National Infrastructure Bank…And The State Of Washington

“The purpose of National Infrastructure Bank (NIB) shall be to facilitate efficient, long-term financing of infrastructure projects, business and economic growth, and new job creation in the United States.”

Bill 3339 of the 117th Congress that proposed this infrastructure bank was originally introduced in 2021. [The bill now before the 118th Congress is HR 490] The Infrastructure Improvement and Jobs Act of 2021 (providing $1.2 trillion in transportation investments) was insufficient to repair the nation's infrastructure at an estimated cost of $6.1 trillion. At $5 trillion, the NIB will fill the gap. Here is how it will work (see Coalition for the National Infrastructure Bill below):

• "Bill creates a $5 trillion public bank to lend for infrastructure projects only
• Covers 16 Project categories monitored by the American Society of Civil Engineers
• Additional categories: Affordable Housing, High-Speed Rail, Water projects to address drought 
• Affordable Housing: $720 billion dedicated financing; lowest 30% AMI*; priority for NIB 
• Water to the West: $400 billion dedicated to bring water into the west (all types of projects, like FDR**) 
• Financing for all urban mass transit systems in California 
• Creates 25 million new jobs, Davis-Bacon wages***, Buy America****, DBE*****, significant investment in low income urban and rural communities 
• Supercharges the economy: GDP increase 5% per year
• Requires no new Federal Spending, Taxes, or Debt
• Source of Capital: Existing U.S. Treasury Bonds held in private accounts; exchanged for Preferred Stock (silent partners, no voting)
• Conventional commercial bank lending, low interest loans at Treasury bond rates; flexible terms; Loan maturity over the life of the project
• Excess profits go to Trust Fund to provide grants for poor communities"

Many of you have read my recent articles regarding the creation of a public bank for the state of Washington. That effort continues in Olympia but is unrelated to efforts on a national level regarding infrastructure. The NIB, as described above, is an effort in the U.S. Congress that will benefit all states. The Washington State Senate already endorsed the NIB bill in January 2023 with the SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 8001 which has been sent to the president and both houses of the U.S. Congress, and which reads in part:

“A new national infrastructure bank could directly finance much of our nation's infrastructure, in partnership with state and local officials, and lead to the reemployment of people who have lost their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic…”

A list of the many other states, counties, and cities, as well as unions and other organizations, can be found here. The list is impressive. Nationally, to boost the bill and inform the pubic, there is also the Coalition for the National Infrastructure Bank.  

“The Coalition for the National Infrastructure Bank …consists of like-minded political leaders dedicated to a common purpose, enacting HR 3339 to create a $5 Trillion Bank to fund U.S. infrastructure. [It is] modeled on four previous banks, beginning with the First and Second Bank of the United States, and was last used by Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt. Each time the bank was used, America developed as a manufacturing nation. It must be used for that same purpose today.”

To assist in informing the public and promoting the NIB legislation, the Coalition is sponsoring a Zoom town hall on Thursday, May 18th at 5 p.m. EDT. Click HERE to find out more about the town hall and to register.  [Note: If you register and lose your registration link, just register again.]

NOTES:

*Area Median Income.

** Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

***Federal law that requires local prevailing wages be paid on most federal and federally funded construction contracts.

****Established a domestic content procurement preference for all Federal financial assistance obligated for infrastructure projects after May 14, 2022.

*****Disadvantaged Business Enterprise is designed to remedy ongoing discrimination and the continuing effects of past discrimination.