>> as promised, eugene lynn arrow joining us. senior congressional progress joining us. mr. miller arrow, thank you for joining us this morning. >> could you run through the topline figures as far as the dollar amount or concerned? >> the senate has a $1 trillion bill, half of that around $50 billion is considered new spending over baseline levels. that is washington speak. those $50 billion that have been agreed upon by the way group of senators includes about $100

billion for new construction and maintenance products -- projects for roads and bridges. $66 billion for freight and rail. there is investment funding for transit. around $40 billion. there is money for electric vehicle charging stations, $7 billion dedicated for that. there is also somewhere around $50 billion for what they call severe weather infrastructure resilience. a fancy term for addressing climate change across infrastructure. several policy revisions looking at buy america office. that is something president biden has been talking about last week he was talking about by america -- buy america.

it has many dedicated for improving connectivity among historically disenfranchised neighborhoods. this is called transportation equity to address some of those concerns in transportation in decades past. then, this is putting investments in for broadband internet. rural broadband. that has got the support of the senators from republican states. that is -- host: that is the paid fours -- fors, if spent. where does the money come from for the new spending? guest: lead negotiators continue to say this is fully paid for.

several transportation observers and congressional experts noting the bill is proposing dedicated to hundred billion dollars from unused covid-19 -- two hundred billion dollars from unused covid-19 funds from states who have unobligated. there is money from other, unused federal aid programs such as unemployment insurance. due to the pandemic. there are several other provisions, one is to establish robust task enforcement policy of cryptocurrency. there is another realm of funding proposals that is called dynamic scoring. the revenue from investments,

your return on investments from this bill, that funding has been calculated in the financing of this legislation. to reach $1 trillion. the negotiators in the white house really insist this does not raise taxes. people like -- people making less than $100,000 a year -- $40,000 -- $400,00 dollars. host: -- from here, we heard senator schumer say that when it comes to the bill itself, it is the amendment process that comes next. what could that due to the -- what could that do to the bill

the way it is packaged now? guest: head over to wednesday, we are expecting to see some amendments on very hot issues from several republicans. we are talking about amendments related to climate change, social themes such as foot -- defunding the police. linking, proposing that no money will go to affecting police departments. you can expect to see social messaging amendments. whether or not those amendments are made in order of chuck schumer remained to be seen. he said he is expecting these amendments to go through. another one expected to go through is an amendment on transit. to decrease the amount allocated towards transit. that could be made in order and

be debated. if there is enough support from republicans, the money will go down in the bill. as well as amendments on amtrak. we see democrats put amendments of enhancing vehicle charging station funding. equity programs i mentioned. host: 7.5 billion dollars for vehicle chargers and things like that, would these be federally funded? whether they be tied to private industry -- would they be tied to private industry? guest: the way that the bill is crafted, that money will be dedicated, there would be a line for -- of funding for electric vehicle charging stations. primarily at rest stops. there could be negotiation

between agencies up to the management of those charging stations. a state dot could partner with a private company to have that private company have a contract to operate the electric vehicles. that would be down the road. right now the money will go towards state dots so they can proceed with this. the federal government and federal facilities went own and manage electric vehicle charging stations. they are using grants and other financial tools to expand that. host: about $2.5 billion for zero emission buses. guest: the federal government, president biden wants to invest in fewer emissions. in buses as well as fairies.

--ferries. this would establish a fleet of zero emission vehicles. this would fall under the umbrella of white house's build back better agenda. zero emissions from the transportation industry. host: we welcome your calls on this topic. barbara in oklahoma. go ahead. caller: i have a train engineer husband. and while back, one or two years ago, they needed train engineers in texas. they recruited the people from oklahoma to come to san antonio. in texas. do you know how much a train engineer was making?

he was making $14,000 a month. you are telling me that they do not have any money? forget it. i was in san jose, i had not been there in a while. they had built a whole new eight lane freeway. where did they get the money from that? they were always saying we do not have any money. when -- when out of office, there were millions of dollars in the coffers for the roads. it was just never used. host: let us start with the mass transit. that seems to be a sticking point up to the release. the money being set aside for amtrak. can you elaborate? guest: for transit, there was a

dispute by the negotiators of the legislation. some of them argue that transit had already been dedicated several billion dollars from sue covid aid -- from covid aid. individual senators from the urban settings rely on transit, they argue there is an additional need of about $40 billion to bring most of the transit systems around the country to a better state of repair. ultimately, the senators who are proponents of transit really were able to have a better, clear funding proposal. for amtrak, there is a potential for anywhere between $10 billion

of additional aid via grants that will go towards amtrak operations. especially to repair conductivity between new york and new jersey. this has been a priority of the biden white house. some of those democratic leadership who were present new york, new jersey, and connecticut, -- that represent new york, new jersey, and connecticut, two points worth mentioning. transportation projects are at the local and state level. in order for them to proceed, they have to qualify for federal assistance via a federal loan. that process could take several years. if there was a -- if a state had a dedicated money for an

improvement project, the environmental review process could take several years. perhaps a decade to be finalized. the money has been dedicated for a specific project, often, the maturation of that investment takes several years to realize. host: melanie in ventura, california. you are on with your guest -- our guest. caller: they are saying they're not going to take -- i have not received my checks. there are people who still need their unemployment. where are you taking money from their -- there? we are not receiving our money. i'm curious about how that works. guest: it will come from state

government, where the state government has assured the federal government they have fulfilled their needs that are covid related. that pocket of funding has been certified to be unused. a state that continues to need and provide emergency aid for residents and facilities. that money will be untouched. the money that has been available has been calculated to be somewhere around $200 billion. the white house's issued updates about covid emergency relief -- the white house has issued updates but emergency -- covid -- about emergency covid relief. host: matthew is next, in new york. caller: goodman.

-- good morning. i could remember when i installed the interstate highway system. we were the golden shining light, the beacon of all of the world. 70 years later, there is supposed to be no upkeep? the technology changes all of the time. the republicans want to know how you plan on paying for it? isn't that what our taxes are supposed to be used for? if that increases taxes on the rich, isn't that ok? if they can go to a writing for space, cannot they pay for infrastructure -- if they can go joy riding in space, can they not pay for infrastructure? why cannot we take existing tax laws and use them? make all of those deadbeats that

have not paid taxes finally pay them? republicans are like you cannot do that either. host: what is your question for our guests please? caller: what are our options? host: to his point, let us say the hundred billion dollars that have been set aside for road and bridges gets approved. how does the government determine which states get that money? guest: there is going to be some formula prescriptions being written into law. will be negotiated with house transportation lawmakers. it will give the department of transportation the authority to distribute the money via grants. it will direct assistance for the specific projects.

there is already guidance at the u.s. dot that would mandate the secretary to use deep pockets of new money for what they call projects of high-priority. these will be projects that would either produce a big economic benefit for a region or a state. or a project that would would be in need of emergency repair. there is guidance you would see. it would be additional guidance in the legislation directing the secretary. it would be projects of high-priority that would be determined by the federal government. in collaboration with state agencies. host: it will be a mandate then? the state has to use it for this project? what is the oversight for that? guest: there will be robust oversight.

the dot has several oversight divisions. they have a board that oversees their grants. the other oversight will be your traditional federal oversight. also government watchdogs. data officials will also have an oversight role in these projects. host: does the federal government require grants money go to a new project? can you go to an existing project? guest: that would be something that would be part of the planning of the dedicated money process. for a project that is a massive modernization project, one i can think of is the gateway tunnel between new york and new jersey for amtrak. that will be considered a repair project.

also a new project, it is a conference of dynamic project. in that regard, there will be a new project, the other aspect will be maintenance to repair that tunnel. other instances, you will have the money dedicated exclusively for bridge repairs. in other instances, let us see the infrastructure is really old. bridges that are too structurally insufficient, they will likely build a new bridge right next to it. that will take several years to do. this would be a very comprehensive dynamic system to determine which will be the project of high-priority. this is where the money will be devoted over to the u.s. dot authority. host: eugene mulero 20 us.

johnny is next in -- joining us. john is next in jupiter, florida. caller: i have a couple of comments. instead of figuring how we are going to collect the funds needed or selectively disturbed the funds. we should cut the bill. i hope the bill gets shot down. we will tax the rich extra, they are already paying extra. if we had a flattened percent income tax or got rid of the iris altogether we would be better off -- irs altogether we would be better off. -- why do we need a government subsidy to do that? if you're going to spend 35 billion -- six 5 billion give it

to --. host: $65 billion for broadband. explain how that the plumbing would work. guest: this will be money that will be managed at the federal level. dedicated to state agencies who proceed with building and installing broadband internet connections. primarily in rural parts of the country such as montana, wyoming, and the dakotas. this is something that the federal government had on his radar for many years. private industry has primarily built their broadband infrastructure where there are states with population densities in order to have customers. states with less custom -- population density have --

companies have not built a robust infrastructure in those areas. the federal government is coming in. they have, over the years, slots provide -- sought to provide broadband connection. they want to bring it to the next level. to improve conductivity. the residents are able to rely on disconnection, to promote commerce and business. businesses can move to wyoming and operate with high broadband connectivity internet. host: you may have explained this already. say a state does get money, it is asked -- deployed to a certain rural area. will there be a cost incentive for those who cannot afford to gain access to it? guest: all of those details

will be determined as they go down the negotiation of this legislation. my understanding is that the federal government will partner with state agencies. to provide the access to the state residents. the management of those, the conductivity, could be outsourced to companies to manage. or state agencies will have the oversight of managing the broadband infrastructure. this will be something negotiated -- that is negotiated to determine the best approach for managing that infrastructure. host: we saw many faces come to the cameras. their names mentioned all throughout this process. mitt romney, rob portman, joe manchin, talk about the groups themselves.

how much background do they have in infrastructure? if they do not have background, who are they rely on to help draft this? guest: mitt romney has an extensive background in infrastructure. he has been involved in state transportation policy matters as well as having policy background when it comes to transportation and infrastructure. when you look at his record and his resume, the other senators involved were mark warner of virginia. kyrsten sinema was one of the lead negotiators. these are senators who are part of the commerce committee that handle freight and ray -- rail. a quick footnote, the dpw

highway authorization -- epw how authorization package, they have a staff that is very well fluent on these matters. they are working with the leadership of the committee. in crafting this. not only were they crafting this, they were relying on the work that the u.s. house did on their highway bill. to emulate certain provisions. enhance other provisions. to determine a path forward on how they put together the legislation. when the bell is debated on the floor during the amendment process, it would be the leadership of theebw committees -- the ebw committees.

host: --, go ahead please. caller: it is all over facebook about people. congress is going to come out with another stimulus package. is that true? it is all over facebook. i thought i would ask. host: to that end, i think we will keep it on the idea of rotation. you talked about the process, the amendments that could be added. on the house side, all of it depends on the $3.5 trillion reconciliation package. is there a way this bill could exist separately from the $3.5 billion package? guest: if the senate passes and

-- an amended infrastructure build by thursday, it will be sent to the house -- built by thursday, it will be sent to the house -- bill by thursday, it will be sent to the house. -- has other provisions that are very much-needed regarding climate change and environmental justice and technology. if this is in negotiation between house and senate, policymakers, that is something that will slow down the legislation process. you have speaker pelosi insisting she wants to consider

after a budget resolution what is called a budget reconciliation bill. that could be between $3.5 trillion to have money for environmental policies, health care, child care, and other social programs. the environment. she continues to link that reconciliation that would require a simple majority in the senate. they must pass within infrastructure bill. that is something you have heard from republicans saying will be a nonstarter for them in negotiations. so far, very key democrats have not totally endorsed the notion of linking both of them together. that is one way of answering your question. it remains to be seen of this infrastructure package could

pass by itself. without the $3.5 trillion budget centric conciliation bill. host: dunk in key largo, florida -- doug in key largo, florida. caller: the last bill that was passed, the covid thing. there was a lot of broad -- everything else. we are reliant on the same senate and house to oversee the spending on this bill. thank you. host: any parallels that can be done with this package. with the obama administration when they passed a package? guest: on the concern about oversight, the house to put up a committee to provide oversight specific to the covid-19 aid.

you have also had the biden administration dedicate aspects of his administration to oversee the distribution of covid aid. how that a will be distributed and managed. not only for social programs but for transportation programs. when you compare what we see with the infrastructure bill in the senate, what we saw with the recovery act into the first year of the obama administration. we are noticing, more from the biden standpoint, money that has been proposed to specific policies. again, federal railroad administration, federal transit administration, the federal motor carrier safety

administration, that money will be geared to manage those agencies. two dedicate to those -- to to dedicated those safety programs. -- competitive grant system to give money to states. so they can proceed with a very specific state project. some of that in the biden bill, that was a big pillar of the obama bill. those are some of these differences on that front. host: rodney in manassas, virginia. caller: thank you for taking my call. i have a couple of questions. the first is the infrastructure bill shows money for transportation. there is an additional 400

billion which no one has explained. the other question is, the epa plays a lot into the issues with the roads being built and improved. if you could respond on that also i would appreciate it -- if you could respond on that, i would appreciate that. thank you for taking my call. host: i think the caller was referring to the $550 billion that was used in new funding for the transportation infrastructure programs. the other half of the bill is money that has been already authorized for existing programs. for the transportation system nationwide, as well for technology programs under the umbrella of these will be electric vehicle infrastructure to help set that up.

to build momentum for the buildout of the electric charging stations. when you step back and look at the numbers, in a very washington lingo, it is above baseline. new funding for these programs. host: he talked about the role the epa plays in all of this. guest: the epa is an agency i mentioned. that is another oversight agency that would have a participated -- but as for tori rule in -- prescribing role in how some of the money would be allocated and managed. host: we did not talk too much,

you can highlight it. airports eddie ports. -- and ports. and ports warships come in -- where ships come in. guest: ports are important to biden. they are ported to the status of several airports -- important to the status of several airports. $20 billion will be allocated for major improvement projects for airports around the country. not only the major ones, regional airports. airports have received funding during the covid pandemic. this will be money on top of that. to improve conductivity, the management of cargo at these airports, to facilitate connectivity and access and

enhance technology. all of the above in improvement projects for airports. for ports, there is money for the last mile connectivity. this will be a multimodal aspect of ports. where a truck comes through the port to -- the money will be to enhance to reduce congestion. it has the flow of freight and freight movement at the last mile corridor of ports as well as to enhance the capacity of ports so that they not only have to maintain current levels. they are able that they are enhanced to bring in -- they are enhanced to bring in even larger ships. with airports and ports, the money will go towards projects of high priority.

primarily on economic level. it will benefit the regional economy in that area. host: one more call from new york. frank, good morning. caller: if you are a reporter, i know everybody is going to fight me on this. the money we spent on this covid, we are hearing on tv about everyone is homeless. we spent how much? every homeless person, every person in the united states had a house built. every military person, everyone is trying to spend money to get them a house. host: let me step in because we are talking about the bipartisan deal that was introduced yesterday? you have a question about that? caller: that is what i'm getting at. all of this money is wasted.

is going to go into nancy pelosi's pocket. none of this money is going to trickle down to the americans. in february, covid was almost gone. host: we will leave it there. the caller's intent in court of the public's opinion. guest: public opinion was very important during this negotiation. there were several surveys and polls that found the majority of americans supported having robust, major investments in infrastructure. 80% of respondents wanted governments to repair not only their potholes, but to add connectivity for rural band.

when you saw the -- burn ban. -- broadband. you saw the legislators who have been telling them that for years they have needed improvements in reducing traffic congestion's on their highways. -- congestions on their highways. to enhance our supply chains. president biden, when he was promoting the made in america campaign, he cited feedback from the american people. the majority were calling on his administration to dedicate additional aid and respond to climate change. host: eugenve