White House offers infrastructure report cards for every state

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Today, the White House released fact sheets detailing the infrastructure needs of every state, and how they would be addressed through the investments proposed under President Joe Biden’s $2.3 trillion American Jobs Plan. The plan, released on March 31, calls for new federal spending on public infrastructure, research and development, workforce training, affordable housing, and caregiving.

The fact sheets assign a grade to each state based on an assessment of twelve infrastructure categories, including the number of bridges and miles of road that are in poor condition, the percentage of households without access to broadband, the billions of dollars required for resilient infrastructure and clean drinking water, and the availability of affordable housing, child care, and veterans’ health services.

The fact sheets are the latest in a series from the White House asserting the benefits of the American Jobs Plan for communities.

In the Northeast, where no state scored higher than a C, underinvestment in transportation has led to increased commute times, higher costs, and a lack of resiliency to severe weather events. Drivers in New Jersey, which received a D+ grade, pay an average $713 annually in costs stemming from driving on roads in need of repair. The state has more than 500 bridges and nearly 4,000 miles of highway in poor condition. In Maine, which received a C- grade, 49 percent of trains and other transit vehicles are past their useful life. Residents who take public transportation spend an extra 85.8 percent of their time commuting — a burden felt disproportionately by households of color, which are 2.2 times more likely to ride public transportation in Maine, according to the White House.

CSG East’s Transportation Policy Committee has consistently supported long-term, sustainable funding for the nation’s aging and overburdened transportation system. The committee has provided congressional leadership with multiple resolutions and written testimony in support of investments to maintain and improve infrastructure, increase system mobility, reliability, and safety, and enhance the environment.

In recent years, the committee has held a number of focused seminars and panels examining alternative solutions for supplementing federal investment. Some of those alternatives include the establishment of infrastructure banks; public-private partnerships; indexing the gas tax against inflation; tolling; and mileage-based user fees.

The table below shows the infrastructure grades assigned to the CSG East member states and Puerto Rico. Click on the jurisdiction to access the corresponding fact sheet.