Rural Washington's Infrastructure Wishlist

Jacob Jones of Crosscut.com describes the projects that rural leaders in Washington state hope will be funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). But many worry that rural areas will be ignored by the state legislature. "Of $4 billion allocated to new and existing highway projects in the transportation proposal before the Legislature this year, just $2.5 million (less than 1%) goes to projects east of the Cascades."

According to the article, "Rural communities have prioritized additional state dollars for economic development, water treatment systems, broadband networks, mental health services and flood control measures. Smaller cities and counties have also asked for more predictable shared revenue and flexibility on local tax options."

"Local leaders around the state say they are watching where those dollars go, as they make their own decisions on how to use federal recovery money to rebuild their communities. While local cities and counties have control over how some federal infrastructure dollars can be spent, they must wait for the Legislature to decide how the rest of the billions in transportation stimulus money will be distributed."

Jones mentions that "The transportation package would still offer billions of dollars to many cities outside the Puget Sound region to pay for switching bus fleets to electric, fish barrier removal, safety programs, new bike trails and many other initiatives. About $151 million would go to railroad line rehabilitation in Eastern Washington."