‘Fixing the damn roads’: A look at the Biden administration’s investments in Michigan

Editor’s Note: Alec Hughes is a former Daily staffer. Hughes did not contribute to this article.

Earlier this month, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer traveled to Washington, D.C., to advocate for potential additional federal investments by the Biden-Harris administration for Michigan. In particular, Whitmer discussed the Unmanned Triple Challenge drone innovation competition with the U.S. Department of Defense and the potential National Heritage Area designation for the Keweenaw Peninsula with the Department of the Interior. Throughout Biden’s presidential term, Whitmer and government officials have discussed and secured funding for Michigan, and that continues to this day.

Biden’s Investing in America program is a combination of private and public financial contributions, legislation and mobilization. The program aims to support and fund a variety of projects across the country that attempt to increase manufacturing, create additional jobs and repair infrastructure. As of May, Investing in America has announced $28 billion in private funding and $12.8 billion in public funding to Michigan. In a statement released June 4, Whitmer said she would continue to work for additional resources for the state.

“Michigan is competing for every federal resource and dollar so we can build on our economic momentum, including the more than $12.4 billion of direct investments the Biden-Harris administration has already made in our state,” Whitmer wrote. “I am excited to work with allies in our congressional delegation and my cabinet to win more investments, create more jobs and revitalize more communities back home in Michigan.”

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, enacted in November 2021, allocates $1.2 trillion to transportation and infrastructure, $550 billion of which is set aside for investments. Under the BIL, the administration plans to devote $10.7 billion in public funding to Michigan for roads, high-speed internet, clean water and other infrastructure projects.

Of the state’s BIL funding, $6.8 billion will contribute to transportation. Whitmer, who campaigned with a promise to “fix the damn roads” during the 2018 gubernatorial election, continues to release statements on ongoing transportation infrastructure projects under the slogan.

In an email to The Michigan Daily, LSA seniors Alec Hughes and Adam Lacasse, co-chairs of the University’s chapter of College Democrats, said they believe the investments will contribute to infrastructure improvements that the state would not have been able to fund otherwise.

“It’s incredibly beneficial for Michigan — studies have found that a big reason for Michigan’s low grades on infrastructure is a lack of available funds, especially for roads, to the tune of four to six billion dollars,” Hughes and Lacasse wrote. “The funding from federal legislation, particularly the BIL and the (Inflation Reduction Act), goes a long way towards closing this gap, and we’re already seeing the effects of it today. All over the state, you can see highway and bridge repairs underway.”

Michigan has amassed $26.8 billion in private funding to commit to clean energy, including $23.9 billion devoted to electric vehicles and batteries. Under the administration, companies such as General Motors and Ford have pledged to build multi-billion-dollar manufacturing plants in the state. Despite the initial investments, the construction of many of these plants has faced delays, resulting in pushback and reduced job creation numbers.

On her June trip to Washington, D.C., Whitmer spoke at the CNBC CEO Council Summit on the importance of the electric vehicle industry in the state. The governor said investments in the field would increase job creation and boost manufacturing.

“For the first time in a real long time, we’ve got a real strategy as we look to rebuild manufacturing in this country,” Whitmer said. “We saw during the pandemic how bad it was on so many fronts, not just on the jobs but on homeland security. We’ve got to have manufacturing growth in this country, and it’s happening with a sustained and real focus.”

In an interview with The Daily, LSA junior Akil Kasubhai, political director for the statewide Michigan College Democrats and co-president of the U-M Undergraduate Political Science Association, said incentivizing the EV industry for companies through subsidies will have positive effects on the environment and the state’s economy, especially because Michigan is a Rust Belt state attempting to revitalize its automotive industry.

“It’s a very promising sector, investing in clean energy,” Kasubhai said. “It’s truly an economic multiplier … You’re creating jobs, you’re helping the environment, and then you’re just also putting (Michigan) back on the map federally for manufacturing, which I think is great for a lot of people here.”

As of March, Michigan has received $71.2 million to construct EV chargers across the state, with an expected total of $110 million over the next five years.

In addition to clean energy projects, funding has also been announced for clean water in the state. The Environmental Protection Agency pledged $142 million toward replacing toxic lead pipes, and $204.4 million of the $748.1 million in BIL funding for clean water is also devoted to pipe replacement. Hughes and Lacasse wrote that these investments will rectify Michigan’s difficult history with water quality.

“Replacing lead pipes has long been an issue, as the Flint Water Crisis made apparent, and now the work is being done to make sure another such crisis never happens,” Hughes and Lacasse wrote. “Tens of thousands of jobs will also be created, further helping to grow the state’s economy. All of these investments will create a safer, more welcoming Michigan.”

The administration’s funding initiatives have also supported technological advancements. The CHIPS and Science Act, enacted in August 2022, contributes investments to technology, particularly in the semiconductor industry. $756.2 million in private funding has been announced for the semiconductor industry in Michigan, and $2.2 billion in BIL funding has been devoted to high-speed internet.

Among many infrastructure investments, the Biden administration has also contributed to lowering living costs for various demographics of Michiganders. Approximately 82,700 residents have been approved for a total of $4.2 billion in student debt cancellation. In addition, $211.2 million has been devoted to cutting home energy costs and Michigan citizens have also benefited from health insurance and prescription drug cost initiatives.

Biden is set to represent the Democratic Party in the presidential election in November. His administration’s involvement in the state has the potential to influence Michigan voters’ decisions, especially given Michigan’s status as a swing state with an important role in deciding a statistically close election.

Hughes and Lacasse said Biden’s investments will encourage Michiganders to vote blue in November.

“By the time November comes, we think that voters will see how Democrats have ‘fixed the damn roads,’ how Democrats passed the largest climate reduction bill in world history, how Democrats are the only ones proposing real solutions to real problems and will vote for Democrats because of it,” Hughes and Lacasse wrote.

Kasubhai said the slow implementation of the administration’s investments and individuals’ own views may make it difficult for Biden to claim responsibility for improvements.

“Political scientists have been figuring out whether people’s material self-interest and their economic self-interest plays a large role,” Kasubhai said. “If under the Biden administration, you’re given the job, and you’re given all these resources, does that change whether you would vote for him? That has a lot to do with issue claiming. Do you say that the executive branch did that? Or do you think it’s your local Republican congressperson, for example? So these are interesting questions of who gets the credit claiming for the benefits of investment.”

Summer News Editor Marissa Corsi can be reached at macorsi@umich.edu.

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