Industry Cheers Passage of $1.2T U.S. Infrastructure Bill

The U.S. House of
Representatives on Friday night passed a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill with
a 228-206 vote. Nineteen representatives crossed party lines for the bipartisan
legislation that is set not only to overhaul U.S. infrastructure elements from
roads and bridges to airports and rail but also includes major investments in
electric vehicle infrastructure and charging stations among other
environment-focused moves. The $1.2 trillion bill is the largest investment in
public works since Dwight D. Eisenhower introduced the Interstate Highway
System; it represents $550 billion in new spending.

An eleventh-hour
agreement forged by the Congressional Black Caucus to separate the vote on
infrastructure from the $1.85 billion Build Back Better social spending bill
finally allowed the bill to pass after months of debate. The Senate in August had
passed a version of the bill; President Joe Biden is expected to sign it in to
law as early as Monday.

In terms of
travel, the bill pumps $25 billion into airports to address repair and
maintenance backlogs, reduce congestion and emissions near ports and airports
and drive electrification and other low-carbon technologies. It also will push
$66 billion to Amtrak for track repairs and expansion. It is the largest
investment in passenger rail since the creation of Amtrak. It will devote $110
billion to roads and bridges.

Amtrak CEO Bill Flynn
in a statement called out improvement projects on the Northeast Corridor and
cited the possibility of “bringing passenger rail to more people across
the nation.” He underscored the administration’s will “to move
quickly to advance these projects.”

Speaking to Axios
on HBO on Saturday, Flynn called the funding “absolutely
transformational” and said it would spur the largest-ever expansion of
Amtrak in the railroad’s history. Flynn cited new routes to Columbus, Ohio; Los
Angeles to Las Vegas; Phoenix to Tucson; and service into Nashville as among
the first projects on the roster.

The infrastructure
bill also earmarks $7.5 billion to expand the nation’s charging network for
electric vehicles. The U.S. currently supports 122,000 charging ports at 48,000
stations nationwide, according to the Department of Energy. The Biden
administration aims through this funding to expand that network to 500,000
charging ports by 2030. The official White House website called this aspect of
the bill a “critical element” in the administration’s plan to
accelerate the adoption of EVs to address the climate crisis.

As part of the
companion Build Back Better bill, the administration has baked in significant
rebates for EV purchases that could motivate car rental providers to transition
their fleets. Those rebates only will kick in if Congress can muster the votes
to pass the companion legislation.

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The bill will also establish a formal chief
travel and tourism officer as part of the Department of Transportation.

U.S. Travel Association CEO Roger Dow said in
a statement upon the passage of the Infrastructure and Jobs Act, “This bill
will have a profound impact on how people travel for decades to come. By making
historic investments in our transportation infrastructure now, we can emerge
from the pandemic with stronger, more modern and efficient systems that can
facilitate a resurgence in travel demand. … The historic levels of travel
infrastructure investment provided by this act—including for airports,
railways, highways, electric vehicle charging stations and more—will accelerate
the future of travel mobility.” He added that the new chief of travel and
tourism role “will be vital for rebuilding our industry and preparing to
welcome back visitors from around the world.”

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Not
all parties had unmitigated support for the bill, however. AHLA CEO Chip Rogers,
while acknowledging the need for U.S. travel infrastructure to remain globally
competitive, was unhappy with how the bill would fund elements of the plan.

“Reliable
and modern infrastructure is vital to the hotel industry because it facilitates
travel, commerce and American competitiveness. This package would go a long way
toward achieving those ends, but it comes at a steep cost,” Rogers said. “The
bill would terminate the Employee Retention Tax Credit two months early. Many
hotels and their employees are counting on this program—especially given
lingering Covid-19 concerns and the negative economic impact they are having on
hotels. While we strongly support investment in our nation’s infrastructure,
struggling hotel employees and small businesses should not be forced to bear
that cost, and AHLA will continue advocating to maintain programs that are
helping hoteliers through the pandemic.”

President Biden on Saturday focused many of his comments on
the bigger picture wherein infrastructure improvements would not only rebuild
U.S. frameworks and systems but would also create jobs. He also adhered closely
to messaging that the ultimate success of the infrastructure bill would require
the passage in mid-November of the sweeping $1.85 trillion Build Back Better
social spending plan, which remains in question.

Banking on the passage of that bill, he predicted,
“Generations from now, people will look back and know this is when America
won the economic competition for the 21^st Century.”