According to reports, President Joe Biden’s administration is drafting a $3 trillion infrastructure deal. However most of the spending will be directed toward social welfare programs.
On Tuesday The New York Times previewed the new spending plan, reporting that even though the president has interest in infrastructure, the bill would focus on reducing carbon emissions, address economic inequality, and advocating equity.
According to the report, only $1 tillion of the new bill would be spent on infrastructure priorities. Such as roads, bridges, rail lines, ports, electric grid improvements, and charging stations for electric cars.
Other spending priorities include; investments in wind and solar power, 5G telecommunications, rural broadband, and worker training. The new bill also includes the development of one million “affordable and energy-efficient” housing units.
Bloomberg News reports that the Biden administration is planning $400 billion in “green spending.” Additional spending measures include tuition reductions among minorities, health-care programs, and money for child care and eldercare.
The Washington Post reports the proposal includes plans for free community college and universal prekindergarten,
The Democrats may possibly split the bill into multiple spending bills, as an effort to draw in more Republican support for infrastructure, The Times reports. The biggest hurdle is Biden’s effort to raise taxes to pay for part of the spending bill.
Republicans are highly unlikely to support a tax increase, meaning Democrats could shift to passing a spending bill through budget reconciliation requiring only 51 votes. The same way they did to pass the $1.9 trillion coronavirus spending bill.
