What contractors need to know before going after public projects
By Kim Slowey
President Joe Biden recently announced a $ 2.3 trillion U . S . infrastructure spending proposal , the American Jobs Plan , that promises billions of dollars in construction contracts to companies across the country who are trying to determine what a post- COVID-19 economy will look like .
The plan calls for $ 621 billion for transportation infrastructure and $ 689 billion for buildings and utilities .
The Biden administration has also submitted a $ 1.52 trillion 2022 discretionary spending proposal to Congress , in advance of a full budget request , that includes :
$ 3.6 billion for water infrastructure improvements .
$ 6.8 billion for the U . S . Army Corp of Engineers civil works program .
$ 2 billion for federal building construction projects .
$ 10.2 billion to the National Science Foundation , which will use part of the money to build new research facilities .
So , it ’ s no surprise that private-sector contractors might be interested in grabbing a share of any upcoming publicly funded work . In fact , the runup to a potential surge of public projects up for bid is starting to mirror 2008 and the Great Recession , said
16 DITCHMEN • APRIL 2021