National Infrastructure Bank Campaign Marches Downfield
Channel: Coalition for a National Infrastructure Bank
Date: 2021-09-27

In this Zoom meeting, elected officials at the state and local level, together with labor leaders and representatives of the NIB Coalition, discuss the latest developments in the campaign to create a $5 trillion National Infrastructure Bank (NIB).  

0:00 Title page
0:10 A clip of John F Kennedy at Rice University on Why We Choose to Go to the Moon.
0:15 Julie Olsen, chair of the Alaska Democratic Party Caucus and moderator of this event,  introduces the meeting and list of speakers at the National Infrastructure Bank Coalition meeting on Sep 25, 2021
3:50 Alphecca Muttardy, former senior economist with International Monetary Fund, gives a short summary of the shortfall of the proposed infrastructure funding from the Biden
10:56 Stephen Hubbard, PhD and expert in national infrastructure banks, gives a presentation on why the $2.6 trillion shortfall in infrastructure funding detailed by the American Society of Civil Engineers actually understates the problem.  There are many categories left out by the ASCE, and indeed the shortfall is much larger. 
17:34 Dennis Montoya, immediate past president of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), describes why he supports the $5 trillion National Infrastructure Bank (NIB).
22:45 Senator William Tallman, state senator from New Mexico, outlines five things he's been involved in recently to support and promote the idea of the $5 trillion National Infrastructure Bank.
28:22 Felix Ortiz, former assistant speaker of the New York state assembly, calls in from Puerto Rico.  He is a passionate advocate of the National Infrastructure Bank and shares his reasons for that.  Mr. Ortiz recounts his recent activities in support of the Bank, including the promulgation of an op-ed promoting the Bank. 
33:25 Sample op-ed in support of the $5 trillion National Infrastructure Bank.  
34:00 Lamar Lemmons, chief of staff for Betty Jean Alexander (a senator in the Ohio state legislature), tells of their efforts to get a hearing in the legislature regarding the National Infrastructure Bank.  He answers a question about safe drinking water in Flint, Michigan.  
38:04 Scott Koons, Executive Director of the North Central Florida Regional Planning Council, relates how the council, consisting of 12 counties and 40 municipalities, unanimously passed a resolution in support of the $5 trillion National Infrastructure Bank.  He is working to have a resolution passed by a statewide organization of county organizations.  In addition, Mr. Koons is the immediate past president of the National Association of Development Organizations.  He will have a resolution introduced at the next meeting in October 2021.  
42:00 Merton Simpson, a representative in Albany County Legislature, reports that that body passed a resolution in support of the $5 trillion National Infrastructure Bank (NIB).  
45:24 Julie Olsen asserts that HR 3339, which outlines a $5 trillion National Infrastructure Bank, is properly understood as a bipartisan bill.  It is a "business friendly" piece of legislation, and the Coalition is actively seeking support from both Democrats and Republicans. 
47:31 Thomas Carey, president of the Westchester County (NY) Central Labor Board, thanks the National Infrastructure Bank (NIB) Coalition for their efforts.  
50:30 Jack Hanna, former interim chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Committee and currently from Oregon, talks about the current political situation regarding infrastructure, and calls it a conjunctural crisis.  Will Congress pass the Senate bipartisan infrastructure bill?  Jack argues, the answer, in a certain sense is a distraction.  Only a $5 trillion National Infrastructure Bank will address the infrastructure needs of the USA.
54:10 Julie Olsen describes the paid political ads run by the NIB Coalition in support of the National Infrastructure Bank.
55:49 Question and Answer begins
 1:20:49 Organizations that have endorsed the National Infrastructure Bank, as outlined in HR 3339.
1:21:19 Call your congressman and ask them to support HR 3339 to enact a National Infrastructure Bank.
1:21:45 Contact info for the NIB Coalition