House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Friday she has directed key Democratic lawmakers to work with Republicans on drafting the next big legislative push from Congress—the much-anticipated infrastructure package. Pelosi said it would be “big, bold, and transformational” but it is also drawing scrutiny on how it will be paid for. Pelosi made the announcement in a statement infused with hope for bipartisanship, which fell short in the American Rescue Plan. Democrats passed the $1.9 trillion package along strictly partisan lines, with Republicans denouncing it as a “liberal wish-list” that was packed with non-pandemic related spending. “Building our transportation system has long been bipartisan,” Pelosi said. “It is our hope that spirit will prevail as we address other critical needs in energy and broadband, education and housing, water systems and other priorities.” Fresh off the American Rescue Plan clearing the Senate through a budget reconciliation process that let Democrats avoid having to get any Republican buy-in, Democrats are anxious to get some members of the GOP on board, both to satisfy optics and to avoid taking the drastic step of removing the filibuster.
A big question mark remains in how to pay for the massive boost in spending that the infrastructure package—which Pelosi called “bid, bold and transformational”—would surely entail. Concerns about the topline cost and competing visions for how to raise the money have prevented Congress from approving a big infrastructure package for more than a decade.
So far, Democrats have been careful to avoid putting a price tag on the initiative, which is rumored to be worth at least $2 trillion. Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.), in an interview with the Sacramento Bee, said that Biden is considering raising taxes as a way to pay for the infrastructure plan—including an excise tax on fuel, some form of a user fee for electric vehicles on highways, and a carbon tax. Garamendi did not provide specifics on taxes, nor on the overall cost of the package. “No price tag right now, because we’re going at this from the bottom up,” Garamendi told the outlet. “We’ll say, ‘what’s the cost of broadband, what’s the cost of repairing bridges?’ and go from there.” Pelosi, in her Friday statement, said she hoped the measures will address transportation as well as “other critical needs in energy and broadband, education and housing, water systems, and other priorities.” During his presidential campaign, Biden pledged to invest $2 trillion in fixing highways, bridges, and airports; building climate-resilient homes; wiring cities for broadband internet; and encouraging the manufacturing of fuel-efficient cars and installing electric vehicle charging stations.