Infrastructure bill signed into law – and next steps

Posted 11/18/21

Monday, President Biden signed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill

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Infrastructure bill signed into law – and next steps

Posted

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Monday, President Biden signed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, officially known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684) into law at a ceremony on the south lawn of the White House. NFU President Rob Larew was on the stage with President Biden, Cabinet officers, and Congressional leaders at the event.  

The newly enacted law will invest $550 billion over ten years and directs $110 billion for roads and bridges, $55 billion for water infrastructure, $66 billion for rail, and a historic $65 billion sum for broadband infrastructure. An additional $500 million will be going to the Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations that will help USDA address climate related disasters and expand access to rural drinking water.  

This legislative achievement came after months – really years – of negotiation and debate, and until just a couple weeks ago, its future was uncertain. Late on the night of Friday, November 5, the House passed the bill on a 228 to 206 vote. 13 Republicans voted in favor and six Democrats voted against. Next up is the trillion-dollar climate and social spending package that includes $90 billion in agriculture spending. House Democrats hope to pass it by Thanksgiving.  

Challenges abound on Capitol Hill with the year-end holidays fast approaching and some self-imposed deadlines looming. Government funding runs out in 21 days. While the bipartisan infrastructure deal is finally done, the broader Build Back Better legislative agenda appears to have a long way to go yet. The debt limit will need to be lifted again. And the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) needs to be passed. 

While it’s pretty clear what items are on the menu for Congress, it’s less clear what our elected officials will order, and when. NDAA is probably next. There’s plenty of uncertainty around the debt limit, with the Bipartisan Policy Center estimating the limit will next be reached between mid-December and mid-February. Government funding is set to expire on Dec. 3; most observers think we’re in for another stopgap measure, but the question is will it be a shorter or longer-term stopgap. Some say FY22 appropriations will finally be put to bed by the end of 2021, and others see things dragging well into 2022.  

On the Build Back Better Act, Speaker Pelosi expressed some hope in early November that it could be passed into law by Thanksgiving. But House moderate holdouts have said they want to see how the Congressional Budget Office scores the bill before voting, which was just released this week. Even with those CBO figures, and even if the House votes sooner rather than later, the Senate is expected to make changes, thus requiring the House to take the modified version up again. Passage in late December seems much more likely than Thanksgiving given all of these roadblocks. Also, the expanded Child Tax Credit (expanded on a temporary basis through the American Rescue Plan Act), is set to expire and revert to its previous form at the end of the year, which creates additional impetus for Democrats to get BBB done by then.