Articles by Tom Ichniowski

A mammoth economic-stimulus measure has advanced on its long, winding path through Congress, with the Senate’s approval on Feb. 10 of a $838.2-billion package that was pared back from an earlier version. The cuts that were needed to win enough votes to pass the bill included about $27 billion in construction funds. That left the final Senate bill with about $133 billion for construction programs, compared with about $160 billion in the bill as it cleared committee. The major construction casualty came in school-construction aid, where lawmakers deleted all $19.5 billion the original bill had recommended for K-12 and college

A mammoth economic-stimulus measure has advanced on its long, winding path through Congress, with the Senate’s approval on Feb. 10 of a $838.2-billion package that was pared back from an earlier version. The cuts that were needed to win enough votes to pass the bill included about $27 billion in construction funds. That left the final Senate bill with about $133 billion for construction programs, compared with about $160 billion in the bill as it cleared committee. The major construction casualty came in school-construction aid, where lawmakers deleted all $19.5 billion the original bill had recommended for K-12 and college

The Senate has approved an $838.2-billion economic stimulus bill by a 61-37 vote. The margin was slightly higher than the 60-vote minimum needed for approval, as Republicans Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, both of Maine, and Pennsylvania’s Arlen Specter, joined all 58 Democrats and Independents to vote for the bill. The Senate package now must be reconciled with the estimated $819.5-billion stimulus measure that the House passed on January 28. The House bill has about $160 billion for construction programs; the Senate’s contains about $130 billion. The Senate bill’s passage is not necessarily good news for architects, as it no

To win over a few key Republican votes, a small group of Senators has recommended about $108 billion in cuts from an economic stimulus package that had grown to more than $900 billion. The major construction program casualty is the original Senate stimulus bill's $19.5 billion for school construction funding, which the team of lawmakers deleted. In all, a team led by Sens. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) trimmed $108 billion from the bill as it was introduced earlier. Cuts in spending accounted for $83 billion of the reductions and $25 billion came from cuts in tax incentives.

Capitol Hill action on an economic stimulus bill has shifted to the Senate floor, where on February 2 debate began on an $884.5-billion package of spending and tax breaks. The measure’s estimated $160 billion in construction-related spending appears safe, and Senate infrastructure advocates are trying to boost that total higher. But they probably will need to propose offsetting spending cuts to win approval for any increases. The first key floor vote, on February 3, didn’t go well for public-works supporters. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) offered an amendment to add $25 billion to the bill’s $41.4-billion combined allocation for highway, transit,

The $825-billion economic stimulus proposal that House Democrats unveiled yesterday provides the first solid numbers for those in the design and construction industry who have been searching anxiously for hints about the plan. Infrastructure advocates panned the proposal as far short of what is needed. But with House committee and floor votes and Senate action still to come, the package is far from the last word on the stimulus. As drafted, the plan calls for roughly $550 billion in spending and $275 billion in tax cuts over two years. The plan would have a major impact on construction: By Engineering

Democrats rejoiced at Sen. Barack Obama’s resounding win on Nov. 4 in the presidential race and the party’s strong gains in the House and Senate. But as the cheers from the victory celebration start to fade, Obama’s focus will shift to assembling a Cabinet and setting legislative and regulatory priorities. As that transition begins, it is clear that the troubled national economy and growing federal deficit will loom over new initiatives that the new administration and new Congress hope to launch. Voters showed support for infrastructure. The Bond Buyer, a municipal finance publication, reports that 85% of ballot initiatives passed,