Despite being only one week beyond the passage of the $2.2 trillion CARES Act (Phase 3), talks have already begun for a Phase 4 with infrastructure funding being at the forefront of the discussions. Both the White House and Congress have floated the idea of including infrastructure investment in the next component of relief from the coronavirus (COVID-19) package, including a tweet from President Trump stating, “With interest rates for the United States being at ZERO, this is the time to do our decades long awaited Infrastructure Bill. It should be VERY BIG & BOLD, Two Trillion Dollars, and be focused solely on jobs and rebuilding the once great infrastructure of our Country!” On Tuesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) echoed President Trump’s call for infrastructure investment, highlighting water treatment, broadband deployment, medical infrastructure, and school construction as her main priorities for investment. She added that the legislation would build off of the $760 billion infrastructure proposal unveiled by the Democrats in January, which features new funding for roads, high-speed rail, airports and broadband networks around the country. The Speaker’s new proposal would also include an extra $10 billion to invest in community health centers. Specifics on a funding mechanism for such a plan remain up for negotiation and are likely to bring vigorous debates between Republicans and Democrats.
