The National Infrastructure Bank Act of 2021 is a bill that was introduced in the United States House of Representatives on May 19, 2021. The bill creates the National Infrastructure Bank (Bank) to facilitate the long-term financing of infrastructure projects by providing loans to public and private entities for financing, developing, or operating eligible projects. To be eligible for a loan, a project is required to have a public sponsor and local, regional, or national significance. A project that receives a loan is required to pay all laborers and mechanics locally prevailing wages and to use only certain nationally produced construction materials, unless the Bank waives those requirements.
The bill provides the following with regard to the establishment and operation of the Bank:
Within five years of the bill's enactment, the Comptroller General of the United States is required to submit a report to Congress evaluating activities of the Bank, including an assessment of the impact and benefits of each funded infrastructure project and a review of how effectively each project accomplished the goals prioritized by the Bank's project criteria.
The Legislature requests that the United States Congress pass and the President of the United States sign the National Infrastructure Bank Act of 2021 or similar legislation.
(In support) There is a statewide and nationwide infrastructure financing crisis. Many communities lack housing, various utilities, workable transportation networks, and food protection networks. It is not possible to finance these infrastructure needs solely through federal, state, or local budgets. The bill currently before the United States Congress would create a National Infrastructure Bank (Bank) and provide $5 trillion of lending capacity without public investment or appropriation. This new Bank is a concept based on historical precedent set by other institutions, such as the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. Other countries that have faced similar infrastructure issues, such as Japan in the aftermath of World War II, have created infrastructure banks that demonstrate the success of this model. The creation of the Bank will generate tens of millions of high paying jobs, provide training and certification opportunities, lift many disadvantaged persons out of poverty, fund the completion of large projects that have accumulated over time, and depoliticize the process of infrastructure funding. This is especially important for workers reentering the work force, particularly those without a college degree. In addition to offering low-interest, low-cost loans, the Bank will provide a grant program to communities that cannot afford to take out loans. Every United States citizen will be positively affected by the Bank.
(Opposed) None.