House Sets Thursday Vote on Infrastructure

On Sunday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that the House would pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act on Thursday, September 30. The speaker insisted that the House would pass the bill “this week.” It is unclear whether she has the votes for passage of the legislation and the ability to make good on her promise.

Action on the bipartisan, Senate-passed surface reauthorization and infrastructure investment would come on the heels of White House outreach to House Democrats last week, the looming expiration of federal highway programs at the end of the month and the ripening of the Speaker’s promised date for considering the bipartisan bill: September 27.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes both a five-year reauthorization of federal highway programs at robust funding levels – a nearly 40% increase over existing funding – as well as $550 billion in federal investment in infrastructure. This bill represents the sort of infrastructure investment that NRMCA and our member companies have been advocating for over the past years. It embodies the priorities NRMCA’s Government Affairs Committee set forward this summer and includes many of the industry’s priorities while leaving out much of the harmful policy included in other proposals.

In particular, the legislation includes increased funding for federal highway programs by an average of 38% annually, dedicated funding for bridges and major projects, and codification of the Trump Administration’s One Federal Decision permitting reforms. More importantly, this legislation does not include many of the negative policies included in other proposals, such as an increase in mandated minimum truck insurance levels, review of the 2020 Hours of Service rules, restrictions on construction of new capacity, and labor policies like the PRO Act.

As of Tuesday, it was unclear whether the speaker had the votes on the bipartisan infrastructure package. Several dozen progressives have pledged not to support the bill until the $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill is passed by the Senate or a House-Senate deal is reached to guarantee passage. Similarly, very few Republicans are expected to support the legislation because of claims that it is “linked” to the $3.5 trillion social spending package. Hence, it is unclear whether Speaker Pelosi will have the votes to pass the package though it is likely that she will successfully wrangle the needed support.

Should the House pass the Senate-passed bill, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will go to President Biden to be signed into law – a huge win for the ready mixed concrete industry, the American economy and the transportation construction industry.

NRMCA has been actively engaged over the past months with a broad coalition representing transportation stakeholders and the business community urging Congress to pass this critical legislation. NRMCA and our allies have been meeting with Members of Congress and their staffs, sending letters and leveraging the relationships and presence of our members to urge congressional support for this bill and we will continue pushing for these priorities until the bill is passed – whether this week or in the future.

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For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org.

National Ready Mixed Concrete Association