So .... I been telling my buddy back home in Mississippi for years now how impressed I was when I saw how good the roads are compared to wherever it was I was living at the time. He always scoffed ... he thinks Mississippi has some of the worst roads in the country. Far from it ... they are number 11 out of the 50 States (Florida is 35.) https://reason.org/policy_study/23rd-annual-highway-report/
So now, probably after they get the budget & immigration deals worked out, they'll be taking up the Infrastructure Bill. I have little doubt there will be some kind of infrastructure bill ... and I am not necessarily opposed to it, if done right and spent on basic needs highways, bridges, sewer, pipelines, etc. But not if it's gonna be spent on flashy bullet trains and overpriced urban public transportation projects. Interestingly, according the rankings in the link above .... most of the "Trump" States are more rural and so happens are also the ones with the best roads. According to this article (http://reason.com/blog/2018/02/08/rural-america-needs-road-infrastructure), 25 billion (25% of the proposed 200 billion) will go to rural State Governors with no strings attached to how they use it.
Well, ain't that sweet!
So now, probably after they get the budget & immigration deals worked out, they'll be taking up the Infrastructure Bill. I have little doubt there will be some kind of infrastructure bill ... and I am not necessarily opposed to it, if done right and spent on basic needs highways, bridges, sewer, pipelines, etc. But not if it's gonna be spent on flashy bullet trains and overpriced urban public transportation projects. Interestingly, according the rankings in the link above .... most of the "Trump" States are more rural and so happens are also the ones with the best roads. According to this article (http://reason.com/blog/2018/02/08/rural-america-needs-road-infrastructure), 25 billion (25% of the proposed 200 billion) will go to rural State Governors with no strings attached to how they use it.
While much of Donald Trump's forthcoming infrastructure proposal is said to focus on encouraging local, state, and private investment, a big portion of it will still be traditional federal pork. That includes a likely $50 billion for rural infrastructure projects.
....
Despite this, Trump's infrastructure proposal looks likely to include a healthy slab of pork for rural states. According to a leaked "funding principles" document from January, 25 percent of the $200 billion federal appropriations component of the infrastructure plan will be awarded to rural governors with essentially no strings attached.
That has much more to do with politics than policy. As Feigenbaum says, "It's pretty obvious the rural funding is designed to get the bill through the Senate. It's not merit based."
Well, ain't that sweet!