WASHINGTON – Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure deal that includes at least $2.8 billion in estimated funding for Hawai‘i.
The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) voted to pass in the Senate in August, includes funding to repair roads and bridges and make them more resilient to climate change, improve public transportation options for residents, and strengthen high-speed internet access in Native Hawaiian communities and across Hawai‘i.
“Billions of federal dollars are heading to Hawai‘i to help us fix up our roads and bridges, and create thousands of new jobs across the state,” said Senator Schatz, Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and Housing. “This massive investment will make it safer and easier for Hawai‘i families to get around, while helping grow our local economy.”
In addition to the billions of dollars in federal funding for Hawai‘i, the bill also includes legislation authored by Senator Schatz to improve road safety standards and make streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists. The Vulnerable Road Users Safety Act, which Schatz worked to include in the deal, will help utilize technology, infrastructure, and design expertise to vastly reduce pedestrian and cyclist road deaths in Hawai‘i and across the United States.
The bill now heads to the president’s desk to be signed into law.
Key provisions in the infrastructure bill for Hawai‘i include:
Roads, bridges, and major projects – at least $1.5 billion for Hawai‘i
• At least $1.2 billion in estimated funding for Hawai‘i will be used to repair and rebuild roads with a focus on climate change mitigation, resilience, and safety for all road users
• At least $339 million for Hawai‘i from the Bridge Program to repair and replace deficient or outdated bridges.
• Hawai‘i has access to nearly $16 billion in nationwide funding for major projects.
• Access to $7.5 billion for competitive RAISE grants which support surface transportation projects of local and/or regional significance.
Public transit – at least $637.4 million for Hawai‘i
• Funding will be used to help repair and expand Hawai‘i’s public transit system, including a investment in cleaner and safer buses
Airports – at least $246 million for Hawai‘i
• Funding will be used to improve runways, gates, taxiways, and terminals and make investments that will reduce congestion and emissions, and drive electrification and other low-carbon technologies
• Hawai‘i also has access to $5 billion in nationwide funding from the Airport Terminal Program for major terminal renovations and expansions
Broadband – at least $160 million for Hawai‘i
• At least $100 million in funding will be used to help the state deploy and expand broadband access to more Hawai‘i families
• The Department of Hawaiian Homelands is set to receive at least $60 million to provide high-speed internet access to more Native Hawaiian families
• At least 280,000 Hawai‘i residents will be eligible for a new broadband benefit aimed at helping low-income families afford high-speed internet access
• Funding will also support the construction of new broadband infrastructure, including undersea cables
Water infrastructure – at least $200.4 million for Hawai‘i
• Funding includes $88 million to Hawai‘i from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund to improve drinking water treatment, pipes, and water storage tanks
• An additional $112.4 million to Hawai‘i from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund to help support municipal wastewater facilities and treatment systems
• Access to $10 billion to address Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)
• Access to $250 million in grants for low-income households for the construction, repair, or replacement of individual decentralized wastewater treatment systems
Flood mitigation – $7 billion (nationwide)
• Hawai‘i has access to $7 billion in nationwide funding to support flood control projects that protect vulnerable communities from sea level rise and extreme weather
Ports and waterways – $16.6 billion (nationwide)
• Hawai‘i has access to new funding for waterway and coastal infrastructure, inland waterway improvements, and port infrastructure
Addressing Legacy Pollution – $21 billion (nationwide)
• Hawai‘i has access to $1.5 billion in nationwide funding for brownfields remediation
• Access to $3.5 billion for Superfund cleanup
Senator Schatz needs to come up with $12.5 million to build a Materials Resource Facility so that we can implement curbside recycling, and deal with our solid waste.
Brian Schatz is doing an excellent job. Keep up the good work. I think he needs to continue to represent Hawai’i like the voters wanted him to. He is a good spokesperson for Hawai’i. They listen to people who personify a good speaker.
1% of 1 Trillion is 10 billion. So Hawaii is only going to get a little over a quarter (2.8 billion) of one percent of the infrastructure money? Where is all the money really going? What’s in this bill if there is little going to state infrastructure. I can’t believe this. Now the Hawaii taxpayers have to help pay for it but get very little of it.
Headline should have been: “Another Democrat spends money we don’t have to buy votes using our money!” Why not go deeper in debt as a Nation? All we’re doing is shifting the debt burden onto our children so they, not us, will suffer the bankruptcy and collapse of our currency, and Nation! In the meantime, our bought and paid for Politicians can get rich without doing any real work! Why not?