Infrastructure bill to support Alabama broadband, road repair; Congressional Republicans rip ‘reckless’ spending
(The Center Square) – Alabama will receive $5.2 billion in federal highway funding and $225 million for bridge replacement and repairs under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, according to a news release from U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell of Birmingham. The state’s Republican Congressional delegation criticized the measure for spending more on Democratic wish lists than actual infrastructure.
The state will also receive $100 million to improve the state’s broadband coverage.
“Broadband internet is necessary for Alabamians to do their jobs, participate equally in school learning, health care, and to stay connected,” Sewell said in the news release. “Yet 18% of Alabama households do not have an internet subscription, and 11.5% of Alabama residents live in areas where, under the FCC’s benchmark, there is no broadband infrastructure.”
Alabama will receive $400 million over the next five years for public transportation projects. About a fourth of transit vehicles in the state are “past useful life,” according to Sewell.
Sewell said Alabama’s infrastructure “has been falling behind for far too long.”
“I fought to ensure that equity is a central focus of this bill, and I’m proud that it will uplift hard-working Alabamians from our biggest cities to our most rural communities,” Sewell said.
Alabama will also receive:
$782 million for water infrastructure improvements.$140 million to improve the state’s airports$23 million for wildfire protection.$19 million for protection against cyberattacks.
The bill passed the House by a vote of 228 to 206.
Republican Rep. Gary Palmer of Vestavia Hills voted against the bill.
“Our economy is struggling, and our national debt already presents a serious national security threat, but the Democrats have shown they are willing to recklessly push through a bill that costs over a trillion dollars with only about 10 percent going to roads and bridges,” Palmer said in a news release. “I fully support funding for infrastructure that is focused on national priorities rather than wasting hundreds of billions of dollars on a Green New Deal wish list and programs under the guise of human infrastructure that simply expands government control of our lives.”
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the infrastructure bill will increase the federal budget deficit by $256 billion over 10 years.
U.S. Rep. Jerry Carl, a Republican from Mobile, said in a tweet over the weekend that he opposed the bill as well.
“Late last night, I voted no on the Pelosi/Biden ‘infrastructure’ bill because less than 10% of this massive bill will go toward actual infrastructure projects like roads, bridges, ports, and waterways,” Carl said. “It’s time to get serious about real investments in our infrastructure.”
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