Sec. 2. Findings

378 words·~2 min read·/bill/113/hr/2553/ih/section-2

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Congress finds the following: Investment in infrastructure has always created jobs and economic growth for the United States and has been a key component of maintaining a global competitive edge for the United States. The Erie Canal, the transcontinental railroad, the Hoover Dam, rural electrification, and the interstate highway system are all examples of investments in infrastructure that created the conditions for future economic growth. According to the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report, the United States ranks 14th overall in infrastructure.

According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, the current condition of the infrastructure in the United States earns a grade point average of D+, and an estimated $3,600,000,000,000 investment is needed by 2020 to meet adequate conditions. According to the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission, $225,000,000,000 is needed annually from all sources for the next 50 years to upgrade our surface transportation system to a state of good repair and create a more advanced system.

The Environmental Protection Agency projects that— $334,800,000,000 is needed to invest in infrastructure improvements over 20 years to ensure the provision of safe water; and $202,500,000,000 is needed for publicly owned wastewater systems-related infrastructure needs over 20 years. According to the Edison Electric Institute, the electric power industry will need to invest $298,000,000,000 in the Nation’s transmission system in the next 20 years in order to maintain reliable service.

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the United States ranks 15th among OECD nations in fixed and wireless broadband access per 100 inhabitants. Although grant programs of the Government must continue to play a central role in financing the transportation, environment, energy, and telecommunications infrastructure needs of the United States, current and foreseeable demands on existing Federal, State, and local funding for infrastructure expansion exceed the resources to support these programs by margins wide enough to prompt serious concerns about the United States’ ability to sustain long-term economic development, productivity, and international competitiveness.

The capital markets, including central banks, pension funds, financial institutions, sovereign wealth funds, and insurance companies, have a growing interest in infrastructure investment. The establishment of a United States Government-owned institution that would provide this investment opportunity to finance qualifying infrastructure projects would attract needed capital for United States infrastructure development.