Must Haves for a Federal Infrastructure Bill
January 10, 2018
The anticipation for the Administration’s Infrastructure Proposal is mounting, as reports indicate Republicans discussed it at a retreat at Camp David and the White House hosted a bipartisan meeting to share more about what they will release. To address our nation’s infrastructure needs, we need an additional $2 trillion worth of investment across all levels......
Congressman Larson Introduces the “America Wins Act”
November 14, 2017
Earlier this month, Congressman John Larson (D-CT) introduced H.R.4209, the America Wins Act – a bill which would invest $1 trillion, through taxing harmful pollution, in our infrastructure over a decade. Under this legislation, $400 billion will be invested in existing federal highway programs and eliminate the $138 billion Highway Trust Fund (HTF) shortfall; $100......
Texas Report Card Gives Infrastructure a “C-“
September 20, 2017
Texas’ infrastructure has received a lot of attention in the past few weeks following Hurricane Harvey. Today, weeks the cities of Port Aransas and Rockport were destroyed and Houston and South Texas flooded, the Texas section of the ASCE released the Report Card for Texas’ Infrastructure, and the report finds there is work to be......
Federal Infrastructure & Science Programs Receive House Appropriations
July 21, 2017
The House Appropriations Committee had a busy week, passing the remaining five (out of 12) appropriations bills this week, part of the process Congress goes through to create the federal budget. Here are the highlights of the bills affecting infrastructure and engineering. Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies National Science Foundation is funded at $7.3......
July 11, 2017
Last week, the U.S. Water Alliance, of which ASCE is a member, held their annual One Water Summit in New Orleans, Louisiana. The summit’s themes included collaborating across and beyond water by leveraging effective partnerships across the water industry; financing and delivering water projects that maximize economic, environmental, and community benefits; communicating the value of......
June 06, 2017
On June 5, 2017, the World Wildlife Fund, the Coca-Cola Company, and the World Water Council co-hosted “Sharing Water,” an all-day conference in Washington, D.C. focused on sharing water across people, governments, businesses, and nature. This event, which featured D.C. Water’s CEO George Hawkins, Mayor Dr. Karen Weaver of Flint, Michigan, and speakers from the......
Legislation to Create National Infrastructure Bank Reintroduced
June 02, 2017
Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Roy Blunt (R-MO), along with seven other bipartisan cosponsors, recently introduced S. 1168 – BRIDGE Act to establish a national infrastructure bank to give state and local governments another tool in the toolbox for financing infrastructure projects. The bank would help state and local governments better leverage private funds to......
Trump Administration Proposes Budget
May 26, 2017
On May 23, 2017, President Donald Trump released his budget request for Fiscal Year 2018, which follows the blueprint, or “skinny,” budget released in March 2017. The proposal cuts funding for all federal departments except the Department of Defense, Veterans Affairs, and Homeland Security. The agency with the largest percentage decrease in funding is the......
Infrastructure Week: Time to Build
May 15, 2017
The fifth annual Infrastructure Week is underway. More than 100 events are being held around the country this week, with the goal of elevating infrastructure as a critical issue impacting all Americans. Things kicked off Monday morning with an event at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, featuring Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, Los Angeles Mayor Eric......
House Energy & Commerce Committee Holds Infrastructure Hearings
March 21, 2017
Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives’ Energy & Commerce Committee held hearings focused on infrastructure. Among them were two featuring ASCE members’ testimonies—both focusing on the newly released Infrastructure Report Card. These hearings came as Congress continues to consider how best to improve our nation’s infrastructure, in part because of President Trump’s interest in......