An Infrastructure Stimulus Plan for the COVID-19 Recession
Date Posted: August 11, 2020
Posted In: COVID-19 UPDATES, Discussion,
From Brookings: The COVID-19 pandemic has shaken the nation to its core, and the ensuing economic contraction shows no signs of letting up. As in past recessions, infrastructure is not insulated from these effects—household affordability concerns are rising, strained state and local budgets are delaying projects, and workforce impacts in construction and other industries are just beginning to take shape.
Still, it is the underlying structural factors—how we design our communities, the technologies we deploy, and the projects we fund—that continue to shape our long-term economic trajectory. Infrastructure can act as an economic barrier for many people and places, but it can also function as an economic foundation. An infrastructure stimulus offers real potential, but to maximize that potential, it must build greater economic opportunity for more people and places.
This web brief and accompanying paper use historical data and the earliest indicators from the current downturn to make the case for a people-first approach to federal infrastructure stimulus. We specifically recommend Congress enact a four-part stimulus program:
- A Boost Program (and associated Boost Card) to help cover the costs of essential transportation, water, energy, and broadband services for over 50 million households.
- A Keep America Moving grant program to protect state-of-good-repair initiatives and labor markets by expanding direct grants to state and local governments with requirements to spend on short-term maintenance projects.