‘Something we must do’
Pennsylvania Democrats voice support for federal infrastructure bill
State Sen. Lindsey Williams, a Democrat representing parts of the city of Pittsburgh, North Hills and the Allegheny River Valley, expects the proposed federal infrastructure package could ease some of the strain on her phone lines.
Constituents most often call for two reasons, she said: unemployment and infrastructure.
Infrastructure, in this case, covers everything from flooding to sewer systems to constituents who don’t have access to a bus line that they need to get to work.
The Biden administration’s infrastructure bill could “address and help solve” those issues, Ms. Williams said Thursday at a news conference with Democratic lawmakers and leaders.
“Not only will it solve those problems of flooding for our neighbors and dangerous conditions, it will also help put people back to work,” she said. “Yes it’s good union jobs for construction workers that you see on the side of the road but it’s also engineers and architects and the pizza shop down the road where those workers go and take their lunch break.
“This is so important that we get together and put those politics aside and vote for an infrastructure package that’s going to help our communities,” Ms. Williams said.
For weeks, the infrastructure package has been a point of contention in Washington as Democrats and Republicans negotiate its size and scope. The bill is considered the largest investment in infrastructure in decades and could include funding for traditional infrastructure projects, like highways and bridges, as well as a more expansive view of the term that includes projects to manage climate risk and to expand access to broadband internet.
The bill recently passed in the U.S. House and is now in the Senate as federal lawmakers continue to debate what it should include and what additional legislation should follow.
In Pennsylvania, support for the bill has fallen along partisan lines. U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb,
D-Mt. Lebanon, Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Forest Hills, and U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., have all expressed support for the legislation, arguing it will provide investment in the region to help shape its future.
Some Republican leaders and candidates aren’t on board, expressing concern about the price tag and its impact on inflation.
Sean Parnell, a Republican running for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, wrote on Twitter this month that the proposed infrastructure bill is a “total scam.” Carla Sands, another Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, tweeted she would “vote to protect our citizens ... and to stop the hyperinflation.”
The bill overall contains nearly $1 trillion in spending over the next five years.
The infrastructure deal could deliver Pennsylvania an additional $11.3 billion in federal highway funding, $1.6 billion for bridge replacement and $2.8 billion for public transit over five years, according to White House estimates released earlier this month. The state could also receive at least $ 100 million to expand broadband coverage and $171 million to support the expansion of an electric vehicle charging network.
To show support for the legislation and the Biden administration’s Build Back Better agenda, the Pennsylvania Democratic Party held a news conference Thursday at Allegheny Landing park in the North Shore.
“At the end of the day, it comes down to a clear choice,” said state Sen. Jay Costa, a Democrat representing parts of Pittsburgh, the Mon Valley and the South Hills. “We have folks who are running campaigns now and next year saying we don’t want to do this. We have Democrats saying this is something we must do.”
The legislation would support initiatives that became critically important during the COVID-19 pandemic that sent so many people working and learning from home and interrupted supply chains and business as usual across the world, Mr. Costa said.
Among those, he pointed to funding to expand access to broadband to help students with remote learning and businesses with digital sales, as well as to support equipment to improve digital learning so students don’t have to rely on a tablet or mobile device. He also touted the investment in roads and bridges, and the resulting construction jobs, as well as efforts to remove lead pipes from homes and schools.
“We’re going to support this investment,” Mr. Costa said. “We’re going to make these investments in Pennsylvanians, Pennsylvania’s working families, and put people to work and make our communities a better place to live.”
For state Sen. Jake Corman, a Republican serving parts of Centre, Huntingdon, Mifflin and Juniata counties, the main goal is to make sure the “final product helps us address infrastructure needs in a way that is fiscally responsible to taxpayers,” according to a statement from communications director Jason Thompson.
“Our role at the state level will be to ensure whatever money we receive from the federal government is put to good use to meet as many needs as possible — especially for road and bridge repairs, broadband and economic developments that will help create quality jobs for hardworking Pennsylvanians,” he said.
Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said some of the details about how the funding would be distributed to each state and how counties can then apply to receive the money are still being worked out.
In the meantime, he said, the price of inaction will only continue to go up.
“Every year that we wait, things deteriorate more and the cost continues to go up,” Mr. Fitzgerald said. “Putting it off, kicking the can down the road, which is what the federal government has done for many, many years, has put us in a very difficult position.”
Mayor Bill Peduto agreed, encouraging political leaders to take action during this “very short window” to work together.
“It’s not going to fix itself,” he said. “Nobody likes to pay the bill but we have a responsibility and what we hand off to the next generation will either be something that has been maintained and responsibly handled or it will be something that will be falling apart.”