President Biden Unveils Infrastructure Plan
April 01, 2021
President Biden has unveiled his long-awaited infrastructure plan, calling on what he describes as a generational investment in our nation’s most critical assets and the largest infrastructure package that this country has seen in over five decades. The $2.2 trillion, eight-year, American Jobs Plan will go a long way to ensure that our nation’s infrastructure......
Resilience Takes Center Stage in Congress
March 18, 2021
Now that Congress has passed the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill, President Joe Biden and lawmakers are laying the groundwork for another top legislative priority — a long-sought after boost to the nation’s roads, bridges, and other infrastructure. With COVID-19 relief done Congress has begun a series of hearings on sustainable and resilient infrastructure, a......
Licensure Bills Picking Up Steam in Statehouses
February 17, 2021
State legislatures across the country are in full swing and many are turning their attention to how they regulate professional licensure. The licensure reform movement has been active for several years, with its first significant success in 2019 when Arizona Governor Doug Ducey (R) signed into law the nation’s first universal recognition bill for licensed......
Biden Signs Major Climate Change Order
January 28, 2021
President Biden warned that the climate crisis poses an “existential threat” to the world, as he unveiled a major change in direction from the Trump era by halting fossil fuel activity on public lands and directing the U.S. government to prioritize reducing emissions. His sweeping executive order on climate, released on Wednesday, January 27, includes instruction for......
President Biden Takes Office and Infrastructure Takes Center Stage
January 21, 2021
Yesterday, President Biden was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States, ushering in a new Administration which has indicated that infrastructure will be a key priority. Shortly after taking office, President Biden issued a series of Executive Orders (EOs), with additional EOs expected in the upcoming weeks. Immediate actions have been aimed......
Congress Approves Stimulus, FY 2021 Budget, and Wraps up Pending Measures in One Large Package
December 22, 2020
After weeks of negotiations, Congress has passed H.R. 133, a bipartisan end of the year package to not only appropriate funding for Fiscal Year (FY) 2021, but to provide much needed economic relief to several sectors impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The $2.3 trillion package included a key ASCE priority, the Water Resources Development......
Pennsylvania Approves Emergency Bond Measure to Keep DOT Open
December 02, 2020
Shortly before Thanksgiving, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, or PennDOT, announced hundreds of ongoing projects in the state, as well as future projects, would be stopped or delayed on December 1st without immediate action from the state legislature to authorize the agency to borrow $600 million. Fortunately, shortly after PennDOT raised alarm about the impending......
Infrastructure Wins on the Ballot
November 05, 2020
While states still count votes to determine the Presidency and control of the Senate, what has become clear is that infrastructure investment remains a priority for voters. After some uncertainty over whether the COVID-19 pandemic would affect plans for infrastructure investment ballot measures, many states and localities did stick with their plans to bring many of these......
October 29, 2020
With the election next week, Congress is starting to look to the lame duck session and the agenda for the 117th Congress. No matter the results of the election, Congress has several items that need to be addressed this year, including passing a Water Resources Development Act and finalizing the next COVID-19 recovery package, which......
National Disaster Safety Board Proposed
October 13, 2020
Senators Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) have announced they will introduce The Disaster Learning and Life Saving Act of 2020. The bipartisan legislation will create a new permanent and independent board to study the underlying causes of disaster related fatalities and property damage nationwide. The National Disaster Safety Board (NDSB) will make recommendations......
