After months of work, U.S. senators unveil $1 trillion infrastructure bill
U.S. senators introduced a sweeping $1-trillion bipartisan plan to invest in roads, bridges, ports, high-speed internet and other infrastructure, with some predicting the chamber could pass this week the largest public works legislation in decades.
The massive infrastructure package, a goal that has eluded Congress for years, is a top legislative priority for Democratic President Joe Biden, who billed it on Sunday as the largest such investment in a century.
Senators said the 2,702-page bill included $550 billion in new spending over five years for items such as roads, rail, electric vehicle charging stations and replacing lead water pipes on top of $450 billion in previously approved funds.
"I believe we can quickly process relevant amendments and pass this bill in days," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said of the legislation after it was announced by a bipartisan group of senators.
However, some Republicans criticized the bill as too costly.
It was not yet clear whether senators outside the bipartisan group that negotiated the bill will offer amendments that could possibly upset the delicate coalition that was cobbled together.
If the bill passes the Senate, it must be considered in the House of Representatives, where some Democrats have blasted it as too small and the Democratic leadership has paired it with a $3.5 trillion "human infrastructure" bill to pour money into education, child care, climate change and other priorities.
At least 10 Republicans likely to support infrastructure bill-Senator Collins
Republican U.S. Senator Susan Collins said on Sunday that she believes more than 10 of her Republican colleagues will ultimately support the roughly $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan being finalized by Congress.
Collins made the comment in an interview on CNN's "State of the Union".
Senator Joe Manchin, a Democrat, told the same program that he expects the final text of the bill to be available on Sunday, allowing the Senate to proceed with consideration as early as Sunday night, with final passage later this week.
Reference: Reuters
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