President Biden’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure package is set to be a boon for the wife of Sen. Joe Manchin III, a West Virginia Democrat and key swing vote for the White House’s agenda.
Mr. Biden’s legislation, as written, greatly expands funding for the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC). The federal agency, which is responsible for promoting economic development in the 13 states that make up Appalachia, is led by Mr. Manchin’s wife, Gayle.
According to language included within the infrastructure bill, which was released Sunday night, the ARC is set to receive an additional billion dollars over the next four years. The new funding is set to increase the agency’s federal budget by more than 50% annually.
Earlier this year, the agency requested $235 million from the federal government to fund its operations. That sum was more than 30% higher than the $175 million the agency was awarded in 2020.
Mr. Biden’s infrastructure bill, however, gives the ARC an additional $200 million yearly to focus on projects. In total, the ARC would receive one billion dollars of additional funding throughout the 2022-2026 fiscal years.
ARC’s funding increase is significantly larger than other federal regional commissions are set to receive in the infrastructure package.
The Southwest Border Regional Commission, for instance, only received an additional $1.25 million in funding. That area overseen by that commission, the southern border regions of Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas, is facing the brunt of the immigration crisis.
Apart from money, the infrastructure package also expands the ARC’s authority to increase broadband internet access by providing grants and “technical assistance.”
Since being appointed to the $160,000 a year ARC co-chair position in May by the White House, Mrs. Manchin has made broadband access a top priority.
From traveling across the region to tout the need for “connectivity” to pushing governors to do more to corral internet utilities on the topic, Mrs. Manchin argues that without proper internet access Appalachia cannot compete with the rest of the country.
“The COVID-19 pandemic brought to reality again the inequity we face,” Mrs. Manchin said at a recent event in Ohio, according to the Columbus Dispatch. “Your zip code should not define your destiny.”
Those priorities and the ARC, in general, are well represented within the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package.
It is unclear if Mr. Manchin, who was central to drafting the bill, explicitly pushed for provisions beneficial to the ARC. Mr. Manchin’s office did not return requests for comment on this story.
On Sunday, Mr. Manchin praised the infrastructure bill as a “big deal” that had eluded previous administrations.
“This is something we should be proud of, this was a give and take proposition,” he said. “Nobody got what they wanted. Everybody got what we needed and that’s the most important thing.”
Mr. Manchin’s role in helping craft the deal underscores his newfound position as a vital political player in Washington.
Despite Democrats controlling both Congress and the White House, the party’s hold on the Senate is tenuous at best. The upper chamber is split 50-50 between both parties, with Democrats only holding the majority thanks to the tie-breaking vote of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Given the narrow margin, Mr. Manchin, a self-described “moderate to conservative Democrat,” holds immense sway over whether the Biden administration’s agenda can become law.
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