UPDATE:  Only a hours after signaling support for the “Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework” with a working group of 21 Senators, President Biden let the air out of the legislative effort when he indicated he won’t sign the bipartisan deal if Congress doesn’t also pass a tandem reconciliation bill.  During a press conference, the President said he expected “before the fiscal year is over, that we will have voted on this bill, the infrastructure bill, as well as voted on the budget resolution. But if only one comes to me, this is the only one that comes to me, I’m not signing it. It’s in tandem.”  Backing up the sentiment, Speaker Nancy Pelosi D-Calif.) confirmed Thursday that the House would not vote on a bipartisan infrastructure bill until the Senate passes a larger set of Democratic priorities through a budget reconciliation bill.

Today, the White House announced that President Biden supports the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework,  proposed outline agreement among 11 Republicans, 9 Democrats, and one independent Senator. This is a critical step in moving the basic or traditional “infrastructure” elements (combination of transportation, transit, and port related, broadband, electric grid and environmental remediation) forward to a Congressional vote.  However, the President also emphasized that he “remains committed to the comprehensive agenda laid out in the American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan.”  And, that he will “work with Congress to build on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework in legislation that moves in tandem,” with these other larger goals.

It remains to be seen if the compromise package or framework will garner 60-member Senate support among the wider parties caucus, or be agreed to by the House.

For details on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework (see, WH Fact Sheet).

As predicted during the recently completed spring conference in Washington, D.C. the negotiations between the Biden White House and a small group of GOP Senators lead by Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) to find a compromise around the infrastructure initiative have come to an end.  In there place a more complicated and longer process has already begun with a group of 10 Senators (evenly divided between the two parties) busily at work trying to come-up with a strictly “Congressional” compromise that the Senators tentatively announced late Thursday, June 10^th.  This new proposal will need further vetting and buy-in from both the White House and the expanded members in the Senate caucuses of both parties.  However, the bipartisan group of 10 and the White House still appear to have profound differences over what constitutes infrastructure and how much money should be allotted to it – making it a long road ahead.

Moreover, as first pointed-out to our members during the spring conference sessions the path for any infrastructure bill must now pass through the hazardous and prolonged budget/appropriations process that will require a number of steps and firm support along the way to survive.

Democrats and Republicans leaders on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee announced they reached a bipartisan agreement on the surface transportation reauthorization bill, which would provide $304 billion in funding for “traditional style” infrastructure like: highways, roads and bridges, etc.  The outline of the deal comes on the heels of the first signs of compromise when the President and top Republicans discussed the gaping differences between the original “American Jobs Plan” $2.25 trillion proposal and the GOP’s $568 billion counter (which resulted in the President responding with a massive but trimmed down $1.7 trillion offer).  The Senate EPW Committee will be marking-up the bipartisan compromise on May 26^th.

See Attached, for a summary on the President and GOP original proposals.

In order to turn President Biden’s sought after capital gains tax increases into revenue raisers, the President has also proposed dramatic changes to estate tax law.  The Administration’s proposal would not just repeal of “stepped-up basis” in assets transferred at death, but would also tax those “built-up gains” at death as though the assets had been sold. These drastic changes in estate taxes could well make it impossible for privately-owned businesses and family farms/firms to be passed to heirs. [The estate tax changes come on the heels of President Biden’s recently announced proposal to raise the capital gains tax rate to 39.6/43.4 percent, which analysis have suggested would actually reduce rather than increase federal revenue]. 

CIRT has joined a cross-section of organizations as part of the “Family Business Estate Tax Coalition” to strongly oppose repeal of “stepped-up basis” and the taxation of “built-up gains” at death.  [See details of the FBETC letter here].

Republican Senators, lead my Senator Shelly Moore Caputo (R-WV), sent to President Biden a counter proposal with respect to his infrastructure plan.  The GOP spending priorities were laid out in a fact sheet titled “The Republican Roadmap” anticipates spending $568 billion on more narrowly defined infrastructure projects (e.g., roads, bridges, public transit systems, rail, water/wastewater, airports, and broadband) vs. the President’s expansive $2.25 trillion “American Jobs Plan.” The Hill reports the Republican proposal or framework, “would spend $299 billion on roads and bridges, $61 billion on public transit systems, $20 billion on rail, $35 billion on drinking water and wastewater infrastructure, $13 billion on safety programs, such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, $17 billion on ports and inland waterways, and $44 billion on airports. It also proposes spending $65 billion to beef up and expand the nation’s broadband infrastructure to bring high-speed internet to more rural areas of the country.”  To pay for the scaled down, but still large expenditure, the Republican proposal looks to the traditional revenue sources, along with fees for electric vehicles, and reprogramming unused money recently allocated but not being spent in the recently passed $1.9 trillion “American Rescue Plan.”

For details see: “Republican Roadmap, A Framework to Improve the Nation's Infrastructure"

President Biden, went to Pittsburgh to announce the outlines of his proposed $2.25 Trillion “Infrastructure Bill” and the accompanying tax hikes on corporations to help pay for it.  About one-third of the total spending, or some $621 billion, is intended for what might be called traditional “transportation infrastructure and resilience” (like roads, bridges, tunnels, etc.) with additional billions going to other more broadly defined infrastructure asset needs (such as charging stations, upstream manufacturing needs – presumably infrastructure related, etc.).  However, also hundreds of billions of dollars tucked into the proposal are at best tangential like: $400 billion toward “expanding access to quality, affordable home- or community-based care for aging relatives and people with disabilities.”  Still to come, is a release or proposal detailing a second leg or pillar of spending associated with more focused “Green New Deal” aspects.

In sum, the $2 trillion "American Rescue Plan” proposal includes:

• $621 billion to modernize transportation infrastructure,
• $400 billion to help care for the aging and those with disabilities,
• $300 billion to boost the manufacturing industry,
• $213 billion on retrofitting and building affordable housing and,
• $100 billion to expand broadband access.

Additionally, there will be:

• 20,000 miles of roadway modernized and 500,000 electric-vehicle charging stations added throughout the country.
• Lead pipes and service lines will be replaced with new-age alternatives, and home care expansion for the elderly and ill.
• An energy transition to low-carbon sources, in an effort to eliminate carbon emissions by 2035; and
• May have embedded in it a $15 minimum wage provision, and possibly taxing authority.

Critics are quick to point out that it reminds them of the Obama Administration’s stimulus bill that passed purporting to have “shovel ready jobs” that turned out to spend only about twenty (20) cents on the dollar for actual infrastructure needs. Moreover, the President has indicated he excepts/intends the plan to be paid for in part by increasing the corporate tax rate to 28 percent from the current 21 percent. [This would return the U.S. to having one of the highest corporate rates among the G-20 countries].

[For details see, White House Fact Sheet summarizing infrastructure proposal at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/03/31/fact-sheet-the-american-jobs-plan/]

[RESOURCE]

With passage of the massive $1.9 Trillion “Emergency COVID-19 Package” now complete and sent to the President’s desk for his signature, many in DC will turn their sights on a possibly more partisan infrastructure bill that could find common ground to meet the needs of the nation.  Instructive to that conversation will be the President’s views and that of his newly installed Secretary of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg, on the matter.  As part of the “United for Infrastructure” coalition and initiative, CIRT has access to the following interviews conducted last year on the subject of infrastructure.

UNITED for INFRASTRUCTURE

Revisiting President Joe Biden's and Pete Buttigieg's remarks from our February presidential candidate forum on infrastructure

A cross section of business groups, including CIRT, have urged Congress not to pass legislation that essentially favors unionization of all federal contracting, while eliminating safeguards and procedures that protect individual workers.  The Coalition for a Democratic Workplace expressed its opposition to the “Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act” (H.R. 842) in a letter that points out, among other things, that the proposed legislation threatens fundamental rights and vital aspects of our economy such as: workers right to choose whether or not to be represented by a union through secret ballot elections, remove a union, and to act as independent contractors to businesses.

(SEE, Draft Coalition Letter for details)