Trump Officials Meeting on Infrastructure Legislation, but Progress Slowed by Shutdown

Trump, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow and other administration officials met last week about how to move forward on their infrastructure push, though it was clear any firm action would likely wait until after the shutdown, officials and lobbyists said. They discussed potentially expanding the proposal's telecom scope beyond increasing broadband deployments to also include funding for 5G technology, lobbyists said. The idea of including 5G funding in the new proposal appears to have sprung from the White House's September 5G summit (see 1809280054), one telecom lobbyist said. Administration officials may be treading lightly given outcry last year over a leaked draft National Security Council official memo proposing the U.S. build a national 5G network (see 1801290034), the lobbyist said.

Administration officials are considering including some SOTU mention of the infrastructure plan, lobbyists said. That may be limited to Trump highlighting infrastructure as an issue he and Capitol Hill Democrats can reach an agreement on, since some details of a final proposal are being developed, lobbyists said. The timing of Trump's speech is in flux, as Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., effectively rescinded her invitation for Trump to address Congress Jan. 29 (see 1901160031). The White House didn't comment Friday.

Lawmakers Watching

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., told us he spoke in recent weeks with Chao and urged the administration to make infrastructure an early legislative priority. Wicker said he and Senate Commerce ranking member Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., believe infrastructure should be one of the committee's early focuses for this year. “I think you're going to see a lot of creative ideas” from Congress for infrastructure legislation this year, including on broadband, Cantwell told reporters.

Wicker said he told Chao “there needs to be a realistic” plan for paying for infrastructure plans the administration proposes since he and other Republicans found deficiencies in that aspect of the 2018 plan. “I'm very interested in looking for all of the alternatives that are out there, in how state governments have managed to do this successfully,” Wicker said. “It comes down to when you build” and infrastructure projects “cost money. Workers demand to be compensated, materials have to be bought, rights-of-way have to be purchased.”

House Commerce Committee ranking member Greg Walden, R-Ore., said he hasn't spoken with this administration recently about their infrastructure plans but believes it will remain a top priority for them this year. “There's a lot of interest in doing this” among House Democrats, and Trump “is a builder,” Walden said. “I'm not sure what that package will look like yet” but committee Republicans will be interested in how they can influence broadband-related language in a final bill, including to improve FCC collection of broadband coverage data. “We'll work with” House Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, N.J., and other Democrats to find a consensus on that, Walden said.

Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., told us he's eager to see Congress make infrastructure legislation a priority “sooner rather than later” this year. “There's real potential for bipartisan support” and Trump “has been saying he wants a bill,” Welch said. “We've been talking about this for so long.” Democratic Hill aides said the real hurdle will continue to be how Trump aims to distribute infrastructure funding in the proposal, particularly since many of the party's lawmakers faulted the administrations' 2018 plan for not including dedicated broadband funding. Trump last year proposed $50 billion in federal funding for rural infrastructure projects allocated via state block grants that could be spent for broadband (see 1802120001).

Industry Hopeful

NTCA CEO Shirley Bloomfield and other industry officials said the White House hasn't contacted them in recent weeks about infrastructure, with most citing the partial shutdown as the main culprit. “The people who we'd be interfacing with” on infrastructure are largely being furloughed until the shuttering ends, Bloomfield said: “There's nobody to talk to about it.” The White House and other federal officials “continue to see [infrastructure legislation] as important and understand the role that broadband would need to play,” she said.

Bloomfield and others aren't waiting with as much anticipation this year for Trump to mention his infrastructure plans during the SOTU as they did last year (see 1801170054). Trump omitted any mention of broadband in his 2018 speech despite mentioning his overall infrastructure ideas (see 1801310071). “I used to get so excited” about the potential for broadband to factor into past presidential speeches, “but I don't feel that way anymore,” Bloomfield said. “Even if it's not mentioned” in this year's speech “I'm not really worried” that it would be an indication of a lack of administration interest. “I don't take it as the bellwether anymore,” she said. “It's what happens behind the scenes” that matters, and there's plenty of interest particularly from the Agriculture Department on those issues.

Information Technology and Innovation Foundation Director-Broadband and Spectrum Policy Doug Brake believes infrastructure legislation will remain a top Trump administration priority because it's “one of the areas that a divided Congress can find common ground on.” Congress may seek to prioritize the push for privacy legislation instead because of the current intense level of interest in that topic, Brake said. Lawmakers quickly began floating privacy bills during the first weeks of this Congress (see 1901100018).