LIFT Act
Bill: S.2552 | Sponsor: Sen. Markey, Edward J. (D-MA)
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
Local Infrastructure Funding & Technical Assistance Act or the LIFT Act
This bill authorizes the Department of Commerce to provide grants under the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 for predevelopment projects—measures required to be completed before construction of resilient climate infrastructure occurs—and related technical assistance. Grants may be provided to economic development districts, states, Indian tribes, local governments, institutions of higher education, individuals, and other organizations as specified by the bill.

To promote long-term economic recovery and job creation in underserved 
      communities by providing for investment in catalytic local 
predevelopment projects for resilient climate infrastructure innovation 
     and to provide assistance to support State and local project 
                  development, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Local Infrastructure Funding & 
Technical Assistance Act'' or the ``LIFT Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) infrastructure systems in the United States are in a 
        period of significant disrepair and are increasingly vulnerable 
        due to climate change;
            (2) 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;
            (3) the climate resilience challenge is most acute in 
        underserved communities in the United States, which face a 
        chronic underinvestment in infrastructure systems and require 
        restorative investments to rebuild with equity;
            (4) 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;
            (5) experts have determined that predevelopment funding at 
        the local and project levels is the critical gap in 
        accelerating efforts of the Federal Government--
                    (A) to support climate-resilient infrastructure 
                systems and regional economies; and
                    (B) to create a steady stream of ``shovel-worthy'' 
                and well-maintained community projects;
            (6) 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;
            (7) 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;
            (8) well-managed and resilient regional, State, and local 
        infrastructure assets will lower future Federal taxpayer costs 
        for recovery and restoration efforts;
            (9) States and regions have unique infrastructure systems 
        and challenges, such as--
                    (A) wildfires and droughts in the West;
                    (B) failing dams and levees in the Midwest and 
                Mississippi regions;
                    (C) stormwater management issues in the East; and
                    (D) broadband connectivity in the Intermountain 
                region;
            (10) the interconnected nature of energy, water, building 
        stock, transportation, and communication systems demands new 
        investments and innovations--
                    (A) to prepare for mitigating risks and 
                cyberattacks; and
                    (B) to carry out integrated deployment strategies;
            (11) 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;
            (12) \2/3\ of United States infrastructure is funded at the 
        State and local levels;
            (13) the Federal Government, in the role of a long-term 
        strategic infrastructure partner, should focus on making 
        catalytic investments that--
                    (A) promote local best practices in resilient 
                infrastructure through performance-based investments in 
                States and communities;
                    (B) encourage regional innovation, innovative 
                partnerships, and economic resilience strategies and 
                outcomes that fund long-term capacity building and 
                economic recovery; and
                    (C) 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; and
            (14) 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.
    (b) 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--
            (1) to accelerate timely, resilient infrastructure 
        deployment, specifically in underserved communities;
            (2) to reduce taxpayer costs in response to disasters 
        involving infrastructure; and
            (3) to preserve existing jobs and to create new jobs.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Capacity building.--The term ``capacity building'' 
        includes all activities associated with early stage community-
        based project formation and conceptualization, prior to project 
        predevelopment activity, including 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.
            (2) Eligible recipient.--The term ``eligible recipient'' 
        means--
                    (A) an eligible recipient (as defined in section 3 
                of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 
                1965 (42 U.S.C. 3122)); and
                    (B) a private individual, a nonprofit organization, 
                or a for-profit organization.
            (3) 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).
            (4) 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 4(b)(2).
            (5) Minority or woman-led entity.--The term ``minority or 
        woman-led entity'' means an organization, as determined by the 
        Secretary--
                    (A) for which a majority of the governing board of 
                directors and executive leadership of the organization 
                are women or minority persons;
                    (B) that is not dependent on or influenced by 
                another non-eligible person or organization; and
                    (C) that has not been established for the purpose 
                of this Act.
            (6) Project predevelopment.--The term ``project 
        predevelopment'' means a measure required to be completed 
        before construction of a project may occur, such as--
                    (A) architectural or engineering work;
                    (B) a market assessment;
                    (C) community outreach and engagement;
                    (D) an economic feasibility study;
                    (E) the acquisition of a site or lease;
                    (F) preparation of a business plan;
                    (G) any activity relating to permitting;
                    (H) any activity relating to the writing of grant 
                applications;
                    (I) capacity building in local governments, 
                community institutions, and nonprofit organizations; 
                and
                    (J) training for unionized labor to execute on such 
                activities.
            (7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Commerce.
            (8) Underserved community.--The term ``underserved 
        community'' means--
                    (A) a community--
                            (i) with significant representation of 
                        communities of color, low-income communities, 
                        or indigenous communities; and
                            (ii) that experiences, or is at risk of 
                        experiencing, higher or more adverse human 
                        health or environmental effects, as compared to 
                        other communities;
                    (B) Tribal communities;
                    (C) a community facing economic transition, 
                deindustrialization, and historic under-investment; or
                    (D) a community with a high rate of poverty or 
                unemployment.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--In addition to amounts otherwise available, there 
is authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2022, $15,000,000,000, 
to remain available until September 30, 2027, to the Secretary of 
Commerce 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.
    (b) Administrative Costs.--In addition to amounts otherwise 
available, there is authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2022, 
$300,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2027, to the 
Secretary of Commerce for the administrative costs of carrying out this 
section, including the costs of utilizing temporary Federal personnel 
as may be necessary.
    (c) Type of Grants.--Of the amounts made available under subsection 
(a)--
            (1) $5,000,000,000 shall be for technical assistance and 
        grants to eligible recipients to perform capacity building; and
            (2) $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 5.
    (d) Underserved 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 underserved 
communities.

SEC. 5. LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING & TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANT 
              REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Limitations.--In making grants with amounts made available 
under section 4(c)(2), the Secretary may not--
            (1) provide to an eligible recipient more than 1 grant for 
        which the eligible recipient is the lead applicant; or
            (2) make a grant in an amount of more than $500,000.
    (b) Partnerships.--An eligible recipient seeking to receive a grant 
under section 4(c)(2) may partner with 1 or more--
            (1) eligible recipient; or
            (2) any other entity, as determined by the Secretary.
    (c) Use of Grant.--An eligible recipient may use a grant under 
section 4(c)(2) for project predevelopment including--
            (1) project planning, community outreach and engagement, 
        and feasibility studies;
            (2) demonstrations of innovative activities or strategic 
        economic development investments;
            (3) management and operational assistance;
            (4) establishment of university centers;
            (5) establishment of business outreach centers;
            (6) studies evaluating the needs of, and development 
        potential for, economic growth of areas that the Secretary 
        determines have substantial need for the assistance;
            (7) 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;
            (8) assessment, marketing, and establishment of business 
        clusters;
            (9) other activities determined by the Secretary to be 
        appropriate; and
            (10) making a grant to an organization to carry out any of 
        the activities described in paragraphs (1) through (9).
    (d) Selection.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary may award a grant under 
        section 4(c)(2) only after an evaluation of--
                    (A) the merits of the application;
                    (B) the likely low- to no-carbon opportunities 
                described in the application that align with any 
                Federal climate and resiliency goals;
                    (C) the extent to which the proposed activities 
                would create efficiency of operations across services; 
                and
                    (D) the extent to which the proposed activities 
                would promote resources to invest in community 
                infrastructure.
            (2) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
        Secretary shall give priority to eligible recipients that--
                    (A) are minority or women-led entities;
                    (B) are partnerships between an institution of 
                higher education and a labor organization;
                    (C) are located in an underserved community;
                    (D) propose to carry out activities that would--
                            (i) result in predicted large greenhouse 
                        gas reductions; or
                            (ii) reduce air pollution;
                    (E) propose to carry out activities that would 
                result in large improvements to public health;
                    (F) propose to carry out activities that would 
                improve community adaptation and resiliency; or
                    (G) propose to carry out activities that would 
                modernize communities and community connectivity.
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