Jeff Berkowitz
CEO, Delve
Dear Reader,
After years of “Infrastructure Weeks” and months of legislative jockeying, there was hope that this year, Congress could take advantage of bipartisan opportunities to finally send an infrastructure package to the President’s desk. Like many such bills, its passage would represent countless hours by Members of Congress and their staff, along with pressures and encouragement from a wide range of outside interests.
Yet, once again Washington finds itself taking the champagne off ice and wondering why “Infrastructure Week” seems more like Groundhog Day. Smart government affairs professionals understand that nothing in Washington is done until it is done, and even then, passage is often just the end of the beginning, not the beginning of the end. Particularly with legislation so historic in both size and scope, signing the bill merely passes the baton from Congress to federal agencies, and in many cases, state and local governments and private sector partners.
That reality exposes why passing major infrastructure legislation has become so challenging. Beneath the debates over the topline spending figure and moderates vs. progressives are serious disagreements over numerous initiatives included in the bill. Each of these initiatives are major public affairs fights in and of themselves that even when legislation seems poised for passage remain unresolved.
To understand the fights spawned or compounded by this bill, our analyst team dug deep into what comes next. This report provides a brief overview of ten public affairs challenges and opportunities across a range of industries that will unfold as the debate over infrastructure legislation continues – both in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and beyond.
I hope this report helps prepare you and your organization to stay ahead of the curve. As you do, please reach out – we’re here to help.
Thank you for reading.
To help public affairs professionals anticipate what’s next, Delve’s analysts have identified ten of the most pressing challenges beneath the IIJA headlines across a range of industry sectors, including energy, environmental permitting, water, pharmaceutical manufacturing, FinTech, transportation, and telecommunications.