The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2, the Moving Forward Act, a $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill that provides increased funding for roads, bridges, transit systems, housing, clean energy, and broadband. The Moving Forward Act also includes an expansion of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC).
Specifically related to the LIHTC, the Moving Forward Act incorporates provisions from the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act, including establishing a minimum 4% credit rate floor, increasing the amount of credits allocated to each state, and increasing the LIHTC’s ability to serve extremely low-income tenants.
The passage of H.R. 2 was applauded by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), but it expressed caution over the bill’s lack of bipartisan support. The bill passed by a vote of 233 to 188.
“The vote should be the start of a sincere and earnest process to craft a measure that will garner widespread support among both parties, in both houses,” AGC CEO Stephen Sandherr said in a prepared statement. “The end goal should be enacting a measure that will have the largest possible impact on improving the nation’s aging and overburdened infrastructure."
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) commended the House for passing the bill, saying it takes “a holistic approach” to investing in modernizing all infrastructure sectors. The ASCE called on the Senate to “follow the House’s lead and pass an infrastructure package that maintains and modernizes the systems that make up the backbone of our economy.”
“This legislation will fund meaningful, greatly needed infrastructure investments while also creating millions of middle-class job opportunities and will lead to economic development in communities that desperately need it,” Sean McGarvey, president of the North America’s Building Trade Union (NABTU), said in a statement supporting the passage of H.R. 2. McGarvey said the bill will “lay the foundation for a long-term economic recovery” as the country emerges from the coronavirus.
The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), while recognizing the need for a “substantial transportation package,” said the bill as passed includes “harmful policies” that will be “detrimental to our nation’s ability to effectively and efficiently rebuild and modernize its infrastructure.”
“This bill will dissuade contractors from bidding on projects, drive up overall costs, and exclude the overwhelming majority of America’s construction industry professionals who choose not to join a union,” ABC’s vice president of legislative and political affairs Kristen Swearinger said in a news release. “These measures would also have a devastating impact on small construction businesses that are seeking to recover from the ongoing health and economic crisis caused by COVID-19.”
