WASHINGTON, D.C. - The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) joins the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, AFL-CIO, the National Retail Federation, the Bipartisan Policy Center, North America's Building Trades Unions, as well as over 20 business and labor organizations to launch the Coalition for Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment. The Coalition commends the bipartisan group of 22 senators and the Biden administration on reaching agreement on a historic $1.2 trillion infrastructure framework and urges Congress to turn the framework into legislation that will be signed into law this summer.
"Infrastructure has long been a bipartisan priority and the actions taken by this group of 22 senators and the Biden administration further demonstrates the national support of this issue," said Tom Smith, ASCE Executive Director. "The agreed upon framework is substantial progress and we must ensure this proposal crosses the finish line so that American businesses and households can begin feeling the benefits of much-needed infrastructure investment."
ASCE's 2021 Report Card for America's Infrastructure assigned the nation's systems a cumulative grade of "C-", unacceptable for a 21 st century economy. We need to prioritize our nation's infrastructure and close its estimated 10-year $2.59 trillion investment gap if we wish to remain competitive in the global marketplace and keep Americans safe. The proposed bipartisan infrastructure framework will go a long way towards raising the grades and improving conditions. The package includes more than $500 billion in new spending in 11 of ASCE's Infrastructure Report Card categories (Bridges, Roads, Energy, Transit, Rail, Inland Waterways, Broadband, Dams, Stormwater, Drinking Water and Wastewater).
ABOUT THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS
Founded in 1852, the American Society of Civil Engineers represents more than 150,000 civil engineers worldwide and is America's oldest national engineering society. ASCE works to raise awareness of the need to maintain and modernize the nation's infrastructure using sustainable and resilient practices, advocates for increasing and optimizing investment in infrastructure, and improve engineering knowledge and competency. For more information, visit www.asce.org and follow us on Twitter, @ASCETweets and @ASCEGovRel.