9Invest in the Future: Support Smart Infrastructure

America’s infrastructure is decrepit and out-of-date, with a C- rating from the American Society of Civil Engineers. Bottlenecks in roads, railroads, shipping facilities, and airports are costly and harm American competitiveness. Aging power generation and antiquated pipes harm the environment.

A coordinated infrastructure investment plan will stimulate the economy, provide new jobs, and create a sustainable environmental footprint. It also provides an opportunity to rebound more quickly from the pandemic by providing outdoor jobs. Investing in new infrastructure will return as much as $5 for every dollar invested.

The federal government should take a lead role in a 21st century infrastructure initiative, with each of the following actions:

• Streamline infrastructure red tape by creating clear lines of authority to resolve disagreements among competing public agencies, to focus environmental review on material impacts, and to expedite review of legal disputes. No decision should take more than two years, and most should be finalized in less than a year. See Common Good’s proposal for streamlining permitting.

• Create a National Infrastructure Board, with the charter to maintain an ongoing list of national infrastructure priorities. Setting independent priorities, similar to base-closing commissions, will narrow and expedite political debate. A National Infrastructure Board could also be given responsibility to set guidelines for reasonable contracting policies to avoid featherbedding and other waste of public funds, and to audit finished projects.

• Budget no less than an additional $50 billion per year for ten years for rebuilding infrastructure, to be leveraged with state and local funding and private financing.