Infrastructure bill offers billions for Ohio

The $1 trillion infrastructure bill the Senate passed earlier this month would enable historic measures to rebuild roads and bridges, and expand high-speed internet access in Ohio and across the nation. U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who led negotiations bringing the infrastructure bill across the finish line in the Senate, said it will spark jobs and prosperity without raising taxes. But before it all becomes a reality, another finish line — this one in the U.S. House of Representatives — must be crossed. It could be a difficult journey. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the nearly 100-member Progressive Caucus have said they will not vote on the infrastructure bill unless and until the Senate passes a separate, even more ambitious, $3.5 trillion social policy bill this fall. Most of Ohio's 14 U.S. representatives seem to oppose the Senate's infrastructure bill. Despite all that, U.S. Rep. Bob Latta, R-Bowling Green, said he believes the infrastructure bill will pass. He predicted that Pelosi will get all of the House Democrats to vote for it. Latta agrees that roads and bridges need to be upgraded. He is pleased that his bills to improve cybersecurity and grid security are part of the infrastructure bill. But he likely will not be voting for it. "It is going to be very difficult for me to support this legislation," Latta said. "The cost of it is just way out there." U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana, was even more pointed in his opposition: "President Trump is right. Chuck Schumer's (Schumer is the Senate majority leader) infrastructure 'plan' is the beginning of the Green New Deal. No one should support it." Ohio is guaranteed $9.2 billion for roads and highways and $483 million for bridges in the Senate infrastructure bill, Portman's office said. Ohio also can vie for an additional $33 billion in competitive grant funding through the legislation. Many of the details of how Ohio's airports and high-speed internet connections would be affected by the infrastructure bill are yet to be determined. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative would receive a total of $1 billion, or $200 million per year for five years. Funds would be used to protect the Great Lakes from harmful algal blooms, invasive species, contamination and microbeads. Microbeads, used in many self-care products, are the same size as fish eggs — food for many marine life. Because the plastic in the microbeads attracts and absorbs toxic chemicals, they are toxic to wildlife that eat them and humans that may eat fish that consumed the beads. Southeastern Ohio stands to receive $86.2 million to help finish the Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS), a series of highway corridors connecting 13 Appalachian states, from New York to Alabama. The infrastructure bill will provide a total of $1.25 billion, including the amount going to Ohio, to help finish the ADHS. Portman's office said more details about the infrastructure funding for Ohio will become known in the coming weeks. U.S. representatives from around Ohio have expressed conflicting views on the infrastructure plan recently passed by the Senate. What follows are comments from U.S. House members who responded to The Courier's inquiries about how they would vote on it in the House: • Troy Balderson, R-Zanesville, a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee: "The process by which the Senate passed its bipartisan infrastructure package today stands in stark contrast to the way House Democrats rammed through their partisan Green New Deal proposal earlier this summer." "Fixing our crumbling roads and bridges, repairing our cracked water and sewer lines, and connecting broadband access to our rural communities remain top priorities of mine, and ones that would improve the lives of all Americans." • Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo: "I applaud the Senate for its work to advance a bipartisan, once-in-a-generation investment in our nation's infrastructure." "The Build Back Better agenda will repair our crumbling roads and bridges, expand our passenger rail system, connect homes and small businesses with high-speed broadband internet, and invest in the electric vehicle technologies that will support good-paying jobs right here in northern Ohio," Kaptur said. "I look forward to working with my colleagues to ensure infrastructure funding gets across the finish line, and that we deliver every last dollar our Great Lakes communities deserve." • Tim Ryan, D-Niles: "I commend President Biden and especially the efforts of Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who worked in a bipartisan way to add important items to this bill." "Here in northeast Ohio, we stand ready to benefit directly from these investments, where we will rebuild our community's infrastructure and create good-paying jobs," Ryan said. "This legislation will help northeast Ohio and Voltage Valley continue to lead the nation in clean energy research and manufacturing that will power the next generation of electric vehicles. As we continue to work on the infrastructure package, I promise to fight every day to make sure our community and the state of Ohio receives the funding and support it needs to make sure we are leading the economies of the future." • Joyce Beatty, D-Columbus: "This compromise has the potential to rebuild the middle class with honest, good-paying jobs and reignite American competitiveness. My colleagues and I remain committed to working with the president as we build back better in (Ohio's 3rd Congressional District) and nationwide." • Warren Davidson, R-Troy, and his staff issued a statement: "Davidson would love to vote for an actual infrastructure bill. He is an original cosponsor of the Grow America's Infrastructure Investment Now Act. Unfortunately, this $1.2-trillion bill fails on math and on policy. Moreover, it is simply a Trojan horse designed to deliver another $3.5-trillion of bad policy and big deficits. Consequently, he remains opposed." Wilin: 419-427-8413