in Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Washington. Notably, this includes first-time funding commitments for the Gateway Program and Second Avenue Subway.
  • Clean Transportation: USDOT announced over $1.6 billion in awards to help transit agencies, states, and territories across the country purchase low and no emission transit buses and upgrade bus facilities. These awards will help communities across the country purchase more than 1,800 new buses and double the number of clean transit buses on America's roads. EPA awarded nearly $1 billion in Clean School Bus rebates to nearly 400 school districts spanning 50 states, Washington, DC, and several Tribes and U.S. territories. The grants will help school districts purchase over 2,400 clean school buses that will accelerate the transition to zero emission vehicles and produce cleaner air in and around schools and communities.
  • Accessibility: USDOT announced $1.75 billion to improve accessibility at transit stations across the country as part of the Department's new All Stations Accessibility Program (ASAP). ASAP will help transit agencies update subway and rail stations that were built before passage of the ADA to make sure people who use wheelchairs or have limited mobility can freely and easily get wherever they need to go. The first $343M to make subway and rail stations more accessible was released in July 2022.
  • Ports and Waterways: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) announced $3.9 billion to strengthen supply chains and improve harbors and waterways for 16 construction projects across 10 states and Puerto Rico using Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds. . The Maritime Administration (MARAD) at USDOT also announced over $700 million to fund 41 port projects in 22 states and one territory to improve our nation's port infrastructure, strengthen national supply chains, and help lower costs for Americans.
  • Land Ports of Entry: The General Services Administration (GSA) awarded $3.4 billion to build and modernize 26 land ports of entry across the northern and southern borders. The investments will improve commerce and trade; enhance border security; create good-paying construction jobs; incorporate new and innovative sustainability features; and provide for improved climate resilience. Work has begun at all 26 locations slated for major modernization, including preliminary site acquisition activities, environmental reviews, design, and community engagement, including outreach to Tribal Nations. GSA has also completed seven port paving projects in Arizona and New York using the agency's new low-carbon asphalt and concrete specifications. The contracts for these paving projects were awarded to and completed by women-owned, small, or disadvantaged businesses.

Improving Water, Conservation, and Resilience

  • Water Infrastructure: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced over $9 billion in funding in FY 2022 and 2023 for states, tribes, and territories to upgrade America's aging water infrastructure, sewerage systems, pipes and service lines, and more through their State Revolving Fund (SRF) programs, including targeting resources to disadvantaged communities, making rapid progress on lead-free water for all, and tackling dangerous chemicals such as PFAS. The USACE has announced $200 million in funding for environmental infrastructure projects for 26 states and three tribes, to install backup generators, upgrade aging water and wastewater infrastructure, and construct stormwater improvement projects.
  • Tribal Climate Resilience: The Department of the Interior (DOI) announced $45 million – $20 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – to build climate resilience in Tribal communities. These projects will support Tribes and Tribal organizations in adaptation planning, climate implementation actions, ocean and coastal management planning, capacity building, relocation, managed retreat, and protect-in-place planning for climate risks.
  • Fulfilling Tribal Water Settlements: DOI announced $1.7 billion to fulfill Indian Water Rights Settlements, which will break down barriers and help create conditions that improve water resources management by providing certainty as to the rights of all water users who are parties to the disputes. Interior also announced $10 million for tribal water systems and another $10 million for irrigation and power in Indian Country.
  • Tribal Water and Sanitation Infrastructure: The Indian Health Service (IHS) announced allocation decisions for $700 million to support crucial sanitation projects that will result in substantial improvements to clean water and sanitation systems in American Indian and Alaska Native communities across the country. IHS will allocate $700 million in each fiscal year from FY 2022 through FY 2026, for a total of $3.5 billion for the IHS Sanitation Facilities Construction Program.
  • Drought Resilience: DOI announced $1.4 billion for 129 projects to boost water infrastructure and tackle drought in the West, including funding for rural water systems, dam safety, water recycling and reuse projects and repairs for aging water systems.
  • Watershed Infrastructure Projects: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced nearly $798 million in funding for projects that improve or rehabilitate watersheds, rehabilitate dams, and improve flood prevention through its Natural Resource Conservation Service. The USACE received $64 million to fund credit assistance for safety projects to maintain, upgrade, and repair dams identified in the National Inventory of Dams and owned by non-federal entities.
  • Ecosystem Restoration: DOI, USDA, and DOD jointly announced a $1 billion America the Beautiful Challenge that will combine Federal funding with private and philanthropic contributions for conservation and restoration, anchored by an initial commitment of $440 million of Federal resources. Ecosystem Restoration: DOI, USDA, and DOD jointly announced a $1 billion America the Beautiful Challenge that will combine federal funding with private and philanthropic contributions for conservation and restoration, anchored by an initial commitment of $440 million of federal resources. The USACE has announced $1.9 billion in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding to restore vital ecosystems across the nation through 11 projects and programs in 8 states and one territory including Florida, California, New Mexico, Texas, and Puerto Rico.
  • Caring for Our Wildland Firefighters: USDA's Forest Service and DOI increased firefighter pay by as much as $20,000 a year to help address recruitment and retention challenges, continued converting seasonal firefighters to permanent positions, expanded mental health support and increased rest periods. USDA and DOI also jointly announced the establishment of a defined Wildland Firefighter Occupational Series that will be tailored to our firefighters, will provide a clear path to career advancement and reflect the true nature of the work.
  • Flood Resilience: FEMA announced the $60 million Swift Current federal grant initiative that will help four states affected by Hurricane Ida, one of the most intense storms to hit the United States in recent years, become more resilient to flooding. The program will more equitably expedite mitigation grants to disaster survivors with repeatedly flooded homes. The USACE announced $3.7 billion in flood and coastal resilience construction projects that will reduce flood risks for communities through 47 projects in 24 states, the District of Columbia and one territory.

Cleaning Up Legacy Pollution

  • Orphaned Oil and Gas Wells: The Department of the Interior launched a new $4.7 billion program to cap and plug "orphaned," or abandoned, oil and gas wells across the country in order to reduce methane emissions and create jobs over the next decade. The first $1.15 billion in funding is now available to 26 states to create jobs cleaning up orphaned oil and gas wells across the country, and $33 million was allocated to clean up 277 well sites in national parks, national wildlife refuges and on other public lands.
  • Abandoned Mine Lands: The Department of the Interior announced the availability of nearly $725 million in Fiscal Year 22 funding for 22 states and the Navajo Nation to help create good-paying union jobs and catalyze economic opportunity by reclaiming abandoned mine lands (AML), eliminating dangerous environmental conditions and pollution caused by past coal mining, and providing opportunities for current and former coal workers. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law reauthorized the existing distributions and provided nearly $11.3 billion to be allocated over the next 15 years.
  • Superfund Site Cleanup: EPA announced $1 billion this year to initiate cleanup and clear the backlog of 49 previously unfunded Superfund sites and accelerate cleanup at dozens of other sites across the country.
  • Brownfield Cleanup: EPA awarded $254.5 million in brownfield clean up grants to 265 communities. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides a total of $1.5 billion over the next five years to advance environmental justice, spur economic revitalization and create jobs by cleaning up contaminated, polluted, or hazardous brownfield properties.
  • Waterways Restoration: EPA announced $1 billion over five years for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, including $200 million in FY2022, to accelerate progress in the clean-up and restoration of the Great Lakes' most environmentally degraded sites, securing clean water and a better environment for millions of Americans in the Great Lakes region. EPA announced $238 million over five years to help restore the Chesapeake Bay, including $40 million this year to protect public health, improve water quality, and help restore lands, rivers, and streams in the Chesapeake Bay region. EPA has also begun deploying funds across 10 other geographic programs from coast-to-coast as well as all 28 national estuaries.

Modernizing the Grid and Deploying Clean Energy

  • Energy Efficient Homes: DOE released grant applications and began dispersing $3.16 billion in funding for residential energy retrofitting and weatherization. This expanded funding will allow states to retrofit thousands of low-income homes to make them healthier and more energy efficient while lowering utility bills.
  • Home Energy Assistance: The Department of Health and Human Services released $200 million to help families pay their outstanding heating and cooling bills, the first two installments of the five-year, $500 million investment in the Low Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP) program provided from President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
  • Clean Energy and Advanced Batteries: DOE awarded 20 companies in 12 states a total of more than $2.8 billion to boost domestic production of advanced battery components and the processing of critical materials that power them. The Department of the Interior announced over $167 million that will help fund a new facility for the U.S. Geological Survey, which is working on critical energy and mineral programs.
  • Clean Hydrogen: DOE launched the historic regional clean hydrogen hubs program (H2Hubs) which will help jump-start America's clean hydrogen economy. DOE opened applications for $7 billion in funding. These investments will help advance President Biden's goal of a net-zero carbon economy by 2050, improve energy security, and create good-paying jobs.
  • Mapping Critical Minerals. DOI invested over $74 million for the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (MRI) to map critical minerals that power everything from household appliances and electronics to clean energy technology like batteries and wind turbines.

Expanding High-Speed Internet

  • Affordable Connectivity Program: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) launched the Affordable Connectivity Program, which lowers the cost of high-speed Internet service by up to $30 per month for eligible households (up to $75 per month for households on Tribal Lands) and provides up to $100 towards the purchase of a desktop, laptop or tablet computer. To lower costs even further, the President and Vice President also secured commitments from 20 leading internet providers to offer ACP-eligible households fully covered high-speed Internet plans. As a result, millions of Americans can now get high-speed internet for free at GetInternet.gov. To date, more than 14.8 million households have enrolled in affordable, high-speed Internet plans.
  • Internet for All: The Department of Commerce launched its "Internet for All" initiative – releasing notices of funding opportunity for three of its major programs, including the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program, the Middle-Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program, and the Digital Equity Planning Grant Program. On November 18, the FCC will publish a map and launch the public challenge process so that public input can inform the ultimate map that will determine how BEAD program funding will be allocated. Every state is guaranteed a minimum of $100 million. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced $759 million from the ReConnect rural broadband deployment program for loans and grants to state, local or territory governments, corporations, Tribes and limited liability companies and cooperative organizations to help people in rural areas get access to high-speed internet and the Department expects to make over $1 billion in awards in Spring 2023. NTIA has also made $1.35 billion in funding available through the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program, including funds from the first tranche of $2 billion directed to Tribal governments through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to be used for broadband deployment on Tribal lands, as well as for telehealth, distance learning, broadband affordability, and digital inclusion.

Building A Better America Together

To deliver on the promise of this historic legislation, the Biden-Harris Administration has:

  • Built an implementation team at the White House, federal agencies, state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments, along with new mechanisms to ensure clearer communication and coordination between all levels of government, including identifying infrastructure coordinators in states and territories. Since the law's signing, 54 states, D.C., Puerto Rico and territories have appointed an infrastructure coordinator.
  • Provided guidance to federal agencies to set a strong foundation for effective, efficient, and equitable implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in accordance with the Justice40 Initiative; and boosted collaboration with Inspectors General and the broader oversight community to prevent fraud, waste, and abuse.
  • Released a Permitting Action Plan to strengthen and accelerate federal permitting and environmental reviews by fully leveraging existing permitting authorities, as well as new provisions in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
  • Released a multitude of resources for states, territories, Tribes and local governments including a Guidebook at build.gov, a technical assistance resource guide, an "Infrastructure School" webinar series, Rural and Tribal playbooks, and a listing of funding opportunities to be aware of, all available on build.gov.
  • Launched the Infrastructure Talent Pipeline Challenge, securing over 350 commitments from organizations such as International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, AT&T, Corning, Communication Workers of America, United Airlines, and ChargePoint to invest in equitable workforce development and train a diverse pipeline of skilled workers to build our nation's infrastructure. Additionally, where permissible under applicable law, federal agencies are including workforce development as an allowable activity for Bipartisan Infrastructure Law programs and encouraging the use of local and economic hiring preferences to expand the diversity of the talent pool.
  • Engaged Federal agencies and state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments to leverage all available resources to quickly deliver the necessary technical assistance and capacity to underserved communities, ranging from the interagency Thriving Communities initiative to the Local Infrastructure Hub established by philanthropy and nongovernmental organizations. The Interagency Working Group on Coal & Power Plant Communities & Economic Revitalization is engaging stakeholders, identifying key policy actions and barriers, and driving significantly more federal resources to hard-hit energy communities, with three Rapid Response Teams focused on coordinating federal resources delivery in Wyoming, the Four Corners region and the Illinois Basin. USDA's Rural Partners Network has expanded to nine states and Puerto Rico in a whole-of-government effort to partner with rural communities to access resources and funding to create local jobs, build infrastructure, and support long-term economic stability on their own terms.
  • Announced new steps to support small disadvantaged businesses compete for contracting opportunities under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. These actions reflect the Biden-Harris Administration's commitment to ensuring that federal investments build wealth and opportunity for underserved entrepreneurs and small business owners.
  • Leveraged the power of the Build America, Buy America Act provisions in the law and set up the first-ever-Made in America Office to bring back manufacturing jobs, onshore supply chains and make the U.S. economy more competitive. As a result, we are seeing companies invest in America again, build out their manufacturing footprints, and create good-paying jobs.

Joseph R. Biden, FACT SHEET: One Year into Implementation of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Biden-Harris Administration Celebrates Major Progress in Building a Better America Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/358817

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