Biden Administration Targets Rural Infrastructure Investments

“The Biden administration this week launched a special push around rural investments under the bipartisan infrastructure law, releasing a new guidebook and other materials meant to help rural communities tap the funds, and dispatching officials to promote millions of dollars for rural projects spread out around the country.”

Bill Lucia describes the Biden administration’s efforts to highlight the importance of rural infrastructure. “Biden's infrastructure czar Mitch Landrieu, the former New Orleans mayor, noted on a press call this week that there is $14.6 billion in the package that specifically targets rural areas and that this funding is on top of billions more set aside for rural communities in some of the Department of Transportation's biggest programs.” Funding will go toward broadband infrastructure, upgraded water and sewer systems, bridges, dams, electric grid upgrades, among other projects.

That said, many rural counties are up against difficult demographic realities, with poverty rates often outpacing nonrural areas, especially in the South, and with dozens of counties, in regions like the northern Great Plains, seeing populations decline and their remaining residents grow older. How far a wave of public works spending can go towards reversing these longstanding trends remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, “[Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg] said his department has been ‘putting our money where our mouth is’ with rural spending even before the infrastructure package. He cited nearly $1 billion in grants awarded last year under what's known as the INFRA program as an example, saying the Transportation Department awarded 44% to rural projects, instead of the minimum required threshold of 25%.”