{"id":28404,"date":"2017-06-29T15:49:07","date_gmt":"2017-06-29T20:49:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/?p=28404"},"modified":"2019-01-04T12:32:07","modified_gmt":"2019-01-04T18:32:07","slug":"trumps-trillion-dollar-infrastructure-promise-has-broad-appeal-and-big-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2017\/06\/29\/trumps-trillion-dollar-infrastructure-promise-has-broad-appeal-and-big-challenges\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s Trillion Dollar Infrastructure Promise Has Broad Appeal And Big Challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_28407\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-28407\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics081_WEB.jpg\" alt=\"U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, promoted investment in infrastructure in a day-long tour that included a stop at the Frederick Regional Airport.\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics081_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics081_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics081_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics081_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, promoted investment in infrastructure in a day-long tour that included a stop at the Frederick Regional Airport.<\/p>\n<\/div><p>A cornerstone of President Trump\u2019s campaign and presidency is a $1 trillion proposal to rebuild U.S. infrastructure. The promise is a popular one, and could find <a style=\"font-size: 14px;\" href=\"http:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/transportation\/333402-trump-to-unveil-1-trillion-infrastructure-plan-in-several-weeks\">bipartisan support<\/a> across the country and in Congress. The infrastructure needs in Oklahoma illustrate why this issue is so appealing \u2014 and challenging.<\/p><p><iframe src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/330784210&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=false\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p><p><!--more-->The word \u201cinfrastructure\u201d is most commonly associated with roads, highways and bridges, but it\u2019s really much bigger than that: It includes all the parts that make up the basic physical systems that keep cities, states and the nation moving, working and living.<\/p><p>Infrastructure is so immense and immersive, it\u2019s actually kind of hard to see. Get above ground-level, and it\u2019s easy to understand why this is such a massive, complex challenge.<\/p>\n<h3>\u2018Dodging cracks\u2019<\/h3><p>Earlier this month, Republican U.S. Senator and commercial pilot Jim Inhofe piloted his twin-engine Cessna on a day-long tour of small airports across Oklahoma. Inhofe chairs a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epw.senate.gov\/public\/index.cfm\/transportation-and-infrastructure\">Senate subcommittee<\/a> on infrastructure and is a big supporter of Trump\u2019s promise to help repair, upgrade and expand the structures and equipment states like Oklahoma run on.<\/p><p>The first stop was the Jones Memorial Airport in Bristow. Immediately after landing, Inhofe had to swerve the small plane to avoid parts of the crumbling tarmac.<\/p><p>\u201cWe were dodging cracks,\u201d Inhofe said, climbing out the pilot\u2019s seat. \u201cYou probably noticed that didn&#8217;t you?\u201d<\/p><p>Inhofe says small cities like Bristow need the federal government\u2019s help to repair and improve decaying runways at airports like Jones Memorial.. The small airport in the community of about 4,000 is home to Consolidated Turbine Specialists. Technician Mike Coopers says the tarmac is the lifeblood of the\u00a0 company.<\/p><p>\u201cThis one here needs some attention,\u201d he says. \u201cIt&#8217;s in bad shape.\u201d<\/p><p>The company isn\u2019t a big name, but it employs about 35 people and it attracts customers from across the country because it has a good reputation for repairing and overhauling a specific set of engines used in personal and commercial airplanes and helicopters. Cooper wants CTS to grow. The lynchpin now is Bristow\u2019s crumbling tarmac that limits the size and number of aircraft that can come in and out of the hangars here.<\/p><p>\u201cWhen you have a business in aviation, you have small aircraft that come in quite regularly,\u201d Cooper says. \u201cIt\u2019s a big part of the big picture.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28406\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-28406\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics090_WEB.jpg\" alt=\"Oklahoma Aeronautics Director Victor Bird.\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics090_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics090_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics090_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170609-inhofe-flight-pics090_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Oklahoma Aeronautics Director Victor Bird.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Invest again<\/h3><p>Some national infrastructure improvements are already arriving via an Obama-approved highway improvement bill called the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.senate.gov\/legislative\/LIS\/roll_call_lists\/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=114&session=1&vote=00331\">FAST Act<\/a>. More improvements are outlined in a new Inhofe-backed bill called the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.senate.gov\/legislative\/LIS\/roll_call_lists\/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=114&session=1&vote=00331\">FLIGHT Act<\/a>, which he says would divert federal money from big airline-centric hubs in Dallas and Atlanta to general aviation airports like Bristow and Wiley Post in Oklahoma City.<\/p><p>\u201cAmerica desperately needs to invest in our infrastructure again,\u201d says Oklahoma Aeronautics Commission Director Victor Bird, who is hoping for more federal money for general aviation airports. \u201cWe haven&#8217;t kept pace with the rest of the world, and we haven&#8217;t done what we needed to do.\u201d<\/p><p>Bird is confident President Trump has a broad view of infrastructure that includes smaller aircraft hubs.<\/p><p>\u201cI know he&#8217;s very cognizant of general aviation airports because he has used them a lot as a businessman,\u201d he says.<\/p><p>Oklahoma and the rest of the country\u2019s infrastructure needs don\u2019t stop here. States want federal help with <a href=\"http:\/\/www.tulsaworld.com\/business\/agriculture\/funding-urged-for-repairs-to-mcclellan-kerr-arkansas-river-navigation\/article_cc78fc4e-6503-57f7-96bc-88a1523a260d.html\">waterways<\/a>, like Oklahoma\u2019s Port of Catoosa and the McClellan\u2013Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System. States are also looking for federal dollars for and municipal <a href=\"https:\/\/www.brookings.edu\/blog\/the-avenue\/2016\/01\/13\/flints-water-crisis-highlights-need-for-infrastructure-investment-and-innovation\/\">drinking water<\/a> and sewer systems.<\/p><p>Funding for such projects is uncertain, however. Congress has shown little evidence of backing new spending, and Oklahoma \u2014 which already <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usnews.com\/news\/best-states\/oklahoma\/articles\/2017-06-28\/report-oklahomas-rural-roads-bridges-among-nations-worst\">has poor roads<\/a> and deficient bridges \u2014 as well as other states, have found it <a href=\"https:\/\/nondoc.com\/2017\/05\/25\/odot-director-funding-better-than-thought\/\">difficult to ensure funding<\/a> for their own smaller scale infrastructure projects.<\/p><p>Financing through public-private partnerships, too, is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/06\/06\/business\/dealbook\/trump-infrastructure-plan-privatized-taxpayers.html\">often a poor long-term solution<\/a>.<\/p><p>\u201cMuch of our infrastructure in this country is 50 if not 100 years old and we need to repair it and rebuild it,\u201d says Marcia Hale, president of Building America\u2019s Future, a nonpartisan coalition of former governors, mayors and other elected officials pushing for infrastructure investment.<\/p><p>That\u2019s fixing the past, which Hale says is only part of the nation\u2019s infrastructure equation. For the future, Oklahoma and other states will likely need federal help with new technology infrastructure, including things like a better electric grid and broadband internet.<\/p><p>\u201cAutonomous cars and the technology that is helping cities become what we call \u201csmart cities\u201d is upon us,\u201d Hale says.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28413\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-28413\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170116-dot-pics058_HR-620x413.jpg\" alt=\"Crews with the Oklahoma Department of Transportation repairing an overpass in Oklahoma City.\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170116-dot-pics058_HR-620x413.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170116-dot-pics058_HR-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170116-dot-pics058_HR-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170116-dot-pics058_HR-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170116-dot-pics058_HR-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/06\/20170116-dot-pics058_HR-1620x1080.jpg 1620w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Crews with the Oklahoma Department of Transportation repairing an overpass in Oklahoma City.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Rundown runways<\/h3><p>Back on the tarmac at a tour stop near the southwestern Oklahoma community of Frederick, Sen. Inhofe says the Constitution specifically directs the federal government with overseeing infrastructure.<\/p><p>\u201cThe two main things we\u2019re supposed to be doing are defending America and then infrastructure,\u201d Inhofe says. \u201cThey called them post roads back then, and that\u2019s the kind of spending people like.\u201d<\/p><p>There\u2019s a rundown runway in every state, and a line of city and state officials, industries and organizations with long lists of infrastructure fixes. Many of them are excited by President Trump\u2019s assurance that federal help is on the way. But even a Republican supporter and infrastructure insider like Sen. Inhofe isn\u2019t sure yet how Trump plans to pay for it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A cornerstone of President Trump\u2019s campaign and presidency is a $1 trillion proposal to rebuild U.S. infrastructure. The promise is a popular one, and could find bipartisan support across the country and in Congress. The infrastructure needs in Oklahoma illustrate why this issue is so appealing \u2014 and challenging.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":28407,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"page-noFeature.php","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[492],"tags":[683,707,316],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28404"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28404"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28404\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31101,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28404\/revisions\/31101"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28407"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}