The White House released President Donald Trump’s highly anticipated infrastructure proposal Monday, which will create a starting point for Congress to come up with an infrastructure bill, according to The Hill.
Trump’s proposal addresses four primary goals:
- Generate $1.5 trillion for infrastructure projects and improvements
- Shorten the permit approval process to two years or less
- Invest in rural infrastructure
- Advance workforce training
Where will the money come from?
The proposal calls for $200 billion in federal funding, with the rest of the money coming from state and local governments, as well as private investments.
Here’s how the federal money would be allocated:
- $100 billion toward a program to match financing from state and local governments for rebuilding projects
- $50 billion for block grants to states for rural projects
- $20 billion for transformative programs (new projects, not improvements to old infrastructure)
- $20 billion to expand the use of loans and private activity bonds to fund infrastructure projects
- $10 billion toward “capital financing”
You can read the 55-page proposal in full here.
Potential sticking points
The plan could face opposition from Democrats, who want a much larger federal contribution, and environmental advocates, who fear that speeding up the permit process will result in shortcutting environmental considerations.
What’s next?
Trump will meet with members of Congress from both parties Wednesday at the White House, where he will begin the process of convincing those who may be skeptical of his proposal.