Treasury Provides Guidance on State and Local COVID-19 Aid
May 12, 2021
On Monday, the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) launched the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSLFRF) program. The program was first authorized under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). CSLFRF provides $350 billion in emergency funding for eligible state, local, territorial, and tribal governments to help turn the tide on the pandemic,......
United for Infrastructure Week of Events
May 05, 2021
United for Infrastructure 2021 will take place May 10-14, featuring a series of virtual events around the country elevating infrastructure as an issue impacting all Americans. The programming is especially timely as Congress debates how to move forward on investing in infrastructure to help the economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. ASCE is a steering......
Strategic Investment Tactics for Infrastructure Improvement
April 27, 2021
Guest Post by Maria Lehman, National Infrastructure Lead, U.S. at GHD ASCE’s government relations program is about making a societal difference. Through advocacy and relevant reporting, we capture the imagination of Mayors, Governors, Congress and even Presidents. Congress has indicated it’s serious about providing significant new funding for infrastructure and emphasized it’s a bipartisan issue.......
Endless Frontier Act – A Dramatic Boost for Research and Development
April 22, 2021
On Wednesday, April 21, the U.S. Senate introduced a bipartisan bill — the Endless Frontier Act — that would increase American investments in science and technology innovation with the goal of strengthening the economy and competing worldwide. The effort is led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Todd Young (R-IN), and would,......
Five points on grid modernization as we build a more resilient future
April 19, 2021
Guest Post By Ruth Gratzke, President of Siemens Smart Infrastructure I recently came across some startling numbers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration about the frequency of major weather and climate disasters in the U.S. We’ve experienced 291 events with damages or costs of at least $1 billion since 1980. And their recurrence doesn’t......
President Biden Releases FY22 ‘Skinny Budget’
April 15, 2021
Last Friday the White House sent Congress its initial $1.5 trillion budget request for discretionary appropriations in fiscal year (FY) 2022. Known as the ‘skinny budget,’ the document provides the first glimpse of President Biden’s spending priorities. The 58- page budget request is the first since 2013 that is not tied to spending caps, which......
Dams and Levees: The Check Engine Light is On
April 15, 2021
Guest Blog Post by Del Shannon, PE, M.ASCE The grades are in again, and to those of us who care and worry and fret about our country’s infrastructure it’s easy to wince as we scroll through the letters. Mostly C’s and D’s with a couple of B’s, but not an A in sight. The overall......
ASCE Lends Expertise to Policy Recommendations on Improving State Disaster Response
April 13, 2021
The National Conference of State Legislatures’ (NCSL) Public Private Partnership on Disaster Mitigation and Recovery published a series of policy recommendations this month. The partnership, of which ASCE belongs, was convened in response to the devastating 2017 disaster season and is comprised of state legislators, staff, and private sector partners. The report, “Natural Disaster State......
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......
