Some $120 billion will be spent on infrastructure as a part of the $787 billion economic stimulus package passed by Congress. The establishment of a National Infrastructure Bank was not included in the final recovery plan. As a result, other than an overall stimulus in infrastructure spending by the federal government, the funding practices for public works projects – largely for highways and mass transit – remain the same. Still, it is not yet clear how a National Infrastructure Bank would function.

A breakdown of the progress of the National Infrastructure Bank so far

President Barack Obama has called for the creation of a National Infrastructure Bank. The intention: To create a structure so public works projects could be, according to the President while campaigning last year, “determined not by politics, but by what will maximize our safety and homeland security; what will keep our environment clean and our economy strong.” Still, it is unclear how a National Infrastructure Bank would function -- or even be established. Felix Rohatyn, author of Bold Endeavors: How our government built America, and why it must rebuild now, on the future of infrastructure investment in the United States.

President Obama has called for a National Infrastructure Bank. And, the structure already exists on the state level.

Stan Hazelroth, Executive Director of the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank, recently spoke with Blueprint America on the effectiveness of the program so far and how the structure might be applied federally.