House Passes Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Update
The House just passed the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, a key part of President Biden's economic agenda. It will now go to the President's desk to be signed into law. The final vote was 228-206.
The legislation passed the Senate in August by a vote of 69-30, but stalled in the House as Democrats tried to negotiate a deal on a separate $1.9 trillion economic package, another key component of Biden's agenda that many Democrats had tied to the fate of the infrastructure bill.
While the bipartisan infrastructure bill did not contain funding for school construction there were a few items of interest to K-12 schools including:
A total of $65 billion for broadband investment to help families access the internet and afford devices (Division F, starting on page 2014);
$5 billion for clean-energy school buses;
$500 million over 5 years for competitive grants to schools and non-profits for energy efficiency improvements;
$200 million over 5 years to remove lead contamination in school drinking water, as part of a much bigger drinking water program; and
Reauthorizes and extends until 2023 the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act, which helps fund schools in 700 counties that have federal forest land.
For months the Bipartisan Infrastructure bill has been linked to the Build Back Better Act (Reconciliation Bill) which contains money for many domestic priorities. Consideration of that bill is not expected tonight, but rather is now planned for later this month.
- Courtesy of NSBA's update titled House Passes Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill - November 8, 2021
