Democrats Delivered on Infrastructure
Floor Speech
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Mr. TONKO. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for leading us in this discussion this evening.
So what does the infrastructure bill mean to my district, mean to me? I think it is sharpening our competitive edge.
And when you are out there functioning in a global economy, we may not be the only force out there as we were decades ago, and so sharpening that pencil and making certain we cut costs, costs for families, costs for production, and providing for resources that will put the tools in the kit that are required for a 21st century economy is what it is all about. We have back-burnered infrastructure for far too long.
Having been here now, this is my 13th year in Congress, infrastructure is not a Democratic or Republican idea. People have been talking about it in both Chambers in both parties for a long time. And every week in the last administration was infrastructure week.
But finally it took leadership.
President Biden, with his experience of almost four decades in the Senate and serving as Vice President, knew about those relationships. He knew that you had to negotiate across party lines, you had to negotiate across House lines to make certain that working with his administration and with his cabinet officials we would come up with a blueprint for a sound economy. And that is exactly what happened here.
Yesterday's bill signing was exciting. We were sitting together on that south lawn.
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Mr. TONKO. It was chilly and windy, so it felt even chillier than it was. But what was so important to recognize and to consume was that what you had here was a President who is in the likes of Abraham Lincoln, who built an intercontinental rail system; President Teddy Roosevelt, who set up a National Parks System; President Dwight Eisenhower, who set up the Interstate Highway System. This person stands as a giant when it comes to infrastructure now, someone who brought us together; and it wasn't talk on and on, it was negotiations. And finally now the first step in this process, the huge downpayment on our infrastructure, is very vital.
So to me it is about competition, but it is also about hope, providing a spirit of hope for working families in this country to know that there is a bolder tomorrow.
I liken our country to the pioneer spirit. I think it is part of our DNA. We showed again that there is spirit, spirit to embrace invention and innovation as we are going through R&D dollars to develop more efficiency and effectiveness with wind power.
We are going to invest in my State and across the 50 States in infrastructure that ranges from roads and bridges to ports, making them more secure, more equipped for the modern economy, making certain that we are providing for a response to the transportation sector for climate's sake.
This allows us to be better stewards in protecting our planet, making certain the next generations that follow us will have a better world. That is done by us making certain that in my State where there are those nonattainment areas, in accordance with the Clean Air Act, they will now clean up that air that they breathe; the water that they drink; the soils that they can restore. That is part of an economic response.
And as we restore some of those sites--many of them are in communities of color, neighborhoods of Brown and Black people, who will now prosper because they will remediate these soils and now go forward with opportunities for work.
So this is about putting people to work. The jobs that will be part of this will be tremendous. And it is just a green light to go forward and really focus on our efforts as we travel forward to invest in those dynamics that truly matter.
I look at my State, they are scheduled to receive approximately--we are still working out the numbers--some $30 million to build our airports into a stronger bit of infrastructure. Important in international travel. Making certain that we invest in the Northeast corridor with Amtrak. Our rail system requires, for safety sake and ridership time, an investment. And so those dollars of some $66 billion will be going towards Amtrak. $100 billion going toward roads and bridges in this country. Making certain that we address one of the issues very important to the subcommittee that I chair, the Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change, that reports to the standing Committee on Energy and Commerce, that subcommittee under its umbrella has the responsibilities of implementing the Safe Drinking Water Act. And what we found is that we need to invest heavily in our drinking water infrastructure.
Think of it, the spaghetti below our communities, below our feet, is so critical in getting a commodity that is essential, sound, pristine drinking water to industry, to homes, to schools. That begins and ends with sound infrastructure.
And some of this infrastructure, Representative Cartwright, is dating back to the days of Rutherford B. Hayes in the White House.
We are not content with our phones because they are outdated, and we have had them 2 years. We are not content with our TV screen because it is not large enough. We are tired of the miles on the car or the color of it, so we get a new vehicle. But we are content to sit there with 100-year-old pipes that are providing an essential commodity for this economy and for the safety of people in their homes and in schools.
So this is about investing $55 billion in lead pipe removal, which is going to put a lot of pipefitters and plumbers into working situations as they replace these pipes. No child, no family should be drinking water that is lead infested. And for us to know that there are 10,000 pipes actively serving communities across this country, it is far past time to respond to that replacement mechanism, which this bill does.
So, obviously, I am listening to the colloquy you have had with so many of our colleagues tonight, and we can go on and on about the benefits of this bill. There are tremendous benefits that put people to work in union jobs so that they will be given a salary, a check, a paycheck that is commensurate with the skill and the talent they bring for all of us as Americans.
And putting people to work, stronger stewardship of our planet, and innovation concepts that will take us to the next economy of the 21st century, these are all virtuous outcomes. And how 206 Members of this House could vote against infrastructure when they talked about it, they touted it for years. But they were okay to support a tax cut that went to the 1 percent of wealth of this country and some of the largest corporations in the world. But for the working families, for the middle class community of this country, for those looking to ascend the middle class, there was a ``no'' vote, while you could have made it so competitive, sharpen that competitive edge, give us the skills and the talents and the resources we need, making certain we go forward with a sense of hope, a spirit of hope that we can do, that we can embrace that pioneer spirit of this country.
Madam Speaker, the President yesterday said to the President of China, I believe it was, when he asked him, What is America? How would you define it?
Possibilities. Opportunity. Possibility. Pioneer spirit. All of that comes together in one venue that is enabled by these bills that are going to address infrastructure. And that bill signing yesterday for that infrastructure bill, that was a powerful statement, a powerful moment. One that says ``can do.'' Yes, America. We are back. We are going to make certain that all of the good work that is done will improve our economy, strengthen our economy, and provide for a competitive edge that will keep us the strong economy in the world that we ought to be.
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Mr. TONKO. Not at all.
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Mr. TONKO. Absolutely.
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Mr. TONKO. Oh my gosh, this is generational. We haven't seen this kind of investment in ages. So when we look back at that interstate railroad system, we look back at the park system, we look back at the interstate issues, these are infrastructure investments that are still providing for us.
I look at some of the work that came under President Franklin Roosevelt's administration and the infrastructure in my district, phenomenal schools that are like fortresses that are part of the cityscape, the landscape of any community that are still tremendous bits of architecture that are serving a very useful purpose.
When we think about the Rural Electrification Act of about a century ago, people are still prospering from that connection. As you called it, the pockets that were unserved or underserved.
So this is going to be a lifetime and beyond for even the youngest of our communities, as we celebrated yesterday.
We look at the broadband that is also part of this process, how can you allow for communities to go unserved or underserved. This is about children doing their homework. This is about cottage industry surviving and growing. This is about security for those who live in remote rural areas or in some poor neighborhoods. This is a connection with the outside world. So the connection that comes with this via rail, via airports, via jobs, via infrastructure, via water systems that will serve us well.
I remember being back in the beginning of my elected capacity in a county government situation. We were much stronger in our response to water. Today, we are at about 4\1/2\ percent of any project--4\1/2\ percent is contributed from the Federal Government. It is time to change that.
And you know what, the message that I think is important also, Representative Cartwright, is that these issues, these concerns, these needs--and they are needs--don't go away. So either pay for them at a Federal level where there are much more progressive opportunities to create the revenues--and by the way, this is all paid for, which is a great highlight--but we had those more progressive opportunities for revenues rather than relying on a property tax as it percolates down into the most local of levels and say, Okay, you need this water, dig into the purse for the property tax. Unfair. Unacceptable.
So we are here now celebrating what can be a golden moment. It was just great to gather together yesterday and see mayors of both parties, see governors of both parties, see the cabinet officials, seeing union labor, seeing the private sector, seeing the faith community, all gathering together applauding and recognizing the leadership, the profound leadership of President Biden, Vice President Harris, their Cabinet, and certainly those who voted for the measure in the Senate and in the House here in Washington.
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Mr. TONKO. Sure.
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Mr. TONKO. Well, of course, we are modernizing our ports. We are modernizing our roads and bridges. We are making certain that we have a state-of-the-art grid for electricity sake so that as you integrate renewables, and integrate distributed generation; you need that state- of-the-art grid. So all of this investment, starting with the modernization of the ports allows us to take this in.
You brought up a really good point. This pandemic rocked this economy here in the U.S. and around the world in a way that we haven't seen in over 100 years. And for us now to be experiencing this aftermath shouldn't be a surprise. People are staying home not spending. They didn't go shopping; they were afraid, as they should be. They were warned not to go into stores and spread the virus.
So it rocked the economy. And so there was a supply that was building, and the demand was way down. And now we are trying to steady this out. This infrastructure issue will help us. We need to work through this now to steady the economy because we saw spikes that obviously aren't acceptable.
The President and his team will use this infrastructure measure and other concepts to make certain we come back and steady the economy in a way that will get us back to normal--that is so important to do--and to be visionary.
I see that Representative Ross is going to join us from North Carolina, and we have been working together--perhaps you have been working with Representative Ross, too--on offshore wind. There is a visionary piece. And there is a way for us to really build the energy supply in a way that is going to put a lot of people to work.
So Representative Cartwright, thank you for leading us in this discussion tonight.
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Mr. TONKO. This bill is definitely going to address the supply-chain concern. The pandemic was so instructive--supply chain, technology, reliance on technology--making certain we learn these lessons; take them to mind, take them to heart, and respond. And this administration is about that.
A golden moment, a celebratory moment, once in a lifetime, once in a generation, I am just proud to witness it. Proud to witness it and to have cast a ``yes'' vote.
I thank all of my colleagues in the House that voted yes for strengthening the muscle of the American economy and the American worker.
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Mr. TONKO. No matter what political label you have at the end of the day, we are all going to prosper.
When you see these headlines across the country, ``billions coming to X State,'' and then the sidebar discussion: Entire delegation voted ``no.'' You explain it to the public.
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