Joe Biden on Thursday released a $1.3 trillion proposal to make major investments in transportation with the dual goals of modernizing U.S. infrastructure and moving toward net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.
The plan to “Invest in Middle Class Competitiveness” calls for spending over a 10-year period that would, according to the campaign, create millions of jobs.
It would target deficient transportation networks by, among other things, starting a “second great railroad revolution” and renovating the nation’s airports. The plan also focuses on expanding options for Americans who do not have high-quality, reliable public transportation, specifically in high-poverty areas and historically marginalized communities.
The proposals for resilient infrastructure focus heavily on investing in green technology, most notably speeding up the transition to electric vehicles. Biden would call for the Department of Energy to invest $5 billion over five years in battery and energy storage technology and work with cities to ensure Americans can drive anywhere in the country in an electric vehicle by 2030.
Biden also calls for spending $400 billion over 10 years for clean energy research and innovation that would, in part, focus on modernizing the trucking, shipping and aviation industries and enacting a national strategy to develop a low-carbon manufacturing sector.
In addition, the former vice president would improve water infrastructure, broadband access and entrepreneurship opportunities by increasing the State Small Business Credit Initiative and establishing a grant program for new business startups outside the biggest cities. He also would allocate $100 billion to modernizing the nation’s schools.
The infrastructure plan would be paid for by reversing the 2017 Republican tax cuts, closing tax loopholes, ending subsidies for fossil fuels and cracking down on tax evasion.
