By Tanveer Kaur
President Joe Biden's $6 trillion budget proposal, released May 28, establishes his vision for the federal government's role in the economy and people's lives, with significant increases in infrastructure, public health and education spending as well as tax hikes on corporations and the wealthy.
In the fiscal year 2022, the Biden administration is pursuing $1.52 trillion for military and domestic programs, an increase of 8.6% above the $1.4 trillion granted last year, excluding emergency efforts to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Biden’s plan would allocate more federal resources from the military, which would have a 1.6% increase in spending next year, to domestic sectors like scientific research and renewable energy, which would get a 16.5% budget increase in 2022.
The White House released prices for its plans to spend $4.5 trillion on infrastructure and social programs over the next decade, which the Biden administration hopes to get through Congress this summer. The proposal includes $17 billion for road, bridge and airport maintenance next year; $4.5 billion to replace lead water pipes across the country and $13 billion to boost high-speed broadband access.
In 2022, this will cost $3.5 billion to fund universal preschool and ensure that teachers in those schools are paid $15 an hour. In addition, the budget proposes $8.8 billion in direct spending on families for the coming fiscal year, including $6.7 billion for affordable child care and $750 million for paid leave. In 2023 and beyond, these prices would skyrocket.
The budget plan comes amidst negotiations to get a bipartisan agreement on Biden's large-scale infrastructure and job package. June 3, Senate Republicans presented a counteroffer of $928 billion, which falls short of the $1 trillion that Senate Republicans said Biden was receptive to during their White House discussion. Initially, Biden outlined a $2.25 trillion infrastructure plan to repair the country's infrastructure and transition to sustainable energy.
The new GOP proposal includes $506 billion for roads, bridges and major projects; $98 billion for public transit systems; $46 billion for passenger and freight rail; $21 billion for safety; $22 billion for ports and waterways; $56 billion for airports; $22 billion for western water storage; $72 billion for water infrastructure and $65 billion for broadband.
