Infrastructure and Manufacturing in the President’s Budget

Saying the country can’t “cut our way to growth,” the President has some serious infrastructure money in his budget, along with serious help for America’s manufacturers. This will create jobs and make our economy more competitive. Republicans are already blasting it as “more government spending.”

This budget proposal has significant increases to maintain and modernize the nation’s crumbling infrastructure, includeing

• $476 billion over six years in a surface transportation reauthorization package, including an immediate investment of $50 billion for roads, rails, and runways.
• $47 billion over six years, plus $6 billion in 2012, to fund the development of high-speed rail and other passenger rail programs as part of an integrated national strategy.
• Creation of an independent, non-partisan National Infrastructure Bank (NIB) to help fund large-scale ($100 million minimum) transportation, water, and energy infrastructure projects. The NIB would issue loans and loan guarantees to eligible projects. To maximize leverage from Federal investments, the NIB would finance no more than 50 percent of the total costs of any project.
• Builds a next-generation, wireless broadband network and establish an interoperable network for public safety.
• $30 billion to modernize at least 35,000 schools

The President’s budget also offers a number of pro-manufacturing proposals, including:

• $2.2 billion for Federal advanced manufacturing R&D, a 19 percent increase over 2012. This includes a doubling of the budget for the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Science, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) labs.
• Make permanent the R&D tax credit.
• $149 million for research at the National Science Foundation (NSF) targeted at developing new manufacturing technologies in partnership with the private sector.
• Revisions to the tax system to encourage domestic job creation, including corporate tax reform that will “close loopholes, lower the overall rate, encourage investment here at home, and not add a dime to the deficit.”
• $290 million—more than double the amount in 2012 —for the Advanced Manufacturing Office at the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
• $430 million, an increase of $19 million over 2012 levels, for the Export-Import Bank, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. International Trade Commission, and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC).
• $517 million for the Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA), an increase of $61 million over 2012 levels, to strengthen its efforts to promote exports from small businesses; help enforce domestic and international trade rules; fight to eliminate barriers on sales of U.S. goods and services; and improve the competitiveness of U.S. firms. This includes $26 million for the creation of a new Interagency Trade Enforcement Center (ITEC) intended to challenge unfair practices by America’s trading partners.
• $1.1 billion for reauthorization and reform of the Career and Technical Education (CTE) program, currently set to expire in 2013.