WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee; Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Ranking Member of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), Ranking Member of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Ranking Member of the Committee on Finance; John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Ranking Member of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources; and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), Ranking Member of the Committee on Rules and Administration, today offered the White House another infrastructure counteroffer. The counteroffer was announced by Senators Capito, Toomey, Barrasso, and Blunt during a press conference this morning.

This counteroffer delivers on much of what President Joe Biden provided in his feedback during the group’s Oval Office meeting, while still focusing on core infrastructure investments. As evidenced by the work on bipartisan drinking water and surface transportation infrastructure bills, Congress can work in a bipartisan fashion on these priorities and deliver real results.

HIGHLIGHTS:

CAPITO: “Senate Republicans continue to negotiate in good faith. We’ve had a lot of good dialogue with the White House…We believe that this counteroffer delivers on what President Biden told us in the Oval Office that day and that is to try to reach somewhere near $1 trillion over an eight-year period of time and includes our baseline spending. We have achieve that goal with this counteroffer.”

TOOMEY: “We want to focus on actual infrastructure. The platforms and services that move people and goods and services through our economy. That’s what people understand to be infrastructure, and we can reach an agreement if we focus on those items.”

BARRASSO: “This proposal is fully paid for. It doesn’t need to have any raises in taxes and avoids the big threat to the economy right now which is inflation…What we’re proposing today could pass in a bipartisan way…I would say to President Biden this is something that will work. It will help the country. It would help the country move forward.”

BLUNT: “Infrastructure has been seen as one of the obligations of the federal government for a long time, particularly roads, bridges, highways, and canals—were right among the first things the early Congresses were talking about and doing…We don’t mind debating the other things in the bill and see if that’s what the American people want to do. But let’s not do it under the guise of infrastructure.”

Details of the counteroffer can be viewed here.

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