This evening I was interrupted by a severe thunderstorm that forced me to shut down computers that could suffer damage by high levels of static electricity during the storm. This storm, while not deadly to my knowledge, was a climate crisis storm. It's capcity for dumping water on the ground was rather incredible, but, this is not an unusual occurrence. In general, the weather Americans are witnessing no matter what state or area one lives is extreme. These weather outcomes of the climate crisis is a national agenda for the USA.
The changes that have to take place within the USA to sustain infrastructure and a prosperous economy are part of a $1 trillion federal bill that must pass into law currently being held hostage by a few people in our elected federal government. Every person regardless of party must move to bring about this new reality for a country ready and able to sustain the climate crisis and reverse it.
October 1, 2021By Emily Cochrane
...The vote, )click here) 69 to 30, was uncommonly bipartisan. The yes votes included Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, and 18 others from his party who shrugged off increasingly shrill efforts by former President Donald J. Trump to derail it.
“This historic investment in infrastructure is what I believe you, the American people, want, what you’ve been asking for for a long, long time,” Mr. Biden said from the White House as he thanked Republicans for showing “a lot of courage.”...
The vote in the US Senate was overwhelmingly bipartisan. President Biden was successful in bringing this bill to conclusion in a bipartisan manner and passed without question. This level of bipartisanship is rarely seen in the USA these days, but, this bill is so desperately needed in the USA that no reasonable Senator could stand in it's way. The problem is now the US House that has linked two legislative efforts.
The legislation is, no doubt, substantial on its own. It would be the largest infusion of federal investment into infrastructure projects in more than a decade, touching nearly every facet of the American economy and fortifying the nation’s response to the warming of the planet. Funding for the modernization of the nation’s power grid would reach record levels, as would projects to better manage climate risks. Hundreds of billions of dollars would go to repairing and replacing aging public works projects....
This is a more extensive list of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill listed by Reuters. The bill is bought and paid for already.
...The legislation (click here) is one of President Joe Biden's top domestic priorities and includes $550 billion in new spending, while the rest of the $1 trillion is previously approved funding.
Here are some of the details of the bipartisan bill:
* Roads, bridges and major projects: $110 billion
* Passenger and freight rail: $66 billion
* Broadband infrastructure: $65 billion
* Water infrastructure, such as eliminating lead pipes: $55 billion
* Public transit: $39.2 billion
* Resiliency, including flood and wildfire mitigation, ecosystem restoration, weatherization and cybersecurity: $47.2 billion
* Electric vehicle infrastructure, including chargers: $7.5 billion
* Addressing legacy pollution including cleaning up brownfield and Superfund sites, reclaiming abandoned mine lands, plugging orphan oil and gas wells: $21 billion
The plan has a number of proposals to finance the spending, including the following items and the revenue gains from each over the next decade, as estimated by Congress' nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation and Congressional Budget Office.
* Repurposing unused COVID-19 relief funds: $210 billion
* Sales of future spectrum auctions and proceeds of February 2021 c-band auction: $87 billion
* Economic growth: $56 billion
* Return of unemployment insurance funds from some states: $53 billion
* Delaying Medicare Part D rebate rule: $51 billion
* Applying information reporting requirements to cryptocurrency: $28 billion
* Reinstating Superfund fees: $14.5 billion
The hold up in the US House is that the US Senate has not passed the $3.5 trillion that helps return the USA to a country of, by and for the people. It sets many social ills on a path to recovery. Will someone please find out why one US Democratic Senator, Senator Sinema, will not vote for this much needed bill. None of this makes sense. The country will benefit greatly by this, granted enormous bill, but it is not a frivilous effort. These are changes overlooked for decades and it is unfortunate Senator Sinema is burdened with a bill that will catch up the USA on just reform, but, that is her reality. This is a Democratic majority that is taking on the challeges of the past and correcting the path forward. The idea Senator Machin is not on board for the climate provisions is unfortunate as well, but, he needs to bite the bullet and pass the bill regardless of his excellent effort to reduce it's cost.
The facts are simple and I believe Representative Ocasio-Cortez states the truth about the bill and the need to pass it. To reduce the $3.5 trillion to less so that Sinema and Manchin will vote for it is slight of hand. The bill is important and there is not one aspect of it that is not urgently needed. The idea any Senator or US House member would not want to see the continuation of the Child Tax Credit is outrageous.
This Child Tax Credit is practially paid for when one realizes it keeps low income families together rather than removing children into foster care. There is an epidemic of catastrophe within the Foster Care paradyme and it has to stop. Low income is not supposed to be the peril of intact families. The child tax credit places federal monies where it should be on maintaining THE FAMILY regardless of parents ability to earn to support their family. We have heard over and over how such families are working three or more jobs to pay the bills when in fact that hurts quality of life for the children that need both their parents' love more regularly during the day and not just at bedtime.
The better place to look for cost cutting measures is in Foster Care as the child tax credit increases the better outcomes of intact families and Foster Care is needed less. This $3.5 trillion over ten years is not only needed to reform the current social policies of the USA, it is needed to maintain and create better opprotunities for children and their families. The reform must take place and it is now that it must move forward. It is long overdue.
