Rosen Was Part of Bipartisan Senate Working Group That Negotiated and Drafted Final Infrastructure Bill Signed Into Law by President Biden
Rosen Helped Write Key Airport and Broadband Sections of the Bill and Secured Nevada Wins for Tourism, Wildfire Relief, and Cybersecurity
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV), a member of the bipartisan Senate infrastructure working group, joined President Biden today as he signed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law during a. White House signing ceremony.
“Congress and the White House are fulfilling our promise to work across party lines and finally invest in our nation’s infrastructure while creating good-paying union jobs,” said Senator Rosen. “I’m honored to have helped shape this new law, which includes several of my bills and provisions, and secured major wins that will benefit Nevadans. For far too long, Washington did not prioritize our crumbling infrastructure. This bipartisan package will deliver reliable and more affordable high-speed internet to those who need it, modernize our airports, fix our bridges, repair and expand our highways, mitigate the threats of drought and wildfires, secure our electric grid from cyber attacks, and so much more. This is a jobs bill for our state, and it’s going to mean a stronger economic recovery for workers and businesses — particularly in our travel, tourism, and hospitality industry — and a better quality of life for all of Nevada’s hardworking families.”
Senator Rosen was “one of the architects of the legislation” as part of the bipartisan group that negotiated and drafted the final $1.2 trillion infrastructure package and helped write key airport and broadband sections of the bill as she worked to secure critical wins for Nevada. The final infrastructure package also includes the text of three of Senator Rosen’s bills: the Middle Mile Broadband Deployment Act, the TOURISM Act, and the Cyber Sense Act. Senator Rosen joined senators of both parties in voting to pass the landmark infrastructure package in August.
The following full sections of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act were co-written by Rosen as part of the bipartisan infrastructure working group:
- BROADBAND: $65 billion in overall investment to make broadband available and affordable. Currently, 8.6% of Nevadans live in areas where there is reportedly no broadband infrastructure that provides even minimally acceptable speeds. And 72% of Nevadans live in areas where there is only one such internet provider. Even where infrastructure is available, broadband may be too expensive to be within reach. 14% of Nevada households do not have an internet subscription.
- $42.45 billion for state broadband deployment grants to connect unserved and underserved communities to high-speed internet (built to at least 100/20 Mbps), a new program developed by Rosen and about a dozen of her working group colleagues, based on the Collins-Rosen American Broadband Buildout Act and Cornyn-Manchin-Collins-Rosen American Broadband Buildout to Eliminate the Digital Divide Act, and including a Rosen-drafted provision prioritizing contractors with a record of compliance with labor and employment laws;
- $14.2 billion for an Affordable Connectivity Program providing $30/month benefit for households up to 200% of the poverty line;
- $1 billion for creating middle-mile connections to build a high-speed backbone to facilitate last-mile connections to communities, businesses, and anchor institutions like schools/libraries, mirroring the text of Rosen’s Middle Mile Broadband Deployment Act;
- $2.75 billion for digital equity;
- $2 billion for USDA rural broadband;
- $2 billion for Tribal broadband; and
- $600 million for Private Activity Bonds.
- AIRPORTS: $25 billion in overall investment for airport infrastructure.
- $15 billion in flexible spending to allow airports to fund their key construction, expansion, upgrade, and repair projects;
- $5 billion for Airport Terminal Program to allow bigger airports to access larger amounts of money in order to build their higher cost terminal projects; and
- $5 billion for upgrades to Air Traffic Control facilities.
The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes the text of three of Senator Rosen’s bills:
- The Middle Mile Broadband Deployment Act, which funds critical broadband infrastructure to connect internet carriers to local networks and community institutions to increase broadband access to unserved and underserved communities;
- The bipartisan Travel Optimization by Updating and Revitalizing Infrastructure to Support Mobilization (TOURISM) Act, which requires the Department of Transportation to update its National Travel and Tourism Infrastructure Strategic Plan to develop an immediate-term and long-term strategy for using infrastructure investments to revive the travel and tourism economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic; and
- The bipartisan Cyber Sense Act, which creates a voluntary program at DOE to test the cybersecurity of products and technologies intended for use in the bulk power system.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act also includes the following Rosen-led or backed bills and amendments:
- The Murkowski-Manchin-Risch-King-Rosen Protecting Resources On The Electric grid with Cybersecurity Technology (PROTECT) Act, which enhances electric grid security by incentivizing electric utilities to make cybersecurity investments and establishes a Department of Energy (DOE) grant and technical assistance program to deploy advanced cybersecurity technology for utilities not regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC);
- Two Rosen-drafted provisions to support travel and tourism – one making “increasing tourism opportunities” a primary selection criteria for the Department of Transportation (DOT) when choosing which local and regional surface transportation proposals to fund; and one requiring DOT to assess its ability to evaluate travel and tourism needs when awarding federal grants; and
- A Rosen-led bipartisan amendment adopted on the Senate floor that adds wildfires as a specified damage for which federal assistance from the National Highway Performance Program may be used to rebuild damaged highways.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act also includes the following key provisions that will benefit Nevada:
- ROADS, BRIDGES, & HIGHWAYS: $110 billion in new nationwide funds for roads, highways, bridges, and major projects, and a reauthorization of the surface transportation program for the next five years, all critical for the future expansion of Interstate-11. Currently, in Nevada, there are 28 bridges and over 1,090 miles of highway in poor condition. Commute times have increased by 7.7% in Nevada over the last decade, and each driver pays $558 per year in costs on average due to driving on roads in need of repair.
- $40 billion in new funding for bridge repair, replacement, and rehabilitation.
- $11 billion in transportation safety programs.
- TRANSIT: $39 billion of new investment to modernize transit and improve accessibility. Currently, Nevadans who take public transportation spend an extra 134% of their time commuting. 5% of trains and other transit vehicles in the state are past useful life.
- WESTERN WATER: $8.3 billion in overall investment for Western water systems. $1 billion for water recycling and reuse projects.
- $300 million for implementing the Colorado River Basin Drought Contingency Plan
- The Drought Contingency Plan is a 7-state agreement – which includes Nevada – to avoid catastrophic water supply shortages in the western United States, and is the result of a years-long, state-driven process conducted during the previous and current federal administrations.
- Senator Rosen was an original cosponsor of the Colorado River Drought Contingency Plan Authorization Act, which was signed into law in 2019. It directed the Secretary of the Interior to execute and carry out the Colorado River Drought Contingency Management and Operations.
- $300 million for implementing the Colorado River Basin Drought Contingency Plan
- $250 million for design, study, and construction of aquatic ecosystem restoration and protection projects
- $50 million for endangered species recovery and conservation programs in the Colorado River Basin.
- CLEAN WATER: $55 billion investment in clean water
- Provides $23.4 billion for the Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Funds.
- Provides $15 billion to replace lead service lines across the country.
- Provides $10 billion to address PFAS contamination.
- Establishes a pilot program to address water affordability.
- Creates a new competitive grant program to improve stormwater control.
- Provides states with greater flexibility and improved funding mechanisms to invest in water infrastructure projects in rural and disadvantaged communities.
- Reauthorizes a number of vital drinking water and wastewater infrastructure programs.
###
