Buttigieg Celebrates Infrastructure Law as ‘Big Deal’
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President Joe Biden and Secretary Pete Buttigieg are among the officials celebrating a recent round of grants for transportation projects to help mark the third anniversary of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
The $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law, enacted Nov. 15, 2021, is credited for paving the way for modernizing and rebuilding much of the country’s mobility networks and supply chain corridors. Biden argued its enactment kicked off what he described as an infrastructure decade.
On the law’s anniversary, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced $3.4 billion in grants for projects linked to intercity railways, safety programs for pedestrians and to enhance commercial ports. The grants include $50 million for the Don Young Port of Alaska and nearly $54 million for Port Everglades in Florida.
“We got 66,000 projects and counting happening around the country,” Buttigieg told Transport Topics on Nov. 15. “Many of those are going to be playing out for years to come. And then we’ll be using the infrastructure we’re creating for decades after that.”
The Biden-Harris administration delivered the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law— the largest investment in America's infrastructure in over half a century. We've kick-started 66,000+ projects, rebuilding America and creating good-paying construction jobs. https://t.co/scwm7H7XGs pic.twitter.com/hZFrk1WkKw — U.S. Department of Transportation (@USDOT) November 16, 2024
During his tenure, Buttigieg has visited many construction and connectivity projects which, as he explained, will realize the long-term benefits stemming from the IIJA. He often refers to the law as the “Big Deal.”
“It’s the only way to capture how historic this is. [Franklin D. Roosevelt] had the ‘New Deal.’ Joe Biden had the ‘Big Deal.’ And the ‘Big Deal’ will be paying dividends for the rest of our lives,” the secretary said.
“To have the best economy in the world, you have to have the best infrastructure in the world. That’s why three years ago, I was proud to sign the bipartisan infrastructure law — the largest investment in our nation’s infrastructure in a generation. And when the bill passed, we showed that we can get big things done when we work together,” Biden said Nov. 15, emphasizing the law also is “ushering in an infrastructure decade that is planting the seeds for a better and more prosperous future.”
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Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), a member of the Appropriations Committee, reacted to the latest round of grants. “I will always fight for Port Everglades in our nation’s capital and I am thrilled to help deliver more than $53 million in federal funds for the Port Everglades Emissions Reductions Project,” the congresswoman said.
“In June I wrote and called Secretary Pete Buttigieg directly, urging him to fund this project,” she went on. “Together, this work will reduce harmful health impacts and environmental damage to communities surrounding the port — specifically Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, and Dania Beach, all of which I am proud to represent.”
The secretary emphasized the significance of the grants specific to ports and waterways infrastructure. As he put it, “America’s ports are essential to our nation’s supply chains, and thanks to the Biden-Harris administration, we have projects underway all across the country — from Long Beach to Milwaukee to Monroe — that are making it possible for our ports to move more goods each year and keep costs down for families.”
Maritime Administrator Ann Phillips, whose agency will manage the grants, added: “Modernizing America’s port infrastructure is essential to strengthening the multimodal network that supports our nation’s supply chain.”
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