WASHINGTON — Lawmakers presenting Virginia and West Virginia praised legislation Monday that will address the nation’s highways, bridges and other infrastructure after President Joe Biden signed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
U.S. Senator Mark R. Warner and U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, both D-Va., issued released a statement after attending the White House bill signing ceremony for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
“It’s with great pride that we applaud President Biden’s signing of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act – a historic law that will bring critically-overdue funding into our communities and create a new generation of good-paying American jobs. The investments made possible by this law will bring Virginia’s infrastructure into the 21st Century by fixing crumbling roadways, bolstering public transit systems, bridging the broadband gap, and strengthening our coastal resiliency,” Warner and Kaine said in their joint statement. “As former governors of Virginia, we know that getting a bill signed into law is only the beginning, and we’ll be working with folks on the ground to ensure this bill is implemented quickly and efficiently.”
U.S. Senator Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. joined President Biden and a group of bipartisan, bicameral Members of Congress at the White House for the act’s signing, which will bring around $6 billion to West Virginia for infrastructure investments over the next five years.
“Today, I was honored to join President Biden and my bipartisan, bicameral colleagues at the White House for the signing of this once-in-a-generation bipartisan infrastructure bill,” Manchin said after the bill signed into law. “West Virginia will receive around $6 billion to invest in our most urgent infrastructure needs while creating good-paying jobs and growing our economy. Every single West Virginian will benefit from this bill. I have always said that the best politics is good government, and I’m incredibly proud of the monumental bipartisan efforts to deliver this major investment in the needs of America.”
U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, joined President Biden at the White House as he signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which the Senate passed this summer and the House passed earlier this month.
“The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act reflects our commitment to keeping Americans safe, improving our global competitiveness, and growing our economy. It also includes significant wins that will benefit West Virginia,” Capito said after the ceremony. “This bill will upgrade roads and bridges; address aging water and wastewater systems; support our airports and ports; and connect rural America with broadband infrastructure in order to finally close the digital divide.”
“As Ranking Member of the EPW Committee, I’m especially proud my committee’s surface transportation reauthorization bill and water and wastewater infrastructure bill are the foundation of this package.” Capito said. “I was proud to witness the signing into law of this important piece of legislation—which marks the culmination of a process that began months ago during my negotiations with President Biden. This historic, bipartisan legislation will deliver transformative wins for West Virginia and the rest of the nation for decades to come.”