Investment in infrastructure creates more
“bang for our buck” than any other type of government spending. A
study from the San Francisco Federal Reserve found that, on average, each
dollar of infrastructure spending increased state GDP by at least $2
dollars; more than a 100% return
on investment.
As
President Obama mentioned in the State of the Union last month, Americans continue
to drive over more than 60,000 structurally deficient bridges everyday. The lack of investment in infrastructure has left
us in a crisis. In 2002, American
infrastructure ranked 5th globalyl; by
2012 we were 25th, behind countries like Saudi Arabia, Barbados,
and Spain to name a few. The American
Society of Civil Engineers claims that without investing an additional $157 billion per year
in infrastructure, the United States will lose over 3 million jobs and
trillions of dollars in GDP by 2020. And
we thought the $85 billion sequester was bad?
We must close our infrastructure gap to stay competitive. Today, China has over 20,000km of high-speed
rail; compared to our one track. The port
of Shanghai, handles more containers than the eight largest US ports
combined. Sitting back and allowing our
nation to fall further behind should not be an option.
We can
choose to elect representatives who will maintain the status quo; who will not
reform the entitlement spending that is bankrupting our nation. Or we can elect individuals that will make
the necessary investments for our country to succeed. For the first time, this past election, more
millenials (18-35) voted than senior citizens.
As a generation, we must find our voice and make it heard in
Washington. We must get out and demand
bipartisan solutions to our nations problems and investments in our future!
