The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, enacted on November 15, 2021, unfurled the Build America, Buy America Act. More than just words on paper, this act is a clarion call to give procurement preference on taxpayer-funded public works projects to construction materials and products produced by companies and workers in the US. However, as is... Continue Reading →
US climate law takes shape
As 2022 winds down and we look back, the biggest story (other than the war in Ukraine) was the passage of the most historic climate law in US history, the Inflation Reduction Act (Act). The new law aims to transform the US economy to align with the global urgency of taking action to mitigate the... Continue Reading →
New ASCE map highlights new infrastructure projects
As part of its Report Card for America’s Infrastructure project, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) recently released a map of projects funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. ASCE created the resource in collaboration with economic development non-profit Accelerator for America to showcase the impact of the five-year federal investment. Firms can use... Continue Reading →
Legal cannabis use by employees could deny firms projects under the IIJA
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) will flood states with financial grants to develop projects that many states would never be able to accomplish otherwise. Without federal funding, low-tax states or those with tremendous needs for remedial and new infrastructure projects would be unable to pay for developments that create jobs and economic growth.... Continue Reading →
Take advantage of the McKinsey & Company Infrastructure Act funding tool
As design firms know, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is an enormous source of funding for capital projects, allocating $1.2 trillion to a wide variety of programs ranging from environmental remediation to bridge repair to addressing cybersecurity in state, local, and tribal governments. According to the Federal Funds Information for States (an organization... Continue Reading →
Opportunity knocks, but…
The opportunity created by the federal stimulus packages passed since 2020 is undeniable, but the capacity to optimize this truly historic moment remains unclear. An infusion of trillions of dollars to keep businesses and governments from feeling too much of the pandemic pain was of primary concern early in the pandemic. In 2021, what transpired... Continue Reading →
White House guidebook available on new infrastructure law programs
Design firms interested in the details of the new infrastructure funding can access information through the special website set up by the White House that addresses the details of the bipartisan infrastructure law. Firms can download a copy of a guidebook on the law that the Biden Administration released on January 31. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law... Continue Reading →
U.S. achieving its global climate commitments starts with infrastructure
Now that we have a global agreement in place on climate change, which more definitively sets greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets and timelines, all eyes are set on the question as to how each country, including the US, will achieve its commitments. For the US, legislation and executive agency action are two important pieces to... Continue Reading →
2021 Global climate talks: Connecting the dots to business
The COP26 (Conference of the Parties) climate talks took place in Glasgow over the first two weeks of November. These meetings between heads of state around the world may seem far removed from your daily business concerns, but in reality, the actions taken and resulting agreements may have far-reaching consequences for your business model, including... Continue Reading →
Are firms ready to execute on the American Jobs Plan?
Having read through the American Jobs Plan, it’s clear that federal funding and capacity-building proposals for infrastructure and climate are transformational, once-in-a-lifetime, and good for business. However, if the design and construction industry views the proposed policy framework through the lens of just the project flow opportunities, it could miss a massive opportunity to address... Continue Reading →