Posted on 03/10/2017 8:47:13 AM PST by BenLurkin
The price tag for redemption has grown steadily for 15 years while an expanding country has focused on building new infrastructure rather than maintaining existing systems that were nearing the end of their natural life.
Since 2001, the cost of repairing those systems has mushroomed from $1.3 trillion to the current figure, more than three times as high, according to an assessment released Thursday by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). The report comes out every four years.
It gave the U.S. infrastructure an overall grade of D-plus, the same grade it received in 2013, suggesting only incremental progress was made over the last four years.
President Trump is on to something when he calls for a national rebuilding, ASCE President Norma Jean Mattei said in presenting the study. But Congress and the American people have to pay for it.
She said lawmakers should raise the federal gas tax by 25 cents and index it to inflation.
Trump reiterated campaign promises on infrastructure in his inaugural address and in his recent address to Congress, but the only supporting detail for that pledge thus far has been an 11-page white paper issued in October. In that document, Trump said the money would be raised by granting private investors an 82 percent tax credit that would encourage them to pump money into infrastructure projects.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
You own and operate a 18 wheeler? Untill you do, and you pay for the damage done to one from the effed up roads, dont tell those who do about how this can wait.
>$1 trillion for infrastructure, but the estimated need is $4.5 trillion
Oh, you mean @ the bloated UNION pay-scale, not the Free Market cost.
I expected nothing less re: ‘shovel ready memory hole’. The Citiziens barely remember, why should the media remind then of the past 8-yr failure?
Use non union labor, problem solved.
$90 billion per state seems pretty extravagant and smells fishy. There are approximately 70,000 lane miles of road ways in Washington State. if they only applied half of that to roadways that would be $643,000 per lane mile ($1.286 million per mile. For that kind of cash you are looking at complete new roadways.
The remaining $45 Billion could then be applied to bridges, sewer plants, and some water/sewer main replacements.
The Feds are only responsible for federal infrastructure - Interstates, Federal Highways, etc.
The states need to take care of their own infrastructure. Maybe they should end new construction projects, until existing infrastructure is serviced or closed down?
...”Its been hanging around as a threat to taxpayers for a decade or so. A few more years wont hurt.
What will help is getting the damned corporate tax rate as close to zero as it can be. Then eliminate all of the phony presidents EOs, then eliminate the EPA, DOE, and as many alphabet worthless agencies as possible.
After this, plus more, is accomplished we might see the debt decrease and dole out infrastructure giveaways, but well have to shove a sock in the mouth of the new treasury secretary, Munchkin....”
worth repeating
Well, if you can’t fix, and it is low priority, it needs to be closed before it becomes dangerous.
or to fund illegals and anti-American subversive groups, or both.
For some reason infrastructure hasn't been very popular with Congress, although they did pass a $305 billion bill after the election.
The border wall better be the first thing on the “infrastructure” list.
Most of the infrastructure belongs to the states and should be paid for by the states.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.