[Senate Hearing 118-495]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 118-495
THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF FEDERAL
INVESTMENTS IN MASSACHUSETTS
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FIELD HEARING
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON
ECONOMIC POLICY
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON
BANKING,HOUSING,AND URBAN AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
ON
EXAMINING THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF FEDERAL INVESTMENTS
IN MASSACHUSETTS
__________
OCTOBER 20, 2023
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available at: https: //www.govinfo.gov /
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
57-410 PDF WASHINGTON : 2025
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COMMITTEE ON BANKING, HOUSING, AND URBAN AFFAIRS
SHERROD BROWN, Ohio, Chair
JACK REED, Rhode Island TIM SCOTT, South Carolina
ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey MIKE CRAPO, Idaho
JON TESTER, Montana MIKE ROUNDS, South Dakota
MARK R. WARNER, Virginia THOM TILLIS, North Carolina
ELIZABETH WARREN, Massachusetts JOHN KENNEDY, Louisiana
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland BILL HAGERTY, Tennessee
CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, Nevada CYNTHIA M. LUMMIS, Wyoming
TINA SMITH, Minnesota J.D. VANCE, Ohio
RAPHAEL G. WARNOCK, Georgia KATIE BOYD BRITT, Alabama
JOHN FETTERMAN, Pennsylvania KEVIN CRAMER, North Dakota
LAPHONZA R. BUTLER, California STEVE DAINES, Montana
Laura Swanson, Staff Director
Lila Nieves-Lee, Republican Staff Director
Elisha Tuku, Chief Counsel
Amber Beck, Republican Chief Counsel
Cameron Ricker, Chief Clerk
Shelvin Simmons, IT Director
Pat Lally, Assistant Clerk
______
Subcommittee on Economic Policy
ELIZABETH WARREN, Massachusetts, Chair
JOHN KENNEDY, Louisiana, Ranking Member
JACK REED, Rhode Island MIKE ROUNDS, South Dakota
ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey THOM TILLIS, North Carolina
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland CYNTHIA M. LUMMIS, Wyoming
TINA SMITH, Minnesota STEVE DAINES, Montana
JOHN FETTERMAN, Pennsylvania
Gabrielle Elul, Subcommittee Staff Director
Jennifer Newman, Republican Subcommittee Staff Director
(ii)
C O N T E N T S
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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2023
Page
Opening statement of Chair Warren................................ 1
Opening statements, comments, or prepared statements of:
Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts.................... 3
WITNESSES
Carlos Monje, Under Secretary of Transportation Policy,
Department of Transportation................................... 4
Prepared statement........................................... 37
Kathleen Hogan, Principal Deputy Under Secretary for
Infrastructure, Department of Energy........................... 7
Prepared statement........................................... 38
Maura Healey, Governor, Commonwealth of Massachusetts............ 14
Prepared statement........................................... 41
Lou Antonellis, Business Manager and Financial Secretary,
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers................ 22
Prepared statement........................................... 43
Julie Chen, Chancellor, University of Massachusetts Lowell....... 24
Prepared statement........................................... 44
Mary Bourque, Coexecutive Director, Massachusetts Association of
School Superintendents......................................... 26
Prepared statement........................................... 45
(iii)
THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF FEDERAL INVESTMENTS IN MASSACHUSETTS
----------
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2023
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs,
Subcommittee on Economic Policy,
Lowell, MA.
The Subcommittee met at 3:00 p.m., at the University of
Massachusetts Lowell, University Crossing Building, Room 490,
One University Avenue, Lowell, Massachusetts, 01852, Hon.
Elizabeth Warren, Chair of the Subcommittee, presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIR ELIZABETH WARREN
Chair Warren. This hearing will come to order.
Good afternoon and welcome to today's hearing ``The
Economic Impact of Federal Investments in Massachusetts''.
This is a hearing of United States Senate Committee on
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Subcommittee on Economic
Policy.
I chair this Subcommittee, which oversees issues of
economic growth in this country. Given this Subcommittee's
focus, it is no surprise that we are here today to talk about
one of the key drivers of economic growth, public investment.
One of the most important things I do every day as a
Senator, is make sure that the Federal Government officials are
aware of the Commonwealth's needs and that our communities, our
residents, and our small businesses get the Federal support
that they need.
To get that done, I work with my partner, Senator Ed
Markey, who tirelessly advocates for Massachusetts in the
Senate, and with our hardworking House partners, including
Congresswoman Lori Trahan, from right here in Lowell.
Now, in Washington, we have also worked with everyone, both
Republicans and Democrats, to deliver for our Commonwealth. In
just the last 2\1/2\ years, we have worked with President Biden
on historic legislation to bring nearly $8 billion in Federal
funding for projects to expand our infrastructure, public
safety, research, and transportation projects right here in
Massachusetts.
With President Biden and the leadership of Democrats in
Congress, our Nation has made truly historic investments.
The American Rescue Plan, the bipartisan infrastructure
bill, the CHIPS and Science Act, the Inflation Reduction Act.
Four bills. Two passed with Republican support, and two
passed entirely by Democrats. Four bills that have delivered
money to fund hundreds of projects and thousands of jobs right
here in Massachusetts.
This work has made a difference that can be seen all around
the State. We have supported firefighters, with over $270
million in Federal funding. We secured $185 million in Federal
funding to help connect every home, school, and business in
Massachusetts, with affordable broadband.
We have fought for funding to repair and replace aging
infrastructure and bridges that pose safety risks to drivers,
pedestrians, and businesses, including right here in Lowell,
the Broadway Street, Market Street, and Lawrence Street and
Swamp Locks pedestrian bridges, and roads and bridges all
across the Commonwealth.
As we discussed earlier today, we have secured commitments
for hundreds of millions of dollars to begin replacement of the
Bourne and Sagamore Bridges on Cape Cod.
We have invested in public transit, including Federal
funding for the Green Line extension, our ongoing work to make
sure the T is safe and reliable, and $275 million in Federal
support for transit capital and operating expenses, funding for
transit systems in Barnstable, Springfield, Worcester, and
other cities and rural communities throughout the State.
We are supporting clean energy and a clean environment. We
fought for and won $1.5 billion in the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law for the EPA's Brownfields program. And now,
14 communities here in the Commonwealth, including Worcester,
Berkshire, Springfield, Ware, and Westford, have received
Federal grants to clean up polluted, abandoned, and neglected
properties and redevelop them into meaningful community assets.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill created the clean school
bus program. Last year, five Massachusetts school districts,
Fall River, Lawrence, Lower Pioneer Educational Collaborative,
New Bedford, and Upper Cape Cod Regional Vocational Technical
received nearly $30 million through the program to buy dozens
of clean, new electric school buses. And there is more money on
the way.
We have fought for billions of dollars in new funding for
research and innovation, including nearly doubling the funding
for the National Science Foundation.
Together, the National Science Foundation and National
Institutes of Health have supported thousands of jobs here in
Massachusetts and thousands of scientists at all of our great
research institutions, including nearly $12 million in funding,
right here at UMass Lowell.
Last year, we learned that the Department of Energy was
providing two Massachusetts companies, 6K, Inc., and Ascend
Elements, more than $530 million dollars for innovative battery
manufacturing, recycling, and materials processing.
All of this Federal support means that Massachusetts will
continue to be a leader in research and innovation, building a
cleaner future for our children and grandchildren, and creating
thousands of good paying jobs here at home.
And there is more.
This year, with the Massachusetts congressional delegation,
we secured legislative earmarks worth nearly $225 million to
support 160 community projects across Massachusetts. I just
have to name a few.
Funding for Home Base and Massachusetts General Hospital,
so that we can support the families of fallen veterans.
Funding for childcare services for homeless families in
Boston.
Funding for the North Shore Workforce and Career Mobility
Program in Salem.
Funding for Cape-Abilities, to support adults with
significant disabilities.
And dozens more projects like these.
Governor Healey and her administration have been strong
partners, helping to identify needs and doing everything they
can to identify, plan, prepare for, and implement
infrastructure and other projects that receive Federal funding.
I am extraordinarily glad that she is going to be able to join
us later today.
The Biden administration has worked to pass historic
bipartisan legislation. And then, officials have been working
just as hard as anyone, to set up and implement these programs.
I appreciate Dr. Kathleen Hogan, from the Department of Energy,
and Carlos Monje, from the Department of Transportation,
joining us today to talk about their work.
And finally, we have heard from and listened to and worked
with leaders in the local communities, to make sure their needs
were met. I appreciate Dr. Bourque, the co-executive director
of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents; Dr.
Chen, the chancellor right here at UMass Lowell; and Mr. Lou
Antonellis, from the International Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers, who took the time today to give their firsthand
account of how this Federal support makes a difference for
families, for small business, for schools, and for communities
all across the Commonwealth.
So thank you all for being with us today.
Senator Markey, you are recognized for an opening
statement.
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR EDWARD J. MARKEY OF MASSACHUSETTS
Senator Markey. Thank you so much, Madam Chair, for
bringing this very important hearing to Lowell. And thank you
for your leadership in fighting and leading, persistently,
insistently, and battle after battle to make sure this funding
actually has become a reality for Lowell and for the
Commonwealth. So thank you.
And again, it is just a tribute to you that you bring this
hearing right to Lowell, right to the people.
And you have already gone through the litany of all of the
money, and so I won't repeat it. I will just kind of summarize
it. Between the two COVID relief bills and the Infrastructure
Bill, and the CHIPS Bill, and the IRA, which is the biggest
climate bill in history, Massachusetts is going to receive $135
billion.
How much is that? The entire State budget is $56 billion.
So more than twice the entire State budget is coming in in
Federal money, and this, really, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
to look at that investment and to say, how can we capitalize
upon all of the different opportunities?
Which is why we are so glad that all of you have come here
today, because you are the experts. You are there on the
ground. You know what is happening, in terms of ensuring that
we get a disproportionate share of all of the money and that it
comes here to the Commonwealth, because we are smarter, we are
more aggressive, and we are ready to make the applications in a
timely fashion, so that we are able to bring that funding back.
So this is, for me, just such a great gathering of leaders.
I am looking forward to hearing from all of you. As we go down
the line here, I am obviously going to be very interested in
all of the clean energy money, all of that funding. I know a
lot is going to be going to UMass Lowell, grants that they are
already applying for and winning. But I know that the same
thing is true all across the Commonwealth. This is a revolution
in infrastructure investment and we thank you, all of you, for
everything that you are doing.
Thank you, Senator. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Chair Warren. Thank you. Thank you, Senator Markey.
So today, we are going to have three panels. And I am going
to introduce the two witnesses at our first panel.
I am very pleased to introduce Mr. Carlos Monje, the
undersecretary of transportation for policy in the office of
the Secretary of Transportation. In this role, Mr. Monje helps
to oversee Build America Bureau and the implementation of the
once-in-a-generation investment of the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law.
So thank you for joining us.
I also want to introduce Dr. Kathleen Hogan. Dr. Hogan is a
distinguished national leader in clean energy, with a more than
20-year career as a Federal executive spanning the
Environmental Protection Agency, and now the Department of
Energy, where she serves as the principal deputy undersecretary
for infrastructure. Thank you for being with us, Dr. Hogan.
I will turn to you, Mr. Monje, for your opening statement.
You are now recognized.
STATEMENT OF CARLOS MONJE, UNDER SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION
POLICY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Mr. Monje. Thank you very much, Chair Warren and Senator
Markey. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today and for
your leadership and partnership in Washington and here in
Massachusetts, as we work to build a stronger, safer
transportation system.
As I speak to you today, the Department of Transportation
is close to wrapping up its second year of implementing the
historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. We have been hard at
work creating new programs and making critical investments in
our Nation's infrastructure. To date, across the
administration, we have announced more than 38,000 projects
across the country.
We actually have a map of country, with dots on it.
Chair Warren. Is it cool?
Mr. Monje. There is no white space. There is no white
space.
Our transportation investments are making our roads safer
for pedestrians, for bicyclists, and for drivers, and making
transit more affordable and reliable and accessible, and
reconnecting communities that have been divided by past
transportation decisions.
We are making sure that these investments are not only
resilient against extreme weather, but help combat the climate
crisis. These are not only investments in America's
infrastructure, but, as you said, Chairman, also in its
workforce, creating hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs
each year in manufacturing, construction, operations, and
maintenance.
On behalf of Secretary Buttigieg, I am honored to share
with you, today, some of the ways in which the people of
Massachusetts are benefitting from these investments, as well
as other areas of the Department's work.
Safety is the Department's top priority. And in 2022, we
committed to an ultimate goal of achieving zero roadway deaths
through our national roadway safety strategy. I am pleased to
begin by highlighting our safety investments in Massachusetts.
After all, Massachusetts consistently ranks as one of the
safety States in the Nation, in terms of fatalities per miles
traveled and in pedestrian fatalities per capita.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law greatly expanded the
resources we are able to put towards roadway safety, in the
form of the Safe Streets and Roads For All program. To date, we
have awarded more than $30 million to 17 communities here in
Massachusetts. The Safe Streets and Roads For All program is
helping 15 communities across the Commonwealth, including the
cities of Fitchburg, Pittsfield, Southbridge, Ware, and
Worcester, to develop comprehensive roadway safety action
plans.
We have awarded $9 million to Boston, to deploy low-cost,
high-value safety improvements at intersections across that
city. In Springfield, we awarded $15 million to improve safety
for pedestrians and cyclists at 15 intersections and along 10
corridors that currently experience a disproportionally high
number of fatal crashes.
This Safe Streets program is just one example of how we can
continue to work together to make one of the safest States in
the Nation even safer.
DOT is also hard at work tackling the climate crisis. As
the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions,
transportation must also be part of the solution.
On this front, we have made significant investments in
Massachusetts. Most notably, our Federal Transit Administration
awarded nearly $220 million in the last 2 years, under the BIL-
funded low- and no-emission bus and bus facilities program.
Through these awards, we are helping to replace diesel buses
with electric and hybrid buses across the Commonwealth.
In the last fiscal year, Massachusetts received more than
10 percent of the total funding for this program. I don't know
if it's disproportionate, but it was second only to California
in terms of the total funding received.
These are the kinds of investments not only making transit
agencies more reliable, but also giving transit riders a
quieter, more pleasant experience, and communities cleaner air.
Moreover, they include efforts to prepare our
transportation workforce for these newer technologies,
including through apprenticeships, on-the-job training, and
instructional training.
A good example is the $6.9 million award provided here in
Lowell, to the Lowell Regional Transit Authority, in June, to
purchase hybrid electric buses to replace their older vehicles
that had reached their useful life, and to launch a workforce
development program that provides on-the-job and instructional
training for the maintenance and operations of these hybrid
electric vehicles.
As we make investments in the safety and climate impact of
our transportation system, we are mindful that the benefits of
transportation projects must also be done equitably. The
Department is actively addressing environmental justice and
working to undo past harms through the Reconnecting
Communities, and Rebuilding American Infrastructure With
Sustainability and Equity Programs. Those are two separate
programs.
As part of the Biden administration's Justice40 initiative,
here in Massachusetts the new Reconnecting Communities program
is already helping the City of Boston assess the feasibility of
reconnecting parts of Chinatown to downtown Boston, that were
previously divided by the construction of the MassPike.
Meanwhile, RAISE, the other program I mentioned, is funding
improvements to transit infrastructure, bridges, and roads in
disadvantaged communities, in Springfield and Lynn, in New
Bedford, and Brockton, and, again, right here in Lowell.
And we are funding the rehabilitation and preservation of
four deficient bridges here in town, with improvements to
pedestrian, bicycle, and transit accommodations.
Lastly, I want to touch on America's workforce and
innovation as we look forward to building for the future.
Massachusetts received nearly $6.5 million from DOT's new BIL-
funded Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing
Transportation. It is a SMART discretionary grant program. In
Massachusetts, SMART is funding SMART traffic signals in
Brockton, planning for SMART grids at the Cape Cod gateway
airport and at MetroWest Regional transit headquarters, and
improvements to rail safety on Cape Cod, using unmanned
aircraft systems and SMART sensors.
I was here in Boston, alongside Governor Healey, earlier
this month to cut the ribbon on a brand new facility at DOT's
Volpe Center, right in Cambridge, which will draw on some of
the brightest minds to support the work across our department.
This new LEED-certified facility will provide the modern
facilities need to expand advanced transportation research and
house the next generation of the transportation workforce
through internships, academic research partnerships, and
mentoring programs.
Speaking of academic partnerships, we also recently named
UMass Amherst as the lead of our New England University
transportation center, along with consortium members from
Bunker Hill Community College, Holyoke Community College, and
MIT.
We are excited to see how they can help us advance our
transportation work, particularly in both safety and equity.
And in closing, at the DOT, we see Massachusetts as a
shining example when it comes to demonstrating how
transportation infrastructure can be safer, more climate
friendly, and a tool for building communities and encouraging
innovation.
We are also encouraged by the Commonwealth's desire to go
further to continue investing here in the years to come and
improve the lives of its residents and workers, to support the
critical industries that reside here, and to present a model
for communities across the Nation.
Thank you. I look forward to the conversation.
Chair Warren. Thank you very much, Mr. Monje.
Dr. Hogan.
STATEMENT OF KATHLEEN HOGAN, PRINCIPAL DEPUTY UNDER SECRETARY
FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Ms. Hogan. Chair Warren and Senator Markey, also, thank you
for this opportunity for provide an update on the Department of
Energy's progress in implementing the Bipartisan Infrastructure
Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, which we call BIL and IRA.
So BIL and IRA truly are historic investments in renewing
American infrastructure for decades to come, really for
rebuilding American manufacturing and increasing American
competitiveness, and important to bolstering our energy
security, reducing energy costs for American families, and, as
we have said, creating millions of lasting, good-paying jobs,
and, of course, to do it right here in Massachusetts.
So on behalf of the Department, I truly thank you for your
leadership in getting these bills over the finish line and our
ongoing partnership in their implementation.
So through BIL and IRA, Congress, you all, have committed
to invest more than $90 billion over the coming decade, through
the Department of Energy, and really to catalyze investment in
our energy infrastructure.
To date, the Department has opened the funding for at least
$72.8 billion of that funding across the public and private
sectors and, as we know, it is so important with a special
mission, to ensure Tribal, underserved, and traditional energy
communities have a seat at the table.
So now, we see investments are heading to many partners and
energy priorities across the country, including the
Commonwealth here.
Just this week, the Department announced nearly $100
million for two projects in Massachusetts, under the Grid
Resilience and Innovation Partnerships, or GRIP program, as we
call it. These awards are proposed to help reduce the impacts
of extreme weather events and natural disasters on the region's
grid, as well as to modernize the electric power system.
In addition, the State and Tribal formula grants for grid
resilience, in BIL, brought more than $9 million to
Massachusetts, which the State will, in turn, use to
competitively fund projects to improve energy reliability and
resilience, while addressing energy costs for consumers, as
well.
BIL and IRA, as we are implementing it, are also providing
substantial investments for our aged homes and buildings.
Congress provided a tremendous $3.5 billion into the
Weatherization Assistance Program, which reduces energy costs
for low income households by increasing the efficiency of these
homes. Of that total, more than $80 million, is allocated to
Massachusetts, with 50 percent of those funds already in the
State.
And in addition, in June, the Department announced the
first selectees for the Renew American Schools Program, which
will fund upgrades at K-through-12 public schools in areas of
need. One recipient is Natick Public Schools, here in
Massachusetts, who will receive more than $2 million to fully
electrify the Bennett-Hemenway Elementary School, being able to
add a new heat pump and state-of-the-art automation, so that
they can replace aging rooftop units.
The Department has also provided funding to two
Massachusetts cities/towns, Boston and Littleton, totaling
about $1 million. And that is through the BIL funded energy
efficiency and conservation block grant program.
These efforts in these two regions will be used to improve
building efficiency and to increase electric load flexibility.
And there will be many more local awards coming as we address
the applications from communities on a rolling basis.
The Department is also working closely with the States as
they work to roll out the more recent funding under the
Inflation Reduction Act's home energy rebate programs. Here,
the Commonwealth will receive more than $146 millions to help
households, many of them low or moderate income households, to
save money on their bills, upgrade their homes, and reduce
indoor and outdoor air pollution.
When we look at this program nationally, these rebates
offer up to $1 billion in home energy bill saving each year and
will support more than 50,000 jobs across the country. And of
course, there is even more jobs and savings available when they
get paired up with IRA home improvement tax credits.
BIL is also bringing nearly $8 million to Massachusetts
through the longstanding State energy program, which assists
States in meeting their energy objectives, and we look forward
to seeing the work there.
So really, in closing, as the Department continues our BIL
and IRA work--and as you hear, we are still in the early phases
of what is a many year effort here--we really do look forward
to our partnership with this Committee as we strive for a clean
and secure energy future that is made in America and that
creates millions of American jobs, including right here in
Massachusetts.
So on behalf of the Department, again, appreciate your
interest and the opportunity to be here, and I look forward to
your questions. Thank you.
Chair Warren. Thank you very much. I, again, appreciate
both of you being here and appreciate all of the money you are
bringing.
So we are talking about billions of dollars of investments
here, and there are dozens of ways that these investments are
going to help families and small businesses and communities all
around the Commonwealth.
But I just want to start with transportation. Mr. Monje,
you help oversee transportation policy for the Department of
Transportation for our whole country. You have worked at a lot
of different jobs in Federal Government for more than two
decades. And I just thought you would be perfectly situated to
explain a little bit about the scale of what is going on here.
When you think about your career in public service, how
significant is the Federal investment in transportation
projects that is occurring now, under the Biden administration?
Mr. Monje. It is historic. You mentioned once in a
generation. It might be once in a lifetime. It is certainly,
for many of us at the Department of Transportation, something
we have--and they, for much longer--worked their entire careers
to do.
We have got more money for roads and bridges since the
creation of the Eisenhower system; more money for transit in
the history of the republic; more money for rail since the
creation of Amtrak.
And to think of where we started at the beginning of this
administration, in the depths of the pandemic, Congress wisely
put a lot of resources that we put into place to save the
aviation industry, to save the transit agencies all across the
country.
And as a result, 14 million jobs have been recreated during
this administration, and 336,000 just in the last month. And we
have got more jobs for women, for people of color, for people
with disabilities, in decades.
Chair Warren. More good union jobs?
Mr. Monje. Union jobs.
It is a golden age for unions. And most of the lowest
inflation of any major economy in the world.
Chair Warren. Tell you what. We will come back to some of
these. I just want to make sure we get this laid out, because
we also did some research on this.
This is the largest Federal investment in public transit
ever. It is the largest Federal investment in passenger rail
since the creation of Amtrak. It is the single largest
dedicated investment in bridges, since the construction of the
interstate highway system.
So all powerfully important.
Can I ask you--I just want to drill down one of these, and
that is bridge funding, which has been particularly important
right here in Lowell.
Mr. Monje, how much Federal funding is Massachusetts set to
receive through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for bridge
replacement and repairs?
Mr. Monje. Yes, ma'am.
Just in terms of Federal highway formula dollars, it is
$5.4 billion over 5 years, and that is $243.5 million for each
of the fiscal years, for just the bridge formula funding.
And as you know, Massachusetts, before the bill was passed,
there are 472 bridges and more than 1,100 miles of highway that
were in poor condition. And that is just the formula dollars.
I have a list in this packet, somewhere of just a sentence
on each project that has won a discretionary grant, and it is
14 pages. 14 pages worth of all of the projects. I will have to
have a shorthand if you ask on any one of them, because there
are just so many. Massachusetts is competing and winning for
these dollars and is doing extremely well.
And that is combined with money that is coming from the
Commonwealth, as well, in the Next Generation Bridges program.
Chair Warren. That is terrific.
And it is also good to see that we are pouring money in to
make sure that our public transit system is greener.
To date, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has awarded
Massachusetts about $135 million for clean transit buses and
improved bus service through a Department of Transportation
program aimed at helping State and local governments purchase
either zero-emission or low-emission buses and the facilities
needed to support these buses.
Mr. Monje, could I just ask you?
Is investing in low-emission or zero-emission buses
something that, if we didn't do this at the Federal level, then
the State and local governments typically would be able to pick
it up on their own and make that transition from old, dirty
diesel buses to these clean new buses?
Mr. Monje. No, ma'am. I think the Federal investments are
critical. And as you know, we have provided a record
investment, $1 billion a year. It is six times what we were
funding before.
And these vehicles are critical. We have already awarded
grants to build more than 1,800 America-made zero-emission
buses. And Massachusetts, again, is competing and winning,
including recent grant here, that is going to purchase seven
zero-emission buses. It is critical and a key piece of
decarbonizing the sector.
Chair Warren. I want to add, I really appreciate the
Department of Transportation not only is helping us replace the
buses; it is also helping build the facilities so you have got
charging stations and can actually keep them up and running.
Mr. Monje. Yes, ma'am.
Chair Warren. So we are reducing the cost for our towns on
this.
I also want to ask about what it means to be unlocking
scientific advances that will fuel the next generation of
energy technology. I feel like, in this area, Massachusetts has
no equal. We have researchers at UMass Lowell and MIT and
Northeastern, who are already using Federal funding to develop
new semiconductor materials, to test and monitor drinking water
for communities across the Commonwealth, and to create academic
networks to increase engineering degrees among underrepresented
groups.
Government-supported research has long been a critical
ingredient in generating innovation that supercharges our
economy. And that is why one of my top goals, from the day I
was elected to the Senate, has been to double the funding for
the National Science Foundation, which is our Government's
premier research program for scientific research.
And it is also why I introduced legislation called the
National Institutes of Clean Energy Act, to invest $400 billion
in a system of institutes at the Department of Energy,
dedicated to research and development of advanced clean energy
technology.
Now the CHIP and Science Act, which Congress passed last
year, set up a program very similar to the one I had proposed.
When fully funded, it will send billions dollars to the
Department of Energy to invest in basic scientific research
related to clean energy technology.
Dr. Hogan, we often talk in fields like biology or
chemistry, how basic research can unlock advances, for example,
in treating cancer. How does the work that our research
universities and our national laboratories do on basic science
of energy help us in the long run, to fight climate change?
Ms. Hogan. Well, what a great question as we sit here and
talk about sort of putting technology to work today.
Chair Warren. School buses?
Ms. Hogan. But what we are not talking about is why these
technologies are here today. And it is because of the work we
did in basic science many years ago. Right?
So think about the materials discovery side of things, as
one example. And you are already talking about what is going
into semiconductors. So basic science is really just critical
to us keeping a pace with the solutions of the future.
And we talk about the revolution we are going through right
now, with electric vehicles, but we have more work to do there.
They are great now. But they can keep being better. Right? So
we can have better materials, lower cost, more variety, et
cetera. And it does go back to the work we need to do with
basic science.
One of the efforts that we are very excited about at the
Department of Energy that we have launched, is our eight energy
earth shots. So what is behind those earth shots? It is really
putting together really difficult goals for the future, around
some of the hardest issues in addressing the climate problem,
and a way to put our arms around the discovery you need to do
in basic science and pull it together with our applied science
programs at the Department because, again, these are all part
of what we need to do to make as quick progress we can on these
very important problems.
Chair Warren. That is terrific. And I just want to dig a
little deeper on one piece of that. And that is, how Federal
funding helps us grow our economy.
And I am thinking right now about batteries and the work
that is being done around batteries. The Department of Energy
has created, out of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, these
energy innovation hubs focused on spurring innovations about
batteries. Now batteries are going to be critical to our clean
energy goals, particularly when it comes to the transition to
electric vehicles.
Dr. Hogan, can you just say a word about why with Federal
funding for something as basic as batteries is so important to
accelerate the growth of the electric vehicle market?
Ms. Hogan. Yes, absolutely. Thank you for that. Because,
again, we are living through this. And there is so many things
we need to get right as we do this.
We want there to be a lot of accessibility to the
batteries. So when you bring Federal funding to the table, more
people can have access to high quality batteries. This is kind
of a global thing that is going on right now. And for us to
play in this country and have as many people play as possible,
it takes the money to make that happen, so that we are not left
behind.
So there is the accessibility issue that is critical.
But the other very important opportunity we have in front
of us is the manufacturing of all of these batteries, both for
transportation and for our grid as well.
With the help of the investments from the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law, we will be increasing the supply of the
whole battery supply chain in this country, in many corners of
the country.
Chair Warren. That was my third question. So it is basic
research, it is batteries. But could you say a little bit more
about how the work you are doing is also about supply chains
and why this is so critical to a clean future?
Ms. Hogan. Yes. So I have talked a little bit about how
this is a global change. As we know, there is lots of countries
that then have the opportunity to pick up the new investments
and then sort of own that part of the supply chain. This is our
opportunity in this country to cement and secure our energy
supply chains around batteries and other clean energy
opportunities, as well.
We talk about onshoring, reshoring, or just making sure
that it is made here, as we grow out some of these
opportunities.
So that is really the critical aspect of this. And we don't
have to say the word, ``geopolitical issues,'' too much, I
think, to really underscore why it is so important to get this
right, right now.
Chair Warren. That is really terrific.
Thank you, Dr. Hogan. Thank you, both.
Really appreciate your being here.
Senator Markey.
Senator Markey. Great. Thank you.
Mr. Under Secretary, I heard you mention earlier,
California is number one and Massachusetts is number two.
What category was that?
Mr. Monje. Of the funding?
Chair Warren. Everything.
Mr. Monje. With the bus program, yes.
Senator Markey. I am not sure everyone heard it.
Mr. Monje. It is number two State behind California. And
Massachusetts has a lot of people, but not quite as many as
California. So you are doing extremely well.
Senator Markey. In terms of what?
Mr. Monje. Is terms of discretionary grants for low and no
bus grants.
Senator Markey. And by the way, California is number one,
we are number two, in NIH funding. California is number one, we
are number two, in National Science Foundation funding.
Mr. Monje. Yes, sir.
Senator Markey. We are not just the Bay State; we are the
Brain State as well. So we are six times smaller than
California. But in actual dollars, we compete.
Mr. Monje. Very well, yes, sir.
Senator Markey. Then that goes into our economy and it
makes all of the difference in the world.
And what I would like to do, if I could, is to just turn to
the issue of passenger rail, inter-city passenger rail, because
it works to increase productivity, but it can also reduce
greenhouse gases from going up into the atmosphere as well.
So could you talk a little bit about the east-west rail,
$108 million grant? Because I think it would help to explain
what we are trying to do to make sure that we are expanding
upon the vision of the administration.
Mr. Monje. Yes, sir. We are very excited about this
project. The Federal Rail Administration has about $66 billion
that it is spending on rail. And again, a big chunk of it is
coming to Massachusetts. And as you mentioned, $108 million
through our CRISI grant program.
And basically, what you have got is a rail line that is run
by CSX, a freight rail that runs east to west. And we gave $108
million to upgrade and, in many cases, to provide double
tracking, to re-engineer the geometry of the rail, and make
sure that there is poll sites, so that we can de-conflict those
rails and add twice-a-day service east-west and provide an
alternative to the NEC.
It is one of the great projects that we were able to fund
in the first couple years.
Senator Markey. Please make sure you get those rails
correct, because we are going to have a Green Line problem.
Mr. Monje. Yes, sir.
Senator Markey. Just make sure that happens.
And Doctor, I would love to talk to you about the Renew
America Program that you talked about for Natick High School.
Obviously, we need a Green New Deal for public schools in
America, so they can move to the future and that kids can be in
healthy environments.
So can you talk a little bit about that program? I
understand that upwards of $5.5 billion worth of applications
went in for that program across the country, just showing the
needs that exist in public schools for these kinds of clean
energy programs.
Ms. Hogan. Absolutely. As you point out, Congress provided
the Department with $500 million for this program. It is a
brand new program, so we didn't really know what type of
interest/demand there would be for it.
We put out a first-year solicitation at the level of $80
million, but the applications that we got for that were over $5
billion. So we were able then to take 2 years of the
appropriations that Congress had given us for that first round
of awards, really trying to provide the money to improve as
many schools as possible, relative to what we had then. And we
will have more solicitations in the future.
But you are absolutely right. It was 10 times
oversubscribed with good applications to help schools. The
other aspect of this is it is all schools in needy areas. The
kids have to, in these schools, have a high percentage of being
on lunch voucher programs. So these are aged schools, schools
with kids in need, and it is really an opportunity to improve,
not just the energy efficiency, but the learning environment
and address the indoor air quality as well.
Senator Markey. This leftover asbestos problems and lead
problems from earlier generations that are still there and
befouling the air, the environment in which children are trying
to learn.
And I am just going to follow up for a second on what
Senator Warren was talking about in this battery technology
area.
We are a special place. And Green Town, we have 300 start-
up companies in Green Town, in Somerville. And all of them
qualify for the tax break, for the post part, that was in the
IRA. Joe Manchin calls it that. We call it the biggest climate
bill in the history of the world. So that is what it was.
And the appetite for this funding is enormous. It is not
$369 billion. It is more like $1 trillion, $369 billion
dollars.
And I saw a picture of Joe Manchin standing next to
Secretary Granholm, in West Virginia, cutting the ribbon on a
new battery plant down in West Virginia, saying 800 jobs are
going to be there.
And there should be a comma in that sentence, saying, and
that battery technology comes from Somerville, Massachusetts,
and Green Town, which invented that technology, developed that
technology and has hundreds of workers here as well.
And we will spreading that technology across the country
and not using lithium ion, but using iron, I-R-O-N, the second
most common element in the world.
So the breakthroughs that UMass Lowell, breakthroughs in
Green Town, the breakthroughs all across this State, it has
absolutely electrified this State to electrify the country.
And we thank you for all of the work that the two of you
are doing in order to make that transition telescoping in time,
because of the urgency of problems. Thank you.
Chair Warren. Thank you very much.
Thank you, Mr. Monje. Thank you, Dr. Hogan. We appreciate
your being here.
And now we call up Governor Healey.
Thank you.
Ms. Healey. Good afternoon.
Chair Warren. Good afternoon.
So I am pleased to introduce the Honorable Maura Healey,
the 73rd governor of Massachusetts.
Since assuming office in January, Governor Healey and her
administration have been a force. Just yesterday, she issued an
executive order that officially establishes the Federal funds
and infrastructure office to help ensure that Massachusetts is
equipped to make the most of this funding in every city and
every town across the Commonwealth.
Ed and I could not ask for a better partner in the State
House and we are grateful to the Governor for taking the time
to join us today. I will now turn this over to Governor Healey
for her opening statement.
Governor Healey, you are recognized.
STATEMENT OF MAURA HEALEY, GOVERNOR, COMMONWEALTH OF
MASSACHUSETTS
Ms. Healey. Well, good afternoon, Senator Warren and
Senator Markey.
It is a pleasure to be with you here and in the historic
and vibrant city of Lowell. I couldn't think of better place
for this convening, and I welcome the opportunity to testify
about the critical importance of Federal funding to our State's
goals and our future.
Massachusetts is a State of firsts, as we know. The first
State constitution, public school, library, and park. We built
the first lighthouse, railroad, and subway. And here in Lowell,
one of the great centers of industry, so much was accomplished.
Now, also, I know that you had an opportunity to spend time
with our Lieutenant Governor, Kim Driscoll, earlier today, and
other members of our administration. Know that our entire team
sees our responsibility as an obligation to lead today, in
leading in ways to protect the rights and well-being of our
people, and to fearlessly tackle the biggest challenges our
Nation and our world are facing.
Since taking office in January, we have led the fight on
climate change. We appointed the Nation's first cabinet-level
climate change position in the State's first under secretary
for environmental justice and equity. We launched the Nation's
first State climate bank dedicated to affordable housing. We
extended our clean energy lead and issued the largest RFP for
offshore wind in Massachusetts history. We banned State
purchases of single-use plastics and launched the strongest
biodiversity conservation program in the Nation.
We have also led on the fight to lower costs for families,
seniors, and businesses. Last month, we signed into law the
most generous universal child and dependant tax credit in
America. And this week, we filed the Affordable Homes Act,
which would be the biggest investment in housing affordability
in our State's history.
We have led on education. Our first budget funded,
permanent, free school meals, breakfast and lunch, for all
public school students, and free community college for those 25
years and older.
We have rallied to advance equitable access to higher
education in the wake of a misguided Supreme Court decision on
college admissions; we have defended reproductive rights and
the safety of our LGBTQ youth.
We are leading. But the challenges we face are generational
in consequence and global in scale. That is why your leadership
in Congress, in partnership with the Biden-Harris
administration, has been so inspiring and critical to our
efforts.
You have enacted the some of the most ambitious investments
in America's history, stamping this legislation with
Massachusetts values, from Senator Warren's fight to lower
prescription drug costs, to Senator Markey's pioneering climate
bank vision.
The intent of these investments and the requirements for
States to secure them are closely aligned with our visions, our
policies, our work here in Massachusetts. And our partnership
with the Federal Government has the potential to make the
deepest impact and set the highest standards for our country's
progress.
Federal infrastructure funding will not only help
Massachusetts make long overdue repairs to our roads, rails,
and bridges; it will allow us to create good, accessible jobs
and to strengthen community and coastal resilience. That is why
our applications for Cape Cod bridge funding and the Alston
multimodal project include commitments to advance the
legislation's goals of high labor standards and pathways to
good, middle-class careers for women and men of color.
The Federal clean energy funding through the Inflation
Reduction Act will not only help us achieve net-zero carbon by
2050, it will help us create green jobs, affordable housing,
and environmental justice for our communities.
We are planning on using all of our resources inside and
outside of Government to match funding opportunities with our
decarbonization goals. That includes the community climate
bank, which will finance the decarbonization of our building
sector while expanding affordable houses for our people.
Yesterday, we announced our application for $250 million in
clean energy Solar For All investments. This will be for up to
78,500 affordable homes, from the EPA's Greenhouse Gas
Reduction Fund, the largest emission-reduction initiative in
U.S. history.
In addition, Federal funding for advanced manufacturing
through the CHIPS Act and so much more, will allow
Massachusetts to not only lengthen our lead, but to broaden
access to good innovation economy jobs.
We are working with industry to expand workforce
development pathways, starting with historic investments in
STEM education in our schools, which we celebrated, here, STEM
week in Massachusetts this week. Already, we won the Department
of Defense competition under the CHIPS Act, to host the
Northeast Microelectronics Hub, with plans for workforce
training in advanced manufacturing.
And we have been named an investor catalyst hub for ARPA-H,
the National Institute of Health's medical innovation program
for transforming health care, in part because of our proven
commitment to health equity.
From the first days of our administration, competing for
and winning Federal funding has been one of our highest
priorities.
We established a Federal funds infrastructure office under
Director Quentin Palfrey to guide this work across our
administration and to work to rally partners in local
government, business, academia, and labor. We are getting
results. And we have the opportunity to, we believe, to do so
much more.
What Federal funding means for Massachusetts is an economy
that brings opportunity to all of our residents and solutions
to our Nation's and our world's most pressing challenges.
I thank you once again for the opportunity to testify and
be here today. And I thank you for all of your tremendous
advocacy on behalf of the residents of Massachusetts.
Chair Warren. Well, thank you. It is terrific to have you
here today.
Your administration has hit the ground running and we are
proud to be your partners in making sure that the Federal
Government, in Washington, is providing resources needed to
support both infrastructure and economic development right here
in the Commonwealth.
Now, we have been talking all day about the historic scale
of Federal investments that have been made during President
Biden's first 2 years in office, everything from bridges to
scientific research to public transit. But as unprecedented as
these investments are, there are still a limited number of
Federal dollars available. That means there is fierce
competition all across the county to bring these dollars home.
In many cases, States and localities must demonstrate that
they are willing to bring their funds to the table to combine
with Federal dollars, in order to receive Federal grant.
So Governor Healey, can you just say a little about, how
did you approach the task of making sure that Massachusetts
would have the matching funds that it would need to be
competitive to win Federal grants?
Ms. Healey. I appreciate the question and could not agree
more as to your characterization of the fierceness of the
competition among our sister States, and also cities, chasing
hard after these Federal dollars.
And again, unprecedented funding available through the
actions of the Biden-Harris administration and through the work
of you all in Congress.
So it was our estimate that there is about $17.5 billion
available in Federal funding. The combined applications require
as much as $3 billion in State matching funds to be eligible to
maximize how much we might be able to be awarded. So $3 billion
in the State obligation, all together.
We have already got $2 billion. We worked hard to put $2
billion and make that available for this purpose. And just
yesterday, we took another big step forward.
And what we did is file legislation specifically to create
what we are calling a capital investment and debt reduction
fund. This will allow us to leverage the interest that has
accrued in what is a historically high stabilization fund and
use that money to support pay-go funding.
It is capital in hand. We estimate that, over the next 3
years, it will be able to unlock approximately $800 million in
resources that can be applied to pursue Federal funding
opportunities.
Importantly, it will also include $50 million for municipal
matching grants in a local infrastructure bank. And this is a
resource that our cities and towns can use to finance
infrastructure projects and support Federal grant applications.
So that is one thing that I wanted you to know about, in
terms of our ability to compete. It is making sure that we show
the State has skin in the game, that we are doing our part in
making, not just words, but action and money available to
pursue, leverage, and maximize opportunities for Federal
funding.
Also it is very important to create the director position,
to create the office of Federal funds and infrastructure. It is
a whole-of-Government approach that we are using to make sure
that that office is working with every single secretary and
agency, both to help identify Federal funding opportunities to
help our teams make and put forward the very best application
for those funding opportunities, and to track things.
We also formed an advisory council because we know how
important it is for teams to be meeting regularly. This is a
biweekly inter-agency coordination effort, so that we are
holding one another accountable throughout the administration.
They also maintain a State clearinghouse for tracking Federal
grant opportunities and agency applications.
And we recently established, as well, a Federal funds
partnership for municipalities and Tribes. We thought this was
very important because we need to make sure that our cities and
towns, our Tribes, our regional planning authorities, have the
support that they need; first off, that they know what is
available. Because, as we know, not every city or town or Tribe
has the bandwidth to be able to spend the time to identify
Federal funding opportunities, saying nothing of the
infrastructure to actually do the work in completing
applications.
So we wanted to make sure that we were helping them both
identify and then make those applications.
Those are just some of the things that we have done that I
think have put us in a position to really rally team
Massachusetts. And I think you are not afraid of sports
analogies, I know, both of you.
Chair Warren. We are fine with it.
Ms. Healey. That team spirit is really something we are
trying to promote. I think it was one of the reasons we were
able to win ARPA-H, because we really rallied through this team
Massachusetts approach, bringing together the business,
academic, nonprofits, labor communities, to show who we are and
show what we are capable of in Massachusetts.
Chair Warren. I just want to say, you have only been here 9
months. And that really is extraordinary. Because we are
talking about the unprecedented amount of money that is
available. But this money is not available just because someone
puts it in a nice, big box, puts a ribbon on top, and hands it
over. People have to get out and compete for it.
And you and your team have just done an extraordinary job
of lining up Massachusetts and Massachusetts schools,
Massachusetts towns, Massachusetts institutions, Massachusetts
companies, to take maximum advantage of every Federal dollar
that you can get your hands on.
And all I can say is, Ed and I are there all the way with
you on this.
I am just going to ask you one more question and then hand
it over to Senator Markey.
And that is, we have talked about a lot of the projects, we
have talked a lot about the bridges, we have talked some about
transit, both mass transit, school buses, and so on.
Where else are Federal resources needed to help grow the
economy in the Commonwealth? We always want to ask for more.
Ms. Healey. And I always will.
All of the areas that you mentioned are very important. I
would add to that, coastal resilience, with the severity of the
storms that we have seen and the impact on existing and
antiquated infrastructure, we really need help in that area as
well.
I mentioned our greenhouse gas reduction fund for a reason.
This is a generational opportunity here. And now, States are
eligible to compete for the Solar For All program to really
accelerate solar deployment. Our team, my team, identified
places in Massachusetts where there is more capacity for solar.
So we have the capacity. But the question is, how do we
actually get this built? So we need assistance and the Federal
resources to make that happen.
Our climate bank has identified nearly 30,000 affordable
rental homes that are eligible to be retrofitted with EPA
funding over the next 5 years, and this is really important, in
terms of investment.
Some of our infrastructure needs Statewide:
Williamsburg. I look at the Williamsburg Route 9
reconstruction, and it is important. We applied for $44 million
to help with rural surface transportation. This would modernize
and reconstruct Route 9. It is a critical east-west freight
route in the region that is very important, that has safety and
resilience needs.
We also applied for another infrastructure improvement
project that travels along a part of Route 7, that goes over
the Kampoosa Brook in Stockbridge. This requests $2.8 million
in Federal funding, combined with $630,000 of State funds, to
replace a drainage system and allow for the safe passage of
wildlife, including nine State-listed rare species, which also
supports our biodiversity goals.
We have applications out for U.S. DOT protect grant funds.
These are, again, central to flood protection in places like
Route 20, in Worcester, at the exchange of Route 20 and Grafton
Street; on Morrissey Boulevard, in Dorchester; as well as a
Statewide planning study to identify more flood-prone
transportation infrastructure needs.
So those are just some of the areas that come to mind. I
mean, there is no shortage of work that we need to do.
I can't be here in the proximity to the Merrimack without
mentioning the work that we need to do in the Merrimack, in
terms of shoring up some of the CSOs and the other
infrastructure along the banks. Efforts were made to really
clean up that river. And unfortunately, with antiquated
infrastructure and the inability of municipalities and towns to
really come up with the funds to deal with it, we don't want to
go backwards. And I just want to point that out, as we are in
close proximity here.
Chair Warren. We can see it out the window here.
Senator Markey.
Senator Markey. Thank you.
The Markey family is here because of the Merrimack. They
left Ireland to come here and work in the mills, and that was
the Industrial Revolution. And now, you are leading a second
industrial revolution, you are looking at in the perspective of
reclaiming these old assets and opening up innovation for a way
in which young people in our State can lift their gaze to the
constellation of possibilities, regardless of their race,
regardless of their income or country of origin.
And that is why I think Senator Warren and I, as you
completed your opening statement and your answers to Senator
Warren's questions, I think we were both giving you a standing
ovation in our brains, listening to the incredible vision that
you have for the Commonwealth and for the Commonwealth, what
you have done already.
So could you perhaps turn to those communities of color,
those historically underserved communities and talk about what
your vision is, going forward, in terms of using all of these
Federal funds and leveraging it in a way to ensure that we deal
with those still historically un-dealt-with issues, the legacy
of the past?
Ms. Healey. I appreciate all of your advocacy in this area
in particular, Senator Markey.
Equity is really in the center of everything we do. There
is an equity lens on every policy decision made across our
administration.
And we know that, for far too long, certain groups have
been shut out of opportunities, including funding
opportunities. We have an opportunity, now, to address that.
And it starts with a recognition of the disparities. It starts
with an understanding of the history and how we end up with
some of these really disproportionate and disparate results.
And it starts with an engagement around being very intentional
as a team, as an administration, about getting after it.
When I mention a vehicle, the Federal funds partnership for
municipalities and Tribes, it is an example of an important
vehicle to make sure that those communities have access to
Federal funds.
The same is true, I mentioned the $50 million assistance to
municipalities in terms of matching grants and a local
infrastructure bank that we included in our matching funds
legislation. We also included an additional $12 million set
aside for technical assistance to underresourced local
governments.
The community climate bank, which is really focused on
decarbonization of our building sector, is focused on dealing
with affordable low income housing situations that we know are
just really lacking.
And so it is those measures. I think about MVP. This is our
municipal volnerability preparedness fund. We relaunched it,
2.0, standing out at Belle Isle Marsh not too long ago. And the
idea was to do that new State funding program in a way that
focuses on environmental justice communities. I call them
environmental injustice communities, because these are the
ones, predominantly low income, predominantly communities of
color, that have been overburdened and underresourced for far
too long.
I think, also, the fact that we established, for the first
time, an under secretary of environmental justice, speaks to
the commitment that we have as an administration on this.
Even the housing bond bill that I filed yesterday, or the
day before, is very intentional in its focus on addressing
issues of environmental injustice as we build housing retrofit
going forward.
So these are some of the ways.
I will always be that civil rights lawyer, though I don't
know exactly the State of my bar card these days.
But that ethos, that lens stays with me, as it did as
Attorney General. It certainly does as Governor. And we have a
team that really does center equity in all that we do.
Senator Markey. I appreciate very much the fact that you
see Chelsea every day, you see Lawrence every day. It is part
of your makeup. And they going to be front and center, Black,
Brown, indigenous communities. Because ultimately, they are our
future. They are our workforce. They are our hopes and dreams
for the whole 21st century in this State. Very much appreciate
that.
Ms. Healey. I appreciate that.
I think we do have an opportunity, like never before, to
actually get after it and address those disparities. And I
think it is a huge opportunity.
Senator Markey. If I may ask just more one quick question?
Chair Warren. Of course.
Senator Markey. And that comes back to your climate bank.
It took me many years to get this national climate bank up. It
is $20 billion. McKenzie says it is going to leverage $200
billion worth of private sector money. It is going to be tens
of thousands of potential jobs. Even in Massachusetts, there
are going to be tens of thousands of projects to get leveraged
out of it. And there is a $7 billion Solar For All program on
top that $20 billion, that you can apply for.
Could you talk about those programs, your bank that you are
starting, plus your ability to apply for it and qualify for
loans that will be coming out, very low-interest loans out of
the solar bank, out of the climate bank, to leverage, union
jobs, on the one hand, and then community development with
equity, on the other.
Ms. Healey. This is something I am really excited about.
The climate bank, in particular, was something we announced
early on, that we wanted to do. We wanted to do it in a way
that hadn't been done before in the country, and that is to
focus it on affordable housing.
But what we have known and what I have come to learn from
our fantastic climate chief, the country's first climate
chief--she sits on top of everything--Melissa Hoffer, is what
we can do with the leveraging of private investment and how you
can take a single dollar and turn into 10 or 14, or maybe even
more.
And so the idea is we establish this bank. We seed it. I
have already got the $50 million to seed it. And then we look
for additional funding, whether through the Federal Government
or through private investment. And that is how we are going to
grow this.
We have a team set up working, already, to identify uses
and applications. It is housed within Mass. Housing, which is a
quasi-State agency. Very conversant in financing and lending
arrangements and will be ready to go.
That is the climate bank. Very excited about that.
And Solar For All, as I say, we have done the work already,
being able to identify where we can make use of additional
capacity in Massachusetts. While we have our four seasons, it
is still the case that there is sufficient sun for a sufficient
number of days, and we have got a lot more opportunity to make
use of that.
Thinking about how we can do that through these loans,
which are unbelievable in scale. $7 billion we get to compete
for. Thinking about now, our teams, is how to operationalize.
We don't get want to get ahead of ourselves, but we want to be
ready to go. And so identifying actual sites, particularly
sites that make sense.
How do we think about siting solar in a way that is not
going to do environmental harm, that is not going to
disadvantage communities, but that makes sense strategically.
That is where we are right now, and I am very excited about the
Solar For All program.
Senator Markey. You are the national leader. Thank you.
Chair Warren. Yes. And we both thank you for being here
today, but we thank you for the work you have done for 9 months
now, and we look forward to the work you do for many, many more
months and years into the future. You are a terrific partner,
and that is how we get things done.
Ms. Healey. Thank you very much for the opportunity to
testify. Thank you for the tremendous partner that both of you
and your teams have been to the administration and to the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts. We are grateful.
Chair Warren. You can count on us. Thank you.
And now I would like to call up our third panel, please.
Chair Warren. So welcome to our third panel here.
I am pleased to introduce Mr. Lou Antonellis, the business
manager and financial secretary of the International
Brotherhood of Electrical workers. Mr. Antonellis was elected
as the union president of the International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers in the Local 103 chapter, back in 2014. He
has a strong track record of fighting for good, green, union
jobs across the Commonwealth.
Thank you for joining us.
Next, we have Dr. Julie Chen, who serves as chancellor of
UMass Lowell. Chancellor Chen was unanimously appointed by the
UMass trustees in May 2022, and she became just the second
woman to lead a university with more than 18,000 students.
Thank you for joining us, Chancellor Chen, and thank you to
your entire team at UMass Lowell for welcoming us today.
And last, we have Dr. Mary Bourque.
Dr. Bourque has been an educator for over 30 years and is
currently the co-executive director of the Massachusetts
Association of School Superintendents. Dr. Bourque was formerly
the superintendent of the Chelsea Public Schools. And in 2017,
Dr. Bourque was named Massachusetts State superintendent of the
year.
Thank you very much for joining us, Dr. Bourque.
So I will turn to you now, Mr. Antonellis, for your opening
statement.
STATEMENT OF LOU ANTONELLIS, BUSINESS MANAGER AND FINANCIAL
SECRETARY, INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS
Mr. Antonellis. Thank you. Thank you, Senator Warren. Thank
you, Senator Markey.
It is great to be back here in Lowell. The last time I was
actually in this building was for the ribbon cutting and grand
opening back in September of 2014, almost 10 years ago. So the
building looks as magnificent today as it did back then. So
kudos, Chancellor.
Local 103 members and contractors have a lot of recent
history--we have a deep history, but even a more recent history
here in Lowell. We performed all of the electrical and
telecommunications work when this building was built. We also
built the University Ave. Bridge that you see out the window
here, and the Lowell General Hospital's most recent addition
and renovation, across the river.
But I do appreciate the opportunity to be here today to
discuss the incredible work IBEW members do and the
opportunities that new Federal infrastructure and clean energy
funding has created for our members here in Massachusetts.
And I want you to know that I drove up here in my American
made and UAW-assembled all-electric Ford Lightning pickup
truck. In fact, Local 103 has an entire fleet of electric
vehicles. We are putting our money where our mouth is and
showing our commitment to the move to a clean, green electrical
infrastructure.
We are setting the example for our members and we are
installing 100 EV chargers at our campus headquarters in
Dorchester. So I hope to see both of you driving around in
Government-issued electric SUVs sometime very soon.
But I also want to thank our entire delegation for their
hard work in bringing billions of dollars in Federal
infrastructure and clean energy funding into Massachusetts. We
are taking advantage of it, and our members are already hard at
work helping businesses, homeowners, school districts, and
communities across the Commonwealth use that funding to develop
and adapt clean energy technology for the future.
This year, the Boston Public Schools rolled out the first
20 of a fleet of electric buses that will grow to 700 electric
buses by 2030. These buses were made possible by $7 million in
Federal funds and by the hard work of IBEW 103 members, who
worked with the school district to design and install the
infrastructure they need to electrify their bus fleet.
Speaking of buses, the MBTA is also making progress on that
front, as well. With the help of IBEW members and Federal
infrastructure dollars, we are excited to be building a new
electric bus facility in Quincy, and, by 2026, it will be ready
to host the MTBA's new electric bus fleet.
IBEW 103 members are also helping residential buildings add
electric vehicle charging systems into their parking
infrastructure, because residents are rapidly switching to
electric vehicles.
And it is not just electric vehicle chargers that IBEW
members are installing. We are also building solar projects
across the Commonwealth. And as EPA's Solar For All grants
start coming to communities in Massachusetts, thanks in part to
your advocacy, we will ready to help homeowners take a big step
towards zero emissions.
As Federal dollars continue to flow in and kickstart more
and more projects, IBEW is going to be right there. We are
doing our part to ensure the electrical workforce we need, is
ready to hit the ground running. We have seen our membership
grow by almost 2,500 additional members in the past several
years, and we plan to double that growth over the next 5 years,
so we can be prepared to meet the Commonwealth's clean energy
goals.
We have made substantial and strategic investments in
workforce development and training, of more than $10 million,
to create and train a pipeline of workers to meet the demand. A
key piece of our plan to do that is expanding and diversifying
the electrical workforce of the IBEW. I am proud to share that,
in our most recent apprenticeship class, more than 50 percent
of participants are women and people of color. This was our
most diverse apprenticeship class ever, and we plan to keep
building on that progress.
Our membership is committed to reflect the diversity of the
communities in which we live and work. This is critical for two
reasons. The shows the world that the IBEW knows how to meet
the moment, and we are doing it through inclusivity. And even
more importantly, it shows young women and people of color that
a real career in the electrical industry, with great pay and
benefits, is available to them.
And thanks to the work of Governor Healey and Lieutenant
Governor Driscoll, our administration, and our elected
officials, we are seeing unprecedented investments, creating
new and unique opportunities for IBEW members.
We are committed to making sure everyone in the
Commonwealth, families, businesses, local governments and
workers, reap those benefits.
So again, I want to thank you both very much for the
opportunity to be here today, and I look forward to discussing
further how important Federal investments in infrastructure and
clean energy are good for Massachusetts and good for its union
workforce. Thank you.
Chair Warren. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr.
Antonellis. Chancellor Chen.
STATEMENT OF JULIE CHEN, CHANCELLOR, UNIVERSITY OF
MASSACHUSETTS LOWELL
Ms. Chen. Yes. So Chair Warren, Senator Markey, thank you
for the opportunity to testify today about the profound and
transformative economic impact of Federal investments in
Massachusetts.
It is an honor to welcome you to Lowell, a city that was
founded on innovation and entrepreneurship and transformed by
the National Park Service's investment in sharing that history.
Federal investments, particularly through the
Commonwealth's research universities, have played a pivotal
role in inspiring innovation and bolstering research and
development in the Commonwealth.
Here at UMass Lowell, these projects hold the potential to,
for example, convert greenhouse gases to clean burning fuels;
target RNA molecules to aid in early disease detection; and
ensure water quality in underserved communities.
These things create jobs, economic growth and, as we see,
research converted into technology, technology into businesses,
and businesses into the cutting edge industries of tomorrow.
For UMass Lowell and countless organizations in
Massachusetts and across the country, it is Federal funding
that creates bold ideas, innovative theories, and then
transforms them into tangible technology and societal impact.
Federal agencies have referred, like the National Science
Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the EPA, the
Departments of Transportation and Energy and Defense, these all
play a critical role in terms of this Federal investment in the
Commonwealth.
And Federal funds from these agencies invest in ideas such
as--using, as we heard, IRA and BIL, the Inflation Reduction
Act, to create community-based energy efficiency programs to
combat climate change and save residents of underserved
communities needed money on their monthly electric bills.
Using CARES Act funds during the pandemic, to enhance our
medical manufacturing capacity, provide personal protective
equipment, and create training opportunities.
Using ARPA money via a Mass. tech collaborative, to provide
equitable access to high-speed Internet and digital literacy to
gateway city and underserved communities in the Merrimack
Valley.
And using NIH funding, to develop point-of-care
technologies that target heart, lung, blood, and sleep
disorders, especially in underserved populations.
These investments bolster economic investment, create good
paying jobs and high tech opportunities for our State's
workforce, and provide professional and research experiences
for our students, and also promote equity outcomes across
health care infrastructure and clean energy production.
Today, UMass Lowell is actively working to accelerate this
model of success on our East Campus, just around the corner.
Through the redevelopment of underutilized land, the university
will create a mixed-use district in downtown Lowell, with R&D
and industry collaboration as its core.
This co-location of faculty, researchers, students,
industry, Government, nonprofits, this has been the key to
UMass Lowell's rapidly growing $100 million research
enterprise. And from startups to joint research centers with
major corporations, our commitment to collaboration has
attracted business partners to our shared research facilities,
innovation hub business incubators, and the Massachusetts
Medical Device Development, or M2D2, Center, which is run
jointly with the UMass Chan Medical School.
M2D2 was one of the first nine Johnson & Johnson life
sciences innovation labs worldwide. And through barter of the
biomedical advanced research and development authority funding,
M2D2 supported more than 80 companies, 32 who worked to develop
lifesaving solutions in response to the COVID-19 public health
crisis.
This recognition by industry, coupled with critical Federal
investments, have created clusters of expertise around
technology, around health sciences, around life sciences, and
biotech.
I was proud to join President Marty Meehan, last November,
in an OpEd in the Boston Globe, as part of a Statewide push by
industry, nonprofits, and State agencies urging the Biden
administration to locate the advanced research projects's
agency for health, or ARPA-H hub, in Massachusetts, and I was
thrilled by Governor Healey's announcement last month that the
State had succeeded.
And while we know that the technical depth and breadth of
our university's and industry representatives were no doubt key
to the success and administration's choice as important, as
important, I believe, is the history and culture of
collaboration between Massachusetts legislators, the
organizations here in this Commonwealth, and researchers, to
translate goals and aspirations into research that help real
people.
In fact, 5 days before the ARPA-H announcement, we
witnessed a similar outcome. The Healey-Driscoll administration
announced that Massachusetts would receive nearly $20 million
through the Federal CHIPS and Science Act to establish the
Northeast microelectronics coalition hub.
We are delighted to join with our Massachusetts industry
and educational partners to help meet the Nation's
microelectronics requirements, stimulate job creation, train
the next generation of STEM workers, and build the region's
advanced manufacturing and technology sectors.
UMass Lowell, the Commonwealth, and the country are already
beginning to see the tangible outcomes from your efforts from
this historic investment that Congress has made over the last
several years.
I look forward to your questions today and our ongoing
conversations in the months and years ahead, as we continue to
work with our elected officials and Federal agencies to advance
knowledge, discovery, and prosperity in Massachusetts and
across the United States.
Thank you to the Committee, the United States Senate, and
the entire Massachusetts congressional delegation for your
continued support.
Chair Warren. Thank you, Chancellor Chen.
Dr. Bourque.
STATEMENT OF MARY BOURQUE, COEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MASSACHUSETTS
ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS
Ms. Bourque. Yes. First of all, Senator Warren and Senator
Markey, thank you for the invitation to speak to you this
afternoon.
I want to commend you on choosing the term,
``investments,'' in the title and, therefore, the framing for
this hearing. Investment is a term that implies a return or
appreciation over time.
In education, our investment return is, quite simply, our
students, the next generation, who are prepared with the
knowledge and skills to be the future workforce and leaders of
our communities, State, and Nation.
Investing in education is one of the most important ways we
can strengthen our economy and ensure our global
competitiveness. We are grateful for the Federal support to our
schools throughout the 2-year pandemic and the multiyear
recovery work that continues today.
School leaders were able to use the elementary and
secondary school emergency relief funds authorized in three
separate Federal laws, to ensure a holistic, multiyear approach
to educating students during and beyond the pandemic.
In particular, the $1.8 billion Massachusetts received from
the American Rescue Plan ensured district leaders were able to
use these funds to address the immediate needs of our students,
and also plan through, an equity lens, for postpandemic
transformation of how we do education and how we wrap our
school district programs around both students and families.
Data collected this summer from AASA, of school district
leaders in Massachusetts and around the country, found that the
number one use of the America Rescue Funds was adding
instructional time and programs. This was echoed by data
collected by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and
Secondary Education, which found that addressing unfinished
learning loss supporting special populations, such as our ELL,
and special education students, improving facilities and air
quality, and supporting the social/emotional and mental health
needs of our students, were the primary areas that were
invested.
In addition to ESSER funding, there are two very concrete
areas of recent Federal investment that have propelled positive
change. I want to highlight the two to you today: Educational
technology and clean energy buses.
It is in the area of educational technology that
transformational change, through an equity lens, is most
noticeable. Prior to COVID-19, school districts across the
Commonwealth were slowly moving forward with their technology
plans. In most school districts, students shared classroom sets
of computers, laptops, or Chromebooks. In a very few, fortunate
school districts, students were lucky enough to have a one-to-
one capability, but students were not allowed to bring the
Chromebooks or the laptops home. Districts did not have the
money to institute a repair or replacement plan as is done with
textbooks.
The digital inequality of those schools that had computers
and those that did not, or only had a few to share among
hundreds of students, and those families that had computers or
digital resources for learning were there and those that did
not. We knew that this was there. But we were comfortable, at
the time, saying, we are working on it.
With COVID-19, the shift to online learning shined the
light on educational inequities that had to be urgently
addressed.
Through a greater investment in the E-Rate program, funded
through the universal services fund, ESSER moneys, and Federal
funds mentioned earlier, districts were able to purchase the
digital devices, Chromebooks, and laptops, as well as hire
technology support staff trained to support the teachers,
students, and families in the use of the devices.
Second, the funds were used to address the access to
Internet issues. And so the purchase of hotspot and community
family affordability plans were implemented.
Third, as teachers changed the way they planned and
executed lessons, they created daily lessons that required more
connectivity, capacity, and reliability.
Federal funds helped with the installation of broadband
Internet, which provided communities high-speed connectivity
that was reliable and stable.
Our rural and urban areas, in particular, benefited from
the increased technological access and opportunities to learn,
but also highlighted longstanding inequities in who could and
could not access the Internet. Students from low-income
households or those without access to technology and Internet
connectivity struggled to participate in distance learning,
leading to disparities in educational opportunities.
As many school district leaders proudly express today,
because of COVID-19, our school districts are one to one. For
other school districts, they are getting there.
There is no going back, however, to the way teaching and
learning was conducted prior to COVID-19. For us, as
educational leaders, there is only going forward.
I want to thank Senator Markey for his longstanding
advocacy for the E-Rate program.
So what does going forward look like? We build upon the
resilient educational infrastructures initiated over the few
years and we expand where needed. We continue to uncover where
there may be digital access and connectivity disparities and
seek to close them. We continue to be creative and innovate.
It is exciting to envision what the classroom of the future
can look like, thanks to the investment in technology. We need
to continue to invest in this work.
The second area I would like to highlight is the very real
investment in our students' health. Federal funds, in many
school districts, were directed to implementing new or
upgrading existing HVAC systems, resulting in improved air
quality within our schools.
To address the air quality outside of school buildings,
district leaders used a combination of Federal resources to
begin to purchase or lease electric buses and charging
stations.
It is here I want to thank Senator Warren for her work and
her vision to provide clean school buses for our communities,
most recently her work with the Environmental Protection
Agency's clean bus program, which has been instrumental in
bringing the benefits of electric buses to our communities.
The investment in clean buses is a value statement on so
many levels. It demonstrates to students that their health is
valued, the air quality of their community where they live is
valued. We know diesel buses contribute to the air pollution
which, in turn, contributes to respiratory problems, such as
asthma in our children.
Our urban communities have been the most disproportionately
impacted by the air pollution, with emissions from cars, public
transit, trains, airports, all converging to create a clean air
crisis for our families.
Helping these communities, in particular, sends a message
of their value and the environmental justice we seek for them.
In addition to making a dent in air pollution, the zero-
emission buses are quieter, thus, reducing noise pollution. And
over time, we believe the buses, with charging stations, will
be more cost effective and sustainable for our school
districts.
Our district leaders wanted to share that they are grateful
for Round I and are eagerly awaiting Round II, as they seek to
replace their diesel buses with environmentally friendly,
healthier transportation.
One of our district leaders shared that his school district
and city did not have the money to take on this initiative. It
would not have happened if it were not for these funds and
their award.
Here, again, is an example of deep transformational change
that has begun and must continue and will continue with your
ongoing leadership. We can't go back when so much good has
happened.
Chair Warren. Yes.
Ms. Bourque. Thank you.
Chair Warren. Thank you so much. That is a terrific
statement. Thank you, Dr. Bourque.
So we have been talking about the importance of
infrastructure. It is about traffic, it is about clean air, it
is about clean water, it is about building a future, it is
about our research. But it is also about jobs.
And I want to focus on that, for just a minute, because we
haven't had as much conversation on it.
I was looking at the stats on the Boston Logan Airport
renovation.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law set aside a billion
dollars to improve airports around the country. Logan Airport
received the largest grant of any major airport in the entire
Nation. And it is being used and has been used to fund the work
on Terminal E.
Mr. Antonellis, you are a labor leader here in
Massachusetts. Tell me, who is carrying out the work at Logan
to modernize Terminal E?
Mr. Antonellis. Sure. The new renovations at Terminal E at
Logan are hundreds of millions of dollars in transportation
infrastructure investments. And I believe much of it, I think
$62 million, was provided by President Biden's Bipartisan
Infrastructure Bill.
And union construction firms, including IBEW contractors
and members, are still out there working. I know they had a
ribbon cutting last week, but there is still work to do.
There was about 1,000 total construction jobs created on
that one project, engineering and construction jobs.
Chair Warren. 1,000 total construction jobs?
Mr. Antonellis. Yes.
And about 150 to 200 electrical-specific telecommunications
jobs created for IBEW men and women. In fact, my son is an IBEW
apprentice, and he is an employee on that job. So it hits home
for me, that job. I am very excited about the investments at
the airport.
Chair Warren. That is terrific. And not just 1,000 jobs,
but 1,000 good union jobs.
Mr. Antonellis. That's right.
Chair Warren. That is terrific. And jobs that are being
used for apprentices, as well.
Mr. Antonellis. That's right.
Chair Warren. That is terrific.
So when President Biden came to Boston to announce this
investment, he said, ``Logan is more than an airport. It is an
economic engine.''
Chancellor Chen, I want to ask you. You lead UMass Lowell,
so this may seem like an odd question.
But is it important to the university, here in Lowell, that
Boston has a world-class airport?
Ms. Chen. Definitely. I would say two words: Nonstop
flights.
We all know, having nonstop fights between Boston and San
Francisco and L.A. and Seattle and, of course, DC and
international, London, Paris, Tokyo, San Paulo, this enables
our faculty, staff, and students to be connected to partners
across the world and across the country.
And that is what enables us to be at the forefront of new
discoveries and also attract companies to want to come here.
Right? They think about where they are going to locate. Well,
if they can take a quick flight from where they are currently
to Massachusetts, it makes a huge difference in them thinking
about where I do want to locate.
And we want them to be here in Massachusetts, working with
our students, faculty, and staff.
Chair Warren. Great. So airport is a great example. But
airport is not the only example of jobs that have been funded
through these new investments in infrastructure.
Mr. Antonellis, can you just name a few other major
projects that your members are working on right now, that have
benefited from Federal dollars?
Mr. Antonellis. Sure. I know the MBTA gets a lot of bad
headlines.
Chair Warren. Yes, deservedly.
Mr. Antonellis. But at the end of the day, the MBTA
receives a lot of Federal dollars. It puts a lot of hardworking
Massachusetts residents to work. And we would be lost without
those jobs at the MBTA. Maintenance jobs and construction jobs.
And I know bus electrification, we have been talking about.
Four major bus electrification projects are coming to the MBTA.
One recently bid in Quincy, that we talked about, a massive
project at the old Lowe's site. And then there is one coming in
Cambridge, one in Jamaica Plain. And we are very excited about
doing the work on bus electrification, as well as the City of
Boston for the school buses, to electrify them.
Chair Warren. I know. Look, I am aggravated with the T
right now. So are a lot of people.
Mr. Antonellis. Of course.
Chair Warren. But this is how we make it better. And it is
not going to get better on its own. It is only going to get
better if we make the investment and we have good workers
there, straightening this out. And I appreciate the work.
Mr. Antonellis. We need safe, reliable, public
transportation.
Chair Warren. We need it.
Mr. Antonellis. Desperately.
Chair Warren. That is exactly right.
Another piece--and you picked up on this, Dr. Bourque--that
is exciting about the investments in infrastructure, is helping
electrify the local school bus fleets.
And last June, I sent a letter to the Massachusetts
Association of School Superintendents--you may remember this--
highlighting the benefits of electrifying the Commonwealth
school bus fleet and encouraging members of your association to
take full advantage of the EPA's newly announced $5 billion
investment in the clean school bus grants program.
And you got part way there, but I just want to give you a
minute to say something more about it. Why do we need to care
about green school buses? After all, kids can get delivered on
those old diesel school buses.
Why does it matter so much?
Ms. Bourque. Air impacts everything. It seems very evident,
but we have to really consider the fact that our students are
breathing in toxins from the diesel fuel. And we know some from
science, in terms of what the impact is on a young person's
body, but they end up coming into the classroom and the
cognitive brain function might be a little slow for a while.
Certainly, the motivation might be impacted. The energy level
that you want from a learner. And so, then it is that
difficulty to engage in learning, to take academic risks.
And so most certainly, it is about wanting the best for our
students and it begins with air.
Chair Warren. I like that. I like that.
I also want to pick up, you made the point about access to
computers and the kids having access. Very important. But I was
thinking, as well, about the gaps in high speed Internet
access.
The Commonwealth's highest income counties, more than 70
percent of residents have high speed Internet.
But out in Berkshire county, the number drops to 39
percent. Fewer than half of the residents in Franklin county
and Hampshire county have access to broadband.
I think that is one of the reasons. Another exciting part
of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the American Rescue
Plan is the massive investment in broadband, to finish, to get
the broadband everywhere.
$90 million dollars, the largest Federal investment in high
speed Internet in our Nation's history.
So Dr. Bourque, you work with school superintendents across
the Commonwealth. Can you just say a little bit more, you
talked about the computers themselves, but what it means to
have access to broadband?
Ms. Bourque. Sure. I think I would like to go back to the
beginning of COVID and when we first started to have our
students learning online.
And what ended up happening, the meetings would drop with
their teacher. There would be interruptions. There would be the
frozen screen, certainly, because there was not enough
connectivity. There wasn't the capacity.
As teachers got better at planning lessons, they were also
including videos or they were including hyperlinks. And the
high speed capacity of many of our districts were not just able
to handle that type of high speed capacity.
And then when you add 40 teachers doing it all at the same
time, then that becomes another piece that you end up losing
the connection.
Chair Warren. Yes. That is actually a very good point.
This is part of reason that Senator Markey and I were very
pleased to help bring $175 million in Federal funding to
Massachusetts, with the goal of bringing online, the parts of
Massachusetts that don't have access to high speed Internet.
Right now, it appears that the funding that we were able to
bring in is going to serve about 16,000 locations in our
Commonwealth. And this means Massachusetts families,
Massachusetts kids who will have access, and it matters.
So let me do a personal favorite, and that is Federal
research.
Chancellor Chen, do you know, offhand, roughly, about how
much Federal research funding UMass Lowell receives right now,
to support all of your groundbreaking scientific advances?
Ms. Chen. Yes. So of our $111 million annual, are research,
about 60 percent--sorry. About 54 percent, about $60 million is
Federal.
But the other piece of that is often industry and State.
And it is not separate. One of the things that is unique is we
talked a lot about matching dollars and commitment. So that
Federal dollar piece is often matched by the industry piece and
the State piece, that makes up that whole bucket of $111
million a year.
Chair Warren. Such an important point. It is the leverage
point. I was thinking that we were, when talked about Logan.
Not all of the dollars came from the Federal Government.
But if the Federal Government is not there to play, nobody
comes to play.
Ms. Chen. Right. Exactly.
Chair Warren. It is having all of it that then creates the
jobs, creates enough to support the research, creates enough
that we can get the school buses across, whatever it is we need
to do.
I want to talk about one piece of the funding that expanded
as a result of the CHIPS and Science Act. So the CHIPS law
allocated about $1.6 billion to stand up regional hubs
supporting the production of semiconductors and other
microtechnologies.
And last month, we talked about this some, Massachusetts
was awarded $19.7 million in funding, to establish one of those
regional hubs here. It is going to help Massachusetts lead the
way with innovation in this cutting edge sector. And some of
this work is going to take place right here at UMass Lowell.
So here is my question for you, Chancellor Chen.
How is the microelectronics work being done here at UMass
Lowell, going to help grow our economy and strengthen our
national security?
Ms. Chen. Yes. Thank you for that. And thank you, Senator
Warren and Senator Markey, for your support of that effort.
I think it speaks to one of the things that we talk about
in terms of building ecosystem. There is an opportunity,
because of the funding, bringing together UMass Lowell, other
universities--MIT, Northeastern, we talked about--with
companies in the area. It creates this ecosystem that has a
virtuous cycle.
And one of the things here at Lowell, we have about 80
faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates that are
involved in microelectronics research. The key, I think, for
Massachusetts is that we don't have a big billion-dollar fab
here. But Massachusetts has the skill and the talent to do the
value-added piece.
How do you integrate the chip with sensors? How do you
integrate it as part of the cloud? How do you do that edge
device, edge computing? It is that building on top of the chip
that is the specialty, I think, of this Commonwealth.
And a lot of that work is being done here at Raytheon, in
printed electronics, in our center for advanced materials and
soft materials. So a lot of the faculty and students are
involved in that microelectronics research.
Chair Warren. That is terrific.
Senator Markey, do you have some questions?
Senator Markey. Well, yes. Thank you.
Thanks so much for all that you do.
And we can see the future of the Commonwealth sitting right
here. So we thank you for everything you are doing to make the
21st century greater than the 20th century. Thank you.
So Dr. Bourque, just coming back, just for a second, to the
E-Rate and the emergency connectivity fund.
So when I was a boy, my father went to Lawrence High
School. He got a good education. He was a milkman for the Hood
Milk company. We live in Malden. But I can compete with the
school superintendent's son in Malden, if I take my book bag
home and I study as hard as he does.
Right? I didn't feel inferior. I felt, as my mother would
say, ``Eddie, if you don't study, we are going to donate your
brain to Harvard Medical School as a really unused human organ.
It is up to you. Don't do it.''
So I didn't feel, in any way, discouraged.
But as you are saying, when it comes to these digital
technologies, there is a big gap. We don't have to worry,
really, about Lexington or Newton or Brookline. But we do have
to worry the kids in Chelsea and Lawrence and Lowell, in other
communities who don't necessarily have universal access.
So we saw during, as you said, during the pandemic. It just
shined a spotlight on that inequality, where 12 to 17 million
children, mostly Black and Brown and immigrant, did not have
the Internet at home. So they were at an incredible
disadvantage.
Which is why I fought, along with Senator Warren, to add $7
billion extra to the $4 billion in the E-Rate program that I
created in 1996, so that that $11 billion would help you to
create a program for Chromebooks, for hot spots, wi-fi, that
kids could use.
So what is the lesson that we have to take from that, in
terms of the thirst that kids have for it, regardless of their
income and their aptitude for it, regardless of their race or
country of origin, in terms of our long-term workforce
development strategies for the Commonwealth and how ARPA helped
you and how all of these other programs have to contribute to
further advancing that goal?
Ms. Bourque. Oh, where do I start on this one?
You are absolutely correct. First of all, we are in a
different world. And we were propelled into this world. The
tipping point was COVID-19.
And so certainly where we had textbooks for all of us going
to school, we now have a Chromebook or a laptop. And what that
provides is 24-7 access to knowledge, to education, to problem
solving skills, to connecting to other peers. The future and
the landscape of what education could look like--we haven't
talked about AI and virtual reality. Those can be good. There
can be positives.
What Chancellor Chen was talking about in terms of the
developments and the digital piece, what is the future? And if
we isolate ourselves to just a few districts that can build
that future pipeline of thought partners, of problem solvers,
critical thinkers, then we are doing a disservice, not only to
the districts where our children are not getting that access
and opportunities, but we are also doing a disservice to our
country.
Because we need the pipeline across the board. We need a
workforce across the board, in digital technology and in
innovation and creativity.
Senator Markey. How much did that Federal funding help?
Ms. Bourque. Oh, immensely. And I have retired, but I am
working for the Association of School Superintendents. But for
my successor, textbooks are the laptop. The laptop goes home.
There is practice. There is tutoring on Saturdays, if a
child just wants to pick up the laptop and open it up at 9:00
a.m. There is just the ability for students to be curious and
to go look up something. Many of us had a set of encyclopedia
in our home growing up. Well, the laptop, the digital access is
the encyclopedia nowadays.
Senator Markey. And with AI added on top it--and we have to
be smart about how we are doing it, maybe.
Ms. Bourque. We have to wrestle with security and safety on
behalf of our children, but absolutely. We should not fear it.
Senator Markey. Yes. And with maybe 60 languages spoken
here in the schools of Lowell, with AI, every one of them might
have it individualized with their home language, ability to be
able to give them that kind of individualized attention that
they need.
And then it comes to you, Mr. Antonellis. You are talking
about your son, now, following in your footsteps.
Mr. Antonellis. That's right.
Senator Markey. And there is going to be all of these
thousands and thousands of jobs now, that require a higher
skill set, I think, that you had to have.
Mr. Antonellis. That's right.
Senator Markey. So what are those additional skills that
your son now has, that you didn't have when you started, in
terms of all of these digital technologies and the role that
this system plays in it?
Mr. Antonellis. It is not just my son. My daughter, too,
went and got a college education. She got a business degree at
UNH. And now she is an electrical apprentice. She is doing
estimating and she is working with, no longer blueprints, but
it is on a computer now. And she takes the computer home, and
she learns how to estimate a job and count light fixtures and
plugs along the floor, with a computer and with software that
helps her lay out a job and bid a job for her contractor.
And the technology is amazing. The electrical industry is
changing so fast, when it comes to building automation. And you
can come in with a laptop and you can make the lights come on
when someone enters the building and shut off as soon as they
leave and programming for security systems, for card access,
for cameras, stuff that didn't exist 20, 30 years ago, but now
is prevalent in every single building that we enter. And it is
all of that technology exists here.
Senator Markey. And these kids had to have additional skill
sets in order to get into the game.
Mr. Antonellis. Yes, exactly.
Senator Markey. You were mentioning, in terms of minority
apprentices. Can you go back with that number one more time?
Mr. Antonellis. Sure. Absolutely.
So started 7 years ago, my administration, and we made a
deep dive into being purposeful on creating more opportunities
for women and people of color, and certainly, because we are a
Boston-based local union, the folks of Boston from the housing
projects and the communities and the neighborhoods in Boston
that typically wouldn't have access.
So we have increased our minority participation, women
participation every single year. For the past 3 years straight,
we have had 50-percent-plus of women and people of color in our
apprenticeship program.
And kind of to give you a little snapshot, over the past
several years, we have been retiring members with a racial
makeup of like 95, 96 percent White males that are leaving the
industry. And that is just a snapshot of where the industry was
35 and 40 years ago.
But the folks that are coming in and replacing those
workers are 50 percent women and people of color, that are
creating those jobs. And that is where we are going to look to
to fill the gaps and fill the needs for the jobs of the future,
all of these green jobs that are coming. We are going to need
everybody, all hands on deck to help us. Women and people of
color and underprivileged communications are helping us meet
those goals.
Senator Markey. And you are essentially tied to Dr.
Bourque, over here, in terms of the provision of the skill set
for your workforce, as older, White male workers are retiring.
And then just finally, if I may, Chancellor Chen, can you
talk about the importance of environmental justice funding in
research, so that we can have the big picture seen quite
clearly, in terms of what has to happen?
Ms. Chen. Yes. And it is critical, environmental justice
funding, in many ways. I will give two quick examples.
One is a project, I think, that you are very familiar with.
NSF funded a project to develop the electronic tongue as a way
to detect contamination in water. And the key part of that is
that it is a hand-held, easy-to-use electro-chemical device
that anybody can do.
So if we put these in the hands of who I like to call our
citizen scientists. Right? A high school kid, an elderly
person, somebody in their household to test their drinking
water. It enables us to get a snapshot across the whole
community, to understand if there is contamination.
And that is critical. I think the Governor mentioned
before, about sewer overflows. These types of things with
contaminated water hit environmental justice communities harder
than others. And if we put in the hands of these people the
ability to test their own water and for us to identify where
there is problems, quickly, that is something that helps all
communities.
And then the other piece I will mention is energy
efficiency. Understanding how--similar thing--environmental
justice communities often don't take the most advantage of some
of the problems we have for energy savings. So this project is
a way to understand and talk to those communities and get them
involved and understand. How do you find that early adopter in
an EJ community and get them to trust that this is something
that is beneficial to them?
Those are just two great programs that have been sponsored
by Federal funding, by your support, to help make this happen
for all of our communities.
Senator Markey. Everyone talks about our need for more
megawatts of electricity. But they don't talk enough about
nega-watts, because of energy efficiency. Because we are
working smarter, not harder, using these digital skill sets to
just reduce the amount of electricity that we use in the first
place, and giving these young people the skill sets they can
use in buildings and cars and all of their projects, just to
make all of those projects more efficient.
So we thank all of you for your work.
And I would just like to note that there is an empty space
here for Congresswoman Trahan. I'm sure she'd rather be here
than where she is.
Ms. Chen. I think she would rather be here than in DC
holding the fort down.
Chair Warren. That is a low bar.
Senator Markey. Thank you, Senator Warren.
Chair Warren. That's right. So are you ready for me to wrap
this up? We are good?
Senator Markey. Ready.
Chair Warren. I just want to say thank you, again. We have
talked today, a long day, about infrastructure, about what it
means for jobs and the economy and our communities and
resilience.
But this has also been a day about partnership. I have the
best partner in the United States Senate. We are more than
twice as strong.
Do the Power Rangers thing. Right?
We also have a great partner in our Governor and Lieutenant
Governor, who are all-hands-on-deck and ready to go, and in our
mayors, who want to be part of this.
But it is also about partnership with the people who have
shown up as our witnesses. I am very grateful to you for being
here, for talking about these issues that are so important to
all of us. We have real opportunity here. And we can't--let me
put it this way. We will do so much better if we keep
strengthening these partnerships as we go forward.
So thank you again to UMass Lowell for hosting us. It has
been terrific. And thank you to our witnesses.
Questions, for the record, are due 1 week from today, on
Friday, October 27th. For our witnesses, you have 45 days to
respond to any questions.
Thank you, again. With that, this hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 5:13 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
[Prepared statements supplied for the record follow:]
PREPARED STATEMENT OF CARLOS MONJE
Under Secretary of Transportation Policy, Department of Transportation
October 20, 2023
Chair Warren and Senator Markey, thank you for the opportunity to
testify today and for your leadership and partnership as we work to
build a stronger, safer transportation system.
As I speak to you today, the Department of Transportation (DOT) is
close to wrapping up the second year of implementing the historic
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). We've been hard at work creating
new programs and making critical investments in our Nation's
infrastructure. To date, across the Administration we have announced
over 38,000 projects across the country. Our transportation investments
are making our roads safer for pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers;
making transit more affordable, reliable, and accessible; and
reconnecting communities that have been divided by past transportation
decisions. We're making sure that these new investments are not only
resilient against extreme weather, but help combat the climate crisis.
And these are not only investments in America's infrastructure, but
also in its workforce, creating hundreds of thousands of good-paying
jobs each year in manufacturing, construction, and transportation.
On behalf of Secretary Buttigieg, I'm honored to share with you
today some of the ways in which the people of Massachusetts are
benefiting from these investments, as well as other areas of the
Department's work.
Safety is the Department's top priority and in 2022, we committed
to an ultimate goal of achieving zero roadway deaths through our
National Roadway Safety Strategy. I am pleased to begin by highlighting
our safety investments in Massachusetts; after all, Massachusetts
consistently ranks as one of the safest States in the Nation in terms
of fatalities per miles traveled and pedestrian fatalities per capita.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law greatly expanded the resources we're
able to put toward roadway safety in the form of the Safe Streets and
Roads for All (SS4A) program. To date, we've awarded more than $30
million to 17 communities in Massachusetts. The SS4A program is helping
15 communities across the Commonwealth, including the Cities of
Fitchburg, Pittsfield, Southbridge, Ware, and Worcester, to develop
comprehensive roadway safety action plans. We've awarded $9 million to
Boston to deploy low-cost, high value safety improvements at
intersections across the city. And in Springfield, we awarded $15
million to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists at 15
intersections and along 10 corridors that currently experience a
disproportionately high number of fatal crashes. The SS4A program is
just one example of how we can continue to work together to make one of
the safest States in the Nation even safer.
DOT is also hard at work making sure that the transportation sector
is central to tackling the climate crisis; as the biggest contributor
to greenhouse gas emissions, transportation must also be a part of the
solution. On this front, we've made significant investments in
Massachusetts.
Most notably, our Federal Transit Administration (FTA) awarded
nearly $220 million the last 2 years under its BIL-funded Low- and No-
Emission and Bus and Bus Facilities programs.
Through these awards, we're helping to replace diesel buses with
electric and hybrid buses across the Commonwealth. In Fiscal Year 2022,
Massachusetts received more than 10 percent of the total funding from
this program, and was second only to California in terms of total
funding received. These kinds of investments not only make transit
agencies more reliable, but also give transit riders a quieter, more
pleasant experience, and communities cleaner air. Moreover, they
include efforts to prepare our transportation workforce for these newer
technologies, including through apprenticeships, on-the-job training,
and instructional training. A good example is the $6.9 million award
provided to the Lowell Regional Transit Authority (LRTA) in June to
purchase hybrid-electric buses to replace older vehicles that have
reached their useful life and to launch a workforce development program
to provide on-the-job and instructional training for the maintenance
and operation of hybrid electric vehicles.
As we make investments in the safety and climate impact of our
transportation system, we're mindful that the benefits of
transportation infrastructure projects must also be done equitably. The
Department is actively addressing environmental justice and working to
undo past harms through the Reconnecting Communities and the Rebuilding
American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE)
programs. As part of the Biden administration's Justice 40 initiative
in Massachusetts, the new Reconnecting Communities program is already
helping the City of Boston assess the feasibility of reconnecting parts
of Chinatown to downtown Boston previously divided by the construction
of Interstate 90 (the Mass Pike). Meanwhile, RAISE is funding
improvements to transit infrastructure, bridges, and roads in
disadvantaged communities in Springfield, Lynn, New Bedford, Brockton,
and right here in Lowell, where we're funding the rehabilitation and
preservation of four deficient bridges with improvements to pedestrian,
bicycle, and transit accommodations.
Lastly, I want to touch on America's workforce and innovation as we
look toward building for the future. Massachusetts received nearly $6.5
million from DOT's new BIL-funded Strengthening Mobility and
Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) discretionary grant program. In
Massachusetts, SMART is funding smart traffic signals in Brockton,
planning for smart grids at the Cape Cod Gateway Airport and at
MetroWest Regional Transit's headquarters, and improvements to rail
safety on Cape Cod using unmanned aircraft systems and smart sensors.
I was also recently here alongside Governor Healey to cut the
ribbon on a brand-new facility for DOT's Volpe Center, which will draw
on some of the brightest minds to support the work across our
Department. This new facility will provide the modern facilities needed
to expand advanced transportation research, and house the next
generation of the transportation workforce through internships,
academic research partnerships, and mentoring programs.
Speaking of academic partnerships, we also recently named UMass
Amherst as the lead of our New England University Transportation
Center, alongside consortia members from Bunker Hill
Community College, Holyoke Community College, and MIT. We're
excited to see how they can help us advance our transportation work
particularly in both safety and equity.
In closing, at DOT we see Massachusetts as an example when it comes
to demonstrating how transportation infrastructure can be safer, more
climate-friendly, and a tool for building communities and encouraging
innovation. But we're also encouraged by the Commonwealth's desire to
go further to continue investing here in the years to come, to improve
the lives of its residents and workers, to support the critical
industries that reside here, and to present a model to communities
across the Nation.
Thank you, and I look forward to your questions.
______
PREPARED STATEMENT OF KATHLEEN HOGAN
Principal Deputy Under Secretary for Infrastructure, Department of
Energy
October 20, 2023
Introduction
Thank you, Chair Warren, for this opportunity to provide an update
on the Department of Energy's (DOE or the Department) progress in
implementing the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, also known as
the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), and the Inflation Reduction
Act (IRA).
These bills are truly historic investments in renewing American
infrastructure for decades to come. We are together rebuilding American
manufacturing and increasing American competitiveness. We are creating
millions of lasting, good-paying jobs and helping communities across
the country to tackle huge challenges and take advantage of
opportunities. We are assisting communities in realizing the impacts of
rapid energy technology transitions and ensuring that cities and towns
have access to new energy technologies that can reduce families' and
businesses' energy bills as quickly as they can be deployed.
We at the DOE feel a sense of urgency so that our fellow Americans
in all parts of our country can benefit from these laws. We understand
that we are entrusted with investments being made by our fellow
taxpayers. By implementing the BIL and IRA, DOE will strive to lower
energy costs for Americans, improve reliability and energy security,
and ensure America is positioned to lead the world in manufacturing the
energy technologies of the future.
Overview of BIL and IRA Energy Provisions
Through the BIL, Congress provided more than $62 billion for
programs under the purview of the Department of Energy. The BIL
requires DOE to stand up 60 new programs--including 16 demonstration
and 32 deployment programs--and expands funding for 12 existing
research, development, demonstration, and deployment (RDD&D) programs.
The BIL also provides funding for many programs authorized by the
bipartisan Energy Act of 2020, including Long-Duration Energy Storage
demonstrations, the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, carbon
capture demonstration and pilot programs, industrial emissions
demonstrations, and more.
In the IRA, Congress invested approximately $35.5 billion in
programs administered by the Department of Energy, including $8.8
billion for the Home Energy Rebates Program, nearly $6 billion for
industrial decarbonization, and increased loan authority for our Loan
Programs Office (LPO) to help bolster burgeoning American innovation
and domestic energy production.
This longer-term, demonstration- and deployment-focused mandate
given to the Department by Congress also reflects a departure from
other infrastructure packages in recent history, like the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which were more focused on research and
development initiatives. The impacts of these new BIL and IRA
investments will touch every corner of the country through competitive
grants, formula funding, rebates, and loan programs that are
thoughtfully designed and diligently administered by DOE experts,
including career civil servants. Awards and selections to negotiate
awards are also made by career officials via a merit-based process,
with program integrity at the top of mind.
Taken together, the BIL and IRA are projected to save American
families between $27 billion and $38 billion on their electricity bills
from 2022 to 2030, relative to a scenario without BIL and IRA. American
businesses are also projected to save on their electricity bills, with
a 13 to 15 percent projected reduction in commercial electricity
spending in the same time period.
Progress in Implementation
While only a portion of BIL and IRA appropriations were or will be
obligated in Fiscal Years 2022 and 2023, DOE has been working
expeditiously to deliver the greatest impact from these historic
packages. As of October 17, 2023, the Department has released a total
of 111 funding opportunities worth more than $72 billion in initial
investments for BIL and IRA programs. We also conditionally awarded
$1.1 billion in credits for zero-emission nuclear energy generation,
made available $4.25 billion in formula funding to State and local
governments and Tribal Nations for energy efficiency and other clean
energy projects, and selected nearly $3 billion in awards for battery
material processing, manufacturing, and recycling for negotiation.
While continuing to carry out important programs outside of the BIL and
IRA's purviews, the Department has built new internal organizational
structures and operations to best facilitate the effective and
efficient implementation of these laws.
In February of this year, DOE celebrated the 1-year anniversary of
our strategic departmental realignment, which created the new Under
Secretary for Infrastructure and three new offices--the Grid Deployment
Office, the Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains, and the
Office of State and Community Energy Programs. This Under Secretariat
also includes the BIL-created Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, as
well as mission-aligned program offices, like the Loan Programs Office
(LPO), the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency
Response, the Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs, the Federal
Energy Management Program, and the Power Marketing Administrations.
This new structure helps maximize the efficacy of BIL and IRA programs
and boosts DOE's ongoing work to reduce energy costs through low-cost
clean energy resources, stimulate American manufacturing and industrial
competitiveness and create jobs, increase equity and environmental
justice, and support meeting ambitious climate goals.
Since its implementation, the strategic realignment has allowed the
Department to be nimbler and more responsive in its deployment of BIL
and IRA, and to meet the challenges of implementing these historic
laws. In addition, these structural changes set DOE up for success in
carrying out all of our missions--and to carry them forward for the
coming years and decades. The energy transition, which is already well
underway, creates a massive opportunity to lower energy costs for
American families, boost American manufacturing competitiveness, and
maximize community benefits of new energy projects, especially in
disadvantaged communities and those that have historically relied on
the fossil fuel industry.
Seizing this opportunity requires active engagement with the
private sector and communities as we deploy and oversee this
unprecedented level of Federal clean energy investment, including in
some areas and types of activities that are new to the Department. Our
strategic realignment optimizes the world-class expertise of our
talented staff and maximizes our ability to bring in new talent and
skillsets that will serve the American public for decades to come.
We have also partnered with the Department of Transportation to
stand up the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, which aligns
resources and expertise across our two departments to reach the
President's goal of deploying a robust network of electric vehicle
chargers, zero-emission fueling infrastructure, and providing technical
assistance for zero-emission transit and school buses.
Program and Initiative Highlights
Clean Energy Demonstrations
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law directed DOE to establish the
Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, also known as OCED, which was
officially stood up in December 2021. OCED's mission is to deliver
clean energy demonstration projects at scale in partnership with the
private sector to accelerate deployment, market adoption, and the
equitable transition to a decarbonized energy system.
Over the past several months, OCED has made selections for the
negotiation of awards of large-scale demonstration projects to further
advance our progress in the clean energy transition, including up to
$325 million for 15 projects across 17 States and one Tribal Nation to
accelerate the development of long-duration energy storage
technologies; up to $1.2 billion for the Nation's first direct air
capture demonstrations in Texas and Louisiana; and, most recently, up
to $7 billion for 7 projects spanning across 16 States to establish
Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs--a once-in-a-generation opportunity to lay
the foundation for the clean hydrogen future.
Building a Better Grid
Earlier this year, the Department celebrated the anniversary of the
Building a Better Grid Initiative, which is enabled by the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law and administered by the Grid Deployment Office--one
of the new offices established under the strategic realignment, tasked
with ensuring the reliability and resilience of our electric grid. The
focus of this initiative is to catalyze the nationwide development of
new and upgraded high-capacity transmission lines and support
investments to modernize the flexibility and resilience of the
distribution system. These efforts will create a more resilient
electric grid, which is essential to increasing energy reliability and
resilience, giving more families and businesses access to lower-cost
electricity and enabling the benefits of the huge amount of new clean
energy coming online as we move toward our 2035 decarbonization goals.
The initiative encompasses the Grid Resilience State and Tribal
Formula Grant program. To date, GDO has awarded 48 States, 49 Tribal
entities, 3 territories, and the District of Columbia a combined total
of more than $748 million. In September 2023, more than $9 million was
awarded to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Under the administration
of the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC), Massachusetts will
hold a competitive selection process to identify and fund projects that
can improve energy reliability and resilience while reducing the cost
and number of outages for communities and underserved populations.
MassCEC will also support clean energy and decarbonization solutions,
including building electrification.
As part of this award and in line with the President's Justice 40
initiative, MassCEC has committed to advancing their and the
Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources' equity, environmental,
and energy justice priorities, as well as creating good-paying jobs
with the free and fair choice to join a union.
Strengthening America's Supply Chains and Reshoring the Industrial Base
As part of the departmental realignment, DOE created the Office of
Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC), which is tasked with
strengthening and securing manufacturing and energy supply chains
needed to modernize our country's energy infrastructure to support a
clean and just energy transition and maximize the use of materials and
services made in America.
MESC administers the Industrial Assessment Centers (IAC) program, a
collective of 37 universities across the country--including the
University of Massachusetts Amherst--that conduct energy assessments
for small- and medium-sized manufacturers to identify opportunities to
improve productivity and competitiveness, reduce waste, and save
energy. IACs train the next-generation of energy savvy engineers, more
than 60 percent of which pursue energy-related careers upon graduation.
The UMass Amherst is one of the longest-serving universities in the IAC
program.
Through the BIL, DOE is expanding the IAC program to community
colleges, trade schools, and union training programs to expand access
to energy- and manufacturing-related career pathways while providing
hands-on support to small- and medium-sized manufacturers. The BIL also
invests in IAC Implementation Grants, which provides funding to small-
and medium-sized manufacturers to help implement recommendations
provided by IAC assessors.
Working With State and Community Partners To Drive Decarbonization
DOE's Office of State and Community Energy Programs, also known as
SCEP, works with our partners at the State and local level to deploy
clean energy resources through BIL and IRA resources, such as the Renew
America's Schools Program, the Home Energy Rebates Program, and the
Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, as well as
existing programs that have been bolstered by the BIL, including the
Weatherization Assistance Program and the State Energy Program.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invested a tremendous $3.5
billion into the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP), which reduces
energy costs for low-income households by increasing the energy
efficiency of their homes, while ensuring their health and safety. Of
this total, more than $80 million was allocated to Massachusetts; the
Commonwealth has received 50 percent of those funds to date.
Similarly, BIL invested $500 million into the longstanding State
Energy Program which assists States in meeting their energy objectives,
through which Massachusetts is receiving $7.7 million.
In June, SCEP announced selectees for the Renew America's Schools
program, which will fund infrastructure upgrades at K-12 public school
facilities while prioritizing high-need school communities. For
example, Natick Public Schools in Natick, Massachusetts, will receive
more than $2 million in BIL funding to fully electrify Bennett-Hemenway
Elementary School, while also adding an air-to-water heat pump,
replacing aging rooftop units, and installing a state-of-the-art
building automation system. As part of this project and in line with
the President's Justice 40 initiative, Natick has committed to
providing project-based training on building electrification to 20
disadvantaged students in partnership with the Keefe Tech Regional
Vocational School's HVAC-R program.
Further, SCEP has announced awards to Massachusetts cities and
towns through the BIL-funded Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block
program totaling about $1 million to date with funds for Boston and
Littleton. These efforts seek to improve building efficiency and
increase electric load flexibility. More awards will be coming at the
local level as DOE addresses applications a rolling basis.
The IRA included $8.8 billion in rebates for home energy efficiency
and electrification projects. These home energy rebates will help
American households save money on energy bills, upgrade to clean energy
equipment and improve energy efficiency, and reduce indoor and outdoor
air pollution. DOE estimates that these rebates will save households up
to $1 billion on energy bills each year and support more than 50,000
jobs. On July 27, DOE issued Home Energy Rebate Program Requirements
and Application Instructions for States to receive their full
allocation to establish their rebate programs.
Driving Renewable Energy RDD&D
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provided appropriations for
several renewable power programs that were recently reauthorized under
the Energy Act of 2020. These appropriations directed DOE's Office of
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) to conduct cutting-edge
research, development, demonstration, and deployment (RDD&D) of
renewable power technologies.
For example, in May 2023, DOE's Wind Energy Technology Office
(WETO) announced a $1.07 million BIL-funded Small Business Innovative
Research (SBIR) award to Massachusetts-based Triton Systems, Inc., with
which Triton Systems will continue development of a first-of-its-kind
helical anchoring system with a unique subsea installation tool to help
maximize the efficiency of anchoring offshore wind systems. With
support from a previous SBIR award, Triton Systems analyzed mooring
configurations, analyzed soil and rock on the ocean floor, refined
their tool design, and conducted an offshore installation methodology
assessment.
Conclusion
Thank you again for the invitation to provide testimony before you
today on the historic impact of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and
Inflation Reduction Act on our economy. These laws provide an
unparalleled catalytic investment to our Nation's infrastructure and
energy security, and the Department looks forward to continuing our
work together in implementing them with efficiency and integrity.
______
PREPARED STATEMENT OF MAURA HEALEY
Governor, Commonwealth of Massachusetts
October 20, 2023
Good afternoon Senator Warren and Senator Markey. It is a pleasure
to be with you here in the historic and vibrant City of Lowell. I thank
you for holding this Committee hearing in our shared home State of
Massachusetts, and I welcome this opportunity to testify about the
critical importance of Federal funding to our State's goals and future.
Massachusetts is a State of firsts: the first State constitution,
public school, library, and park; we built the first lighthouse,
railroad, and subway, and here in Lowell one of the first great centers
of industry. We were the first to make health care universal and the
first to say love is love, equally for all. I, along with Lt. Governor
Kim Driscoll, and our entire Administration see this legacy as our
obligation to lead today--in protecting the rights and wellbeing of our
people and fearlessly tackling the biggest challenges our Nation and
world are facing.
Since taking office in January, we have led the fight on climate
change. We appointed the Nation's first cabinet-level Climate Chief and
the State's first Undersecretary for Environmental Justice & Equity. We
launched the Nation's first State Climate Bank dedicated to affordable
housing. We extended our clean energy lead and issued the largest RFP
for offshore wind energy in New England's history. We banned State
purchase of single-use plastics, and launched the strongest
biodiversity conversation program in the Nation.
We also have led the fight to lower costs for families, seniors,
and businesses. Last month we signed into law the most generous,
universal child and dependent tax credit in America. And this week we
filed the Affordable Homes Act, which would be the biggest investment
in housing affordability in our State's history.
We have led on education. Our first budget funded permanent free
school meals, breakfast and lunch, for all public school students; and
free community college for all students 25 and older. We have rallied
to advance equitable access to higher education in the wake of a
misguided Supreme Court decision on college admissions. We have
defended reproductive rights and safety for our LGBTQ youth.
We are leading, but the challenges we face are generational in
consequence and global in scale.
That's why your leadership in Congress, in partnership with the
Biden-Harris administration, has been so inspiring and critical to our
efforts. You have enacted some of the most ambitious investments in
America's history, stamping this legislation with Massachusetts values,
from Senator Warren's fight to lower prescription drug costs to Senator
Markey's pioneering climate bank vision. The intent of these
investments, and the requirements for States to secure them, are
closely aligned with our vision, our policies, and our work here in
Massachusetts. And our partnership with the Federal Government has the
potential to make the deepest impact and set the highest standards for
our country's progress.
Federal infrastructure funding will not only help Massachusetts
make long-overdue repairs to our roads, rails, and bridges; it will
allow us to create good, accessible jobs, and strengthen community and
coastal resilience. That's why our applications for Cape Cod Bridge
funding, and the Allston Multi-Modal Project, include commitments to
advance the legislation's goals of high labor standards and pathways
into good, middle-class careers for women and workers of color. Federal
clean energy funding, through the Inflation Reduction Act, will not
only help us achieve Net Zero Carbon by 2050, it will help us create
green jobs, affordable housing, and environmental justice in our
communities. We are using all of our planning resources, inside and
outside Government, to match funding opportunities with our
decarbonization goals. That includes our new Community Climate Bank,
which will finance the decarbonization of our building sector while
expanding affordable housing for our people. Yesterday we announced our
application for $250 million in clean energy ``Solar for All''
investments for up to 78,500 affordable homes from the EPA's Greenhouse
Gas Reduction Fund, the largest emissions reduction initiative in U.S.
history.
In addition: Federal funding for advanced manufacturing, through
the CHIPS Act and more, will allow Massachusetts to not only lengthen
our lead, but broaden access to good innovation economy jobs. We are
working with industry to expand workforce development pathways,
starting with historic investments in STEM education in our schools.
Already, we won the Department of Defense competition under the CHIPS
Act to host the Northeast Microelectronics Hub, with plans for
workforce training in advanced manufacturing.
And, we have been named an Investor Catalyst Hub for ARPA-H, the
National Institute of Health's medical innovation program for
transforming health care--in part because of our proven commitment to
health equity.
From the first days of our administration, competing for and
winning Federal funding has been one of our highest priorities. We
established a Federal Funds and Infrastructure Office, under Director
Quentin Palfrey, to guide this work across our administration and rally
our partners in local government, business, academia, and labor.
We are getting results, and we have the opportunity to do much
more. What Federal funding means for Massachusetts is an economy that
brings opportunity to all our residents, and solutions to our Nation
and our world's toughest challenges. I thank you once again for the
opportunity to testify and look forward to continuing the conversation.
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PREPARED STATEMENT OF LOU ANTONELLIS
Business Manager and Financial Secretary, International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers
October 20, 2023
Thank you, Senator Warren and Senator Markey. I appreciate the
opportunity to be here today to discuss the incredible work IBEW
members do, and the opportunities that new Federal infrastructure and
clean energy funding has created for our members here in Massachusetts.
Thanks to the hard work of our Federal delegation, billions of
dollars in Federal infrastructure and clean energy funding have poured
into Massachusetts. And our members are already hard at work helping
businesses, homeowners, and school districts in communities across the
Commonwealth use that funding to develop and adapt the clean energy
technology of the future.
This year, the Boston Public Schools rolled out the first
20 of a fleet of electric buses that will number 700 by 2030.
Those buses were made possible by $7 million in Federal funds,
and by the hard work of our Local 103 members who worked with
the school district to design and install the infrastructure
they need to electrify their bus fleet.
Speaking of buses, the MBTA is also making progress on that
front. With the help of IBEW members and Federal infrastructure
dollars, we're standing up a new bus facility in Quincy--and by
2026, it'll be ready to host the MBTA's new electric bus fleet.
Our members have helped residential buildings add electric
vehicle charging systems into their parking infrastructure so
residents can switch to electric vehicles without missing a
beat.
It's not just electric vehicles either--IBEW members have
worked on solar module installation projects across the
Commonwealth. And as EPA Solar for All grants start coming to
communities in Massachusetts (thanks in part to Senator
Warren's advocacy), we'll be ready to help homeowners take a
big step towards zero emissions.
As Federal dollars continue to flow in and kickstart more and more
projects, IBEW is going to be right at the heart of it. We're doing our
part to ensure the electrical workforce we need is ready to hit the
ground running. We've seen our membership grow by almost 2,500 in the
past few years, and we plan to double that growth over the next 5 years
so we can be prepared to meet the Commonwealth's clean energy goals.
And we've made substantial and strategic investments in workforce
development--to the tune of more than $10 million--to create the talent
pipelines we need to meet demand.
A key piece of our plan to do that is expanding and diversifying
the electrical workforce. I'm proud to share that in our most recent
apprenticeship class, more than 50 percent of participants were women
and people of color. This was our most diverse apprenticeship class
ever, and we plan to keep building on that progress. Our membership
should reflect the diversity of our community and of the places where
we do our work. This is critical for two reasons--it shows the world
we're paying attention and we know where the future is headed. And even
more importantly, it shows young women, people of color, and other
folks who haven't traditionally seen themselves in electrical work,
that these are good, union jobs with great pay and benefits, and that
these jobs are here to stay. Thanks to the work of our administration
and our elected officials, we're seeing unprecedented investments
creating new and unique opportunities for IBEW members. We're committed
to making sure everyone in the Commonwealth--families, businesses,
local governments, and workers--reaps the benefits.
Thank you again for the opportunity to be here today. I look
forward to discussing further how important Federal investments in
infrastructure and clean energy are, have been, and will be good for
Massachusetts, and good for its union workers.
______
PREPARED STATEMENT OF JULIE CHEN
Chancellor, University of Massachusetts Lowell
October 20, 2023
Chair Warren, Ranking Member Kennedy, Senator Markey, and
distinguished Committee Members,
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today about the profound
and transformative economic impact of Federal investments in
Massachusetts. It's an honor to welcome you to Lowell, a city founded
on innovation and entrepreneurship and transformed by the National Park
Service's investment in sharing that history.
Federal investments--particularly through the Commonwealth's
research universities--have played a pivotal role in spurring
innovation and bolstering research and development (R&D) in the
Commonwealth. At UMass Lowell, these projects hold the potential to:
Convert greenhouse gases into clean-burning fuels;
To target RNA molecules to aid in early disease detection;
To ensure water quality in underserved communities;
And to create jobs and economic growth as research is
converted into technology--technology into businesses--and
businesses into the cutting-edge industries of tomorrow.
For UMass Lowell and countless organizations in Massachusetts and
across the country, it is Federal funding that creates bold ideas and
innovative theories and transforms them into tangible technology and
societal impact.
Federal Agencies like the National Science Foundation, the National
Institutes of Health, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the
Departments of Transportation, Energy, and Defense all play a critical
role for Federal investment in the Commonwealth. Federal funds from
these agencies invest in ideas that are:
Using Inflation Reduction Act funds to create community-
based energy efficiency programs to combat climate change and
save residents of underserved communities needed money on
monthly energy bills.
Using CARES Act funds during the pandemic to enhance our
medical manufacturing capacity, provide personal protective
equipment, and create training opportunities.
Using ARPA money via the Mass Tech Collaborative, to
provide equitable access to high-speed internet and digital
literacy to gateway cities and underserved communities in the
Merrimack Valley.
And using National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding to
develop point-of-care technologies that target heart, lung,
blood, and sleep disorders, especially in underserved
populations.
These investments bolster economic development, create good paying
jobs and high-tech opportunities for the State's workforce, provide
professional and research experiences for students and also promote
equity outcomes across health care, infrastructure and clean energy
production.
Today UMass Lowell is actively working to accelerate this model of
success on our East Campus. Through the redevelopment of underutilized
land, the university will create a mixed-use district in downtown
Lowell with R&D and industry collaboration at its core.
Co-location of faculty, researchers, students and industry,
Government, and nonprofit partners has been key to UMass Lowell's
rapidly growing $111 million dollar research enterprise. From start-ups
to joint research centers with major corporations, our commitment to
collaboration has attracted business partners through our shared
research facilities, innovation hub business incubators and the
Massachusetts Medical Device Development (M2D2) Center run jointly with
UMass Chan Medical School. M2D2 was one of the first nine Johnson &
Johnson life sciences innovation labs worldwide. And through Biomedical
Advanced Research and Development Authority funding, M2D2 supported
more than 80 companies who worked to develop life-saving solutions in
response to the COVID-19 public health crisis.
This recognition by industry, coupled with critical Federal
investments, have created clusters of expertise around technology and
the health sciences and bio-tech industries.
I was proud to join UMass President Marty Meehan last November in
an op-ed in the Boston Globe as part of a statewide push by industry,
nonprofits and State agencies urging the Biden administration to locate
the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) in
Massachusetts.
I was thrilled by Governor Healey's announcement last month that
the State had succeeded. While the technical depth and breadth of our
universities and industry representatives were no doubt key to the
administration's choice, as important, I believe, is a history and
culture of collaboration between Massachusetts legislators,
organizations and researchers to translate goals and aspirations into
results that help real people.
In fact, five days before the ARPA-H announcement, we witnessed a
similar outcome. The Healey-Driscoll Administration announced
Massachusetts would receive nearly $20 million though the Federal CHIPS
and Science Act to establish the Northeast Microelectronics Coalition
Hub.
We are delighted to join with our Massachusetts industry and
educational partners to help meet the Nation's microelectronics
requirements, stimulate job creation, train the next generation of STEM
workers, and build the region's advanced manufacturing and technology
sectors.
UMass Lowell, the Commonwealth, and the country are already
beginning to see the tangible outcomes from the historic investment
Congress has made over the last several years. I look forward to your
questions today and our ongoing conversations in the months and years
ahead as we continue to work with elected officials and Federal
agencies to advance knowledge, discovery and prosperity in
Massachusetts and across the United States.
Thank you to the Committee, to the United States Senate and to the
entire Massachusetts Congressional Delegation for your continued
support and recognition of the significant impact of Federal
investments in our great Commonwealth.
Thank you.
______
PREPARED STATEMENT OF MARY BOURQUE
Coexecutive Director, Massachusetts Association of School
Superintendents
October 20, 2023
Senator Warren, Senator Markey, and Members of the Subcommittee on
Economic Policy, thank you for the invitation to testify before you
today on the positive impact Federal funds have made in our
Massachusetts schools.
I am Dr. Mary Bourque, the Coexecutive Director of the
Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents (M.A.S.S.) and
former superintendent of the Chelsea Public Schools, an urban school
district here in Massachusetts. I sit before you this afternoon
representing the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents
(M.A.S.S.) which includes 276 superintendents, 254 assistant
superintendents, and 24 Special Education Collaborative Executive
Directors. MASS is the Massachusetts affiliate of AASA, The School
Superintendents Association based in Alexandria, VA.
I want to commend you on choosing the term ``investments'' in the
title and therefore the framing for this hearing. Investment is a term
that implies a return or appreciation overtime. In education, our
investment return is our students--the next generation--who are
prepared with the knowledge and skills to be the future workforce and
leaders of our communities, State, and Nation. And investing in our
public schools is one of the greatest investments we can make as a
country. As Kirabo Jackson of the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA)
wrote recently when schools get more money, students tend to score
better on tests and stay in schools longer. Investing in education is
one of the most important ways we can strengthen our economy and ensure
our global competitiveness.
We are grateful for the Federal support to our schools throughout
the 2-year pandemic and the multiyear recovery work that continues.
School leaders were able to use the Elementary and Secondary School
Emergency Relief Funds authorized in three separate Federal laws to
ensure a holistic, multiyear approach to educating students during and
beyond the pandemic. In particular, the $1.8 billion dollars MA
received from the American Rescue Plan ensured district leaders were
able to use these funds to address the immediate needs of our students,
and also plan through an equity lens for a postpandemic transformation
of how we do education and wrap our school district programs around
both students and families.
Data collected this summer from AASA of school district leaders in
Massachusetts and around the country found that the number one use of
American Rescue Funds was adding instructional time and programming.
This was echoed by data collected by the Massachusetts Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education (MA DESE) which found that:
addressing unfinished learning loss, supporting special populations and
improving facilities and air quality, were the major ways in which
districts invested their Federal resources.
In MA, school districts selected among evidence-based programs to
support educators in implementing high-quality, aligned curriculum; to
improve inclusive coteaching practices for students with disabilities
and English learners; and to expand the capacity of all staff to
address the social-emotional learning (SEL) and mental health needs of
students and families. Others invested in research-based early literacy
programs in pre-kindergarten and early elementary grades, building and
sustaining culturally responsive learning environments for students;
and, acceleration academies and/or summer learning programs to support
skill development and accelerate advanced learners. \1\
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\1\ MA DESE, ``Update on State Education Budget, ESSER, & SOA
Spending''; Slide 15.
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In addition to the ESSER funding, there are two very concrete areas
of recent Federal investment that has propelled positive change that I
want to highlight to you today: educational technology and clean energy
buses.
It is in the area of education technology that transformational
change through an equity lens is the most noticeable. Prior to COVID-
19, school districts across the Commonwealth were slowly moving forward
with their technology plans. In most school districts students shared
classroom sets of computers, laptops, or Chromebooks. In a very few,
fortunate school districts, students were lucky enough to a 1:1
capability, but students were not allowed to bring the Chromebook home.
Districts did not have the money to institute a repair and replacement
plan as is done with textbooks. The digital inequality--those schools
that had computers and those that did not (or only had a few to share
among hundreds of students) and those families that had computers or
Chromebooks and those who did not was noticed. The disparities in
digital resources for learning were there, but we were comfortable
saying, ``we are working on it.''
With COVID-19, the shift to online learning shined the light on
educational inequalities that had to be urgently addressed. Through a
greater investment in the E-Rate program funded through the Universal
Services Fund, ESSER monies, and Federal funds mentioned earlier,
districts were able to purchase the digital devices--Chromebooks and
laptops; as well as hiring technology support staff trained to support
the teachers, students, and families in the use of the devices. Second,
the funds were used to address the access to internet issues and so the
purchase of hotspots and community/family affordability plans were
implemented. Third, as teachers changed the way they planned and
executed lessons, they created daily lessons that required more
connectivity capacity and reliability. Federal funds helped with the
installation of Broadband internet which provided communities high
speed connectivity that was reliable and stable.
Our rural and urban areas in particular benefited from the
increased technological access and opportunities to learn, but also
highlighted longstanding inequities in who could and could not access
the internet. Students from low-income households or those without
access to technology and internet connectivity struggled to participate
in distance learning, leading to disparities in educational
opportunities. As many school district leaders proudly express, because
of COVID-19 our school district is 1:1; for others, they are getting
there. There is no going back to the way teaching and learning was
conducted.
For us, as educational leaders, there is no going back--only going
forward. I want to pause to thank Senator Markey for his longstanding
advocacy for the E-Rate program. We are excited to see orders from the
FCC just this past week which would allow E-Rate to be used for wifi on
buses. E-Rate is the bedrock of our connectivity in public schools and
we are grateful for his championing of this program.
What does going forward look like? We build upon the resilient
educational infrastructures initiated over the last few years and we
expand where needed. We continue to uncover where there may be digital,
access, and connectivity disparities and seek to close them. We
continue to be creative and innovate--more online classes for low-
enrolled courses; personalized learning opportunities for students;
individual virtual tutoring; virtual workforce development experiences;
virtual training modules for teachers and staff; social/emotional
telehealth; learning multiple languages online and talking to peers in
other countries; global field trips and virtual experiential learning;
and, we have only begun to discuss the power and potential of using AI
and virtual reality in education. It is exciting to envision what the
classroom of the future can look like thanks to this investment in
technology--we need to continue to invest in this work.
The second area I would like to highlight is the very real
investment in our students' health. Federal funds in many school
districts were directed to implementing new or upgrading existing HVAC
systems, resulting in improved air quality within our schools.
To address air quality outside our school buildings, district
leaders used a combination of Federal resources to begin to purchase or
lease electric buses and charging stations. It is here I want to thank
Senator Warren for her work and vision to provide clean school buses to
our communities. Most recently, her work with the Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA)--Clean Bus Program has been instrumental in
bringing the benefits of electric buses to our communities. Five of our
MA school districts have taken advantage of the rebate competition and
awards: Fall River (11 buses), Bourne/Upper Cape Cod Regional
Vocational Technical School District (1 bus), New Bedford (14 buses),
west Springfield/Lower Pioneer Valley Educational Collaborative (25
buses), Lawrence (25 buses). \2\
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\2\ EPA News Releases, Oct. 26, 2022.
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The investment in clean buses is a value statement on so many
levels. It demonstrates to students that their health is valued; the
air quality of their community where they live is valued. We know
diesel buses contribute to air pollution which in turn contributes to
respiratory problems, such as asthma in our children. Our urban
communities have been the most disproportionately impacted by air
pollution with emissions from cars, public transit, trains, airports,
all converging to create a clean air crisis for our families. Helping
these communities in particular sends a message of their value and the
environmental justice we seek for them. In addition to making a dent in
air pollution, the zero emission buses are quieter thus reducing noise
pollution; and overtime, we believe the buses with charging stations
will be more cost-effective and sustainable for our school districts.
Our district leaders wanted to share that they are grateful for
Round 1 and are eagerly awaiting Round 2 as they seek to replace their
diesel buses with environmentally friendly, healthier transportation.
One of our district leaders shared that his school district and city
did not have the money to take on this initiative, ``it would not have
happened, if it were not for these funds and the award.''
Here again is an example of a deep transformational change that has
begun and must continue and will continue with your ongoing support.
We can't go back when so much good has begun.
I thank you for listening to me today.
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