Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Local Infrastructure Funding & Technical Assistance Act” or the “LIFT Act”.
Local Infrastructure Funding & Technical Assistance Act
A BILL
To promote long-term economic recovery and job creation in environmental justice communities by providing for investment in catalytic local predevelopment projects for resilient climate infrastructure innovation, to provide assistance to support State and local project development, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Findings; purpose
Findings— Congress finds that—
infrastructure systems in the United States are in a period of significant disrepair and are increasingly vulnerable due to climate change;
aging infrastructure, new technologies, increasing complexity, and increasing incidents of severe weather due to climate change pose new challenges to the resilience of those infrastructure systems;
the climate resilience challenge is most acute in environmental justice communities in the United States, which face a chronic underinvestment in infrastructure systems and require restorative investments to rebuild with equity;
experts have determined that predevelopment funding at the local and project levels is the critical gap in accelerating efforts of the Federal Government—
to support climate-resilient infrastructure systems and regional economies; and
to create a steady stream of “shovel-worthy” and well-maintained community projects;
economic analyses have determined that existing Federal and State predevelopment programs generate as much as $16 to $20 in economic activity for every $1 of public funds expended;
studies demonstrate that the development of stronger lifecycle infrastructure methods by State and local project sponsors will likely help local governments better leverage current and future Federal taxpayer investment in public infrastructure through partnerships with impact investors;
well-managed and resilient regional, State, and local infrastructure assets will lower future Federal taxpayer costs for recovery and restoration efforts;
in purchasing infrastructure, the Federal Government typically accepts a low-cost capital bid without a plan for maintaining an asset that is designed to last 30 to 40 years, such that investing in local best practices and capacity for better procurement, asset management, design, lifecycle finance, and innovative data and sensor systems will partially address the resilient infrastructure funding crisis in the United States;
States and regions have unique infrastructure systems and challenges, such as—
wildfires and droughts in the West;
failing dams and levees in the Midwest and Mississippi regions;
stormwater management issues in the South and East; and
broadband connectivity in the Intermountain region;
the interconnected nature of energy, water, building stock, transportation, and communication systems demands new investments and innovations—
to prepare for mitigating risks and cyberattacks; and
to carry out integrated deployment strategies;
the basic infrastructure needs of many communities are changing during the COVID–19 era to emphasize distance learning and public health, while much of the infrastructure stock of the United States created in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s is aging;
2/3 of United States infrastructure is funded at the State and local levels;
the Federal Government, in the role of a long-term strategic infrastructure partner, should focus on making catalytic investments that—
promote local best practices in resilient infrastructure through performance-based investments in States and communities;
encourage regional innovation, innovative partnerships, and economic resilience strategies and outcomes that fund long-term capacity building and economic recovery; and
provide strategic capacity building resources, technical assistance, and flexible predevelopment support for resilient infrastructure project development that allows States and communities to accelerate the most critical State and community infrastructure needs;
grantees and applicants of the Assistance for Coal Communities program of the Economic Development Administration have expressed financial hardship with meeting all project predevelopment costs needed to be eligible for that program and to transition away from fossil fuel infrastructure;
the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117–58; 135 Stat. 429) makes a once-in-a-generation investment of $1,200,000,000,000 to rebuild and modernize the infrastructure of the United States;
Public Law 117–169 (136 Stat. 1818) (commonly known as the “Inflation Reduction Act of 2022”) includes an estimated $369,000,000,000 in appropriations and tax credits for climate-related and energy-related investments, the largest Federal climate change legislation to be enacted into law; and
Executive Order 14008 (42 U.S.C. 4321 note; relating to tackling the climate crisis at home and abroad), issued by President Biden on January 27, 2021, created the Justice40 Initiative to deliver 40 percent of climate-related investments to communities identified as “disadvantaged”.
Purpose— Recognizing that pressing climate-resilient infrastructure needs differ by State and region, and that Federal program support for project predevelopment is limited or inflexible due to programmatic silos, the purpose of this Act is to establish new, flexible funding streams and expedited processes—
to accelerate timely, resilient infrastructure deployment, specifically in environmental justice communities;
to reduce taxpayer costs in response to disasters involving infrastructure; and
to preserve existing jobs and to create new jobs.
Sec. 3 Definitions
In this Act:
Capacity building—
In general— The term capacity building means the process of strengthening local coordination, leadership, knowledge, skills, expertise, and access to resources with the goal of helping to develop or increase the ability of a community to independently implement projects in the future.
Inclusions— The term capacity building includes all activities associated with early stage community-based project formation and conceptualization, prior to project predevelopment activity, such as identifying and planning for needed climate change mitigation and adaptation projects and providing stipends to local community organizations for planning participation, community outreach and engagement activities, grant writing, research, and mentorship support to move projects from formation and conceptualization to project predevelopment.
Community of color— The term community of color means a geographically distinct area in which the population of any of the following categories of individuals is higher than the average population of that category for the State in which the community is located:
Black.
African American.
Asian.
Pacific Islander.
Other non-White race.
Hispanic.
Latino.
Linguistically isolated.
Middle Eastern and North African.
Eligible recipient— The term eligible recipient means—
an eligible recipient (as defined in section 3 of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3122)); and
a private individual, a non-profit organization, or a for-profit organization.
Environmental justice community— The term environmental justice community means a community with significant representation of communities of color, low-income communities, or Tribal and Indigenous communities that experiences, or is at risk of experiencing, higher or more adverse human health or environmental effects.
Institution of higher education— The term institution of higher education has the meaning given the term in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001).
Lead applicant— The term lead applicant means the eligible recipient that is primarily responsible for the preparation, conduct, and administration of the project for which a grant is provided under section 5(c)(2).
Low-income community— The term low-income community means any census block group in which 30 percent or more of the population are individuals with an annual household income equal to, or less than, the greater of—
an amount equal to 80 percent of the median income of the area in which the household is located, as reported by the Department of Housing and Urban Development; and
200 percent of the Federal poverty line.
Minority or woman-led entity— The term minority or woman-led entity means an organization, as determined by the Secretary—
for which a majority of the governing board of directors and executive leadership of the organization are women or minority persons;
that is not dependent on or influenced by another non-eligible person or organization; and
that has not been established for the purpose of this Act.
Project predevelopment— The term project predevelopment means a measure required to be completed before construction of a project may occur, such as—
architectural or engineering work;
a market assessment;
community outreach and engagement;
an economic feasibility study;
the acquisition of a site or lease;
preparation of a business plan;
any activity relating to permitting;
any activity relating to the identification of additional funding sources or writing of grant applications;
capacity building in local governments, community institutions, and nonprofit organizations; and
training for unionized labor to execute on such activities.
Secretary— The term Secretary means the Secretary of Commerce.
Tribal and indigenous community— The term Tribal and Indigenous community means a population of individuals who are members of—
a federally recognized Indian Tribe;
a State-recognized Indian Tribe;
an Alaska Native community or organization;
a Native Hawaiian community or organization; or
any other Indigenous community located in a State.
Sec. 4 Local infrastructure funding & technical assistance grant requirements
Limitations— In making grants with amounts made available under section 5(c)(2), the Secretary—
may provide not more than 50 percent of the grant amount prior to an eligible recipient commencing predevelopment activities described in that section; and
may not—
provide to an eligible recipient more than 1 grant for which the eligible recipient is the lead applicant; or
make a grant in an amount of more than $500,000.
Partnerships—
In general— Subject to paragraph (2), an eligible recipient seeking to receive a grant under section 5(c)(2) shall demonstrate multi-stakeholder partnerships between stakeholders such as community-based organizations, nonprofit organizations, faith-based organizations, coalitions, community development corporations, units of local government, and other stakeholders, as determined appropriate by the Secretary.
Requirement— In demonstrating a partnership under paragraph (1), an eligible entity shall identify 1 or more community-based organizations or community-serving organizations.
Use of grant— An eligible recipient may use a grant under section 5(c)(2) for project predevelopment, including—
project planning, community outreach and engagement, and associated marketing and communications;
predevelopment studies, including—
feasibility studies;
studies evaluating the needs of, and development potential for, economic growth of areas that the Secretary determines have substantial need for the assistance; and
studies that evaluate the effectiveness of coordinating projects funded under the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3121 et seq.) with projects funded under other Acts;
demonstrations of innovative activities or strategic economic development investments;
management and operational assistance;
establishment of university centers;
establishment of business outreach centers, including business clusters to support project predevelopment;
other activities determined by the Secretary to be appropriate; and
making a grant to an organization to carry out any of the activities described in paragraphs (1) through (7).
Selection—
In general— The Secretary may award a grant under section 5(c)(2) only after an evaluation of—
the merits of the application;
the likely low- to no-carbon opportunities described in the application that align with any Federal climate and resiliency goals;
the extent to which the proposed activities would create efficiency of operations across services; and
the extent to which the proposed activities would promote resources to invest in community infrastructure.
Priority— In awarding grants under section 5(c)(2), the Secretary shall give priority to eligible recipients that—
are located in an environmental justice community;
demonstrate strong and diverse partnerships, particularly with community-based organizations;
propose to carry out activities that would improve community adaptation and resiliency;
advance equitable workforce development or increase wealth-building opportunities for environmental justice communities;
propose to carry out activities that would—
result in predicted large greenhouse gas reductions; or
reduce air pollution;
propose to carry out activities that would result in large improvements to public health;
propose to carry out activities that would modernize communities and community connectivity;
are partnerships between an institution of higher education and a labor organization; or
are minority or women-led entities.
Sec. 5 Authorization of appropriations
In general— In addition to amounts otherwise available, there is authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2024 $15,000,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2029, to the Secretary for economic adjustment assistance under section 209 of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3149) to provide grants for project predevelopment and technical assistance.
Administrative costs— In addition to amounts otherwise available, there is authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2024, $300,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2029, to the Secretary for the administrative costs of carrying out this section, including the costs of using temporary Federal personnel as may be necessary.
Type of grants— Of the amounts made available under subsection (a)—
$5,000,000,000 shall be for technical assistance and grants to eligible recipients to perform capacity building; and
$10,000,000,000 shall be for grants to eligible recipients to perform project predevelopment activities to assist States and communities that need support with climate infrastructure investments, subject to the requirements of section 4.
Environmental justice communities— Of the amounts made available under subsection (a), not less than 50 percent shall be used for activities described in subsection (c) that are carried out in environmental justice communities.