LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Sen. Rand Paul introduced a new bill to Capitol hill today called the Penny Plan to Enhance Infrastructure Act (S.2792), Sen. Paul hopes the bill will prioritize funding for Kentucky’s critical infrastructure projects by cutting a proposed one percent from the federal government’s non-infrastructure discretionary spending and directing that money to infrastructure.
According to a press release from Sen. Paul, the bill would provide $12.3 billion for 2020 for new infrastructure spending, and it doesn’t touch Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security.
“Kentuckians shouldn’t pay the price for a Congress that doesn’t know how to prioritize funding for our nation’s most dire needs over less immediately important ones,” said Paul. “My plan would ensure more of your hard-earned tax dollars are allocated to infrastructure projects right here in your communities, not sent overseas or spent on wasteful programs.”
The bill proposes that spending would be directed toward things such as Highway Infrastructure Programs; airport and airway improvement; railroad infrastructure; waterway improvements, including port infrastructure; military construction; safe and clean drinking water; and rural utility services.
According to the press release, based on some estimates, this new funding alone could pay for between 2,500 and 6,200 miles of new 4-lane highways, 2,200 miles of 6-lane interstates, or resurface nearly 20,000 miles of existing 4-lane roads.
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