Yesterday, the House passed H.R. 2, the Moving Forward Act, a $1.5 trillion package to invest in lasting, 21st century infrastructure and address some of America’s most urgent needs. Rep. Greg Stanton, a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, cosponsored the legislation.
The bill includes measures to tackle the nation’s massive backlog of roads, bridges, and transit systems in need of repair and replacement. It emphasizes investment in resilient infrastructure that will withstand the impacts of climate change and extreme weather, as well as sharp increases in funding for public transit options in urban, suburban and rural areas. The bill also makes much-needed investments in schools, housing, broadband internet, drinking and wastewater systems, the postal service, clean energy sector, health care infrastructure and more.
“The Moving Forward Act prioritizes smart, sustainable infrastructure that’s built to last,” Stanton said. “This bill is a long-term investment in Arizona—from highways and transit to water systems and airports. It lifts our tribal communities, which for far too long haven’t received the federal funds they deserve. And it helps us meet our responsibility to combat the urgent threat of climate change, all while creating thousands of good-paying jobs.”
Earlier this week, Stanton spoke on the House Floor in favor of the legislation. Video of his remarks is available here.
Stanton, the only Arizona member to serve on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, has made it a top priority to push for short and long-term investments in projects that would benefit Arizonans and strengthen the state’s economy. Throughout his freshman term, he has fought for several bills and amendments that were included in the final version of H.R. 2.
The provisions he championed include:
- Funding for transit projects in smaller communities such as Flagstaff through the Small Transit Intensive Cities program;
- Steps to make infrastructure construction in Arizona through the bipartisan Rebuilding Our Communities by Keeping Aggregates Sustainable (ROCKS) Act;
- Funding for large “Projects of Regional and National Significance” such as I-11, which proposes to connect the Phoenix metro to Las Vegas;
- Reauthorization of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program to provide resources to state, local governments and Indian tribes to reduce fossil fuel emissions and conserve energy;
- Funding to support workforce development, training and retraining for wastewater management workers;
- An amendment to make Small Starts transit projects, such as the Tempe Streetcar eligible for emergency COVID-19 relief funds;
- An amendment to add zero emission vehicles to an existing weight limit exemption on Interstate highways;
- An amendment to require the Department of Transportation to submit a new annual report to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works on funding allocated to Indian tribes;
- Increased funding for tribal road construction and infrastructure improvement, including $800 million a year for the Tribal Transportation Program;
- $50 million to reestablish a grant program to assist tribes in undertaking high priority transportation projects;
- An Office of Tribal Government Affairs within the U.S. Department of Transportation, as well as a new Assistant Secretary for Tribal Government Affairs that will be responsible for overseeing the administration of the Tribal Transportation Self Governance Program, policies, and programs serving Indian tribes.
Full text of the Moving Forward Act is available here.
A Section by Section is available here.
A Fact Sheet is available here.