A new House committee in St. Paul will allow lawmakers to examine how the state spends money on infrastructure projects and improvements statewide and making sure it does so as sustainable a fashion as possible going forward.
Rep. Erin Koegel (DFL – Spring Lake Park) is chair of the committee, and she said it also hopes to help capitalize on an influx of federal money from President Biden’s infrastructure bill and the Inflation Reduction Act.
“This was really kind of a response to the moment of time, forming this brand-new committee to take a look at our state infrastructure picture as a whole,” said Rep. Koegel. “We want to make sure a heavy rainstorm isn’t going to wash away our roads, so how we thoughtfully plan to address multiple issues.”
Koegel said many smaller communities in the state may not have the staff or other resources to fully take advantage of federal money for projects, and she hopes this committee can help identify and partner with those cities and towns to make sure they can fund and plan these projects.
“They don’t know how to do it,” she said. “They don’t know how to get the money. My goal is to really get assistance on scoping projects, on making sure we get community feedback on the projects, and making sure we’re doing as many co-beneficial projects as possible.”
Koegel and her colleagues hope this can continue on beyond the short-term, when the state is finding ways to use the federal money and it’s forecasted record $17.6 billion budget surplus.
“What we’re really looking at is not just as the two-year budget cycle but really planning ahead for the future and what policies can we put in place to make sure we’re meeting the needs of our communities while making sure that we address sustainability and making sure that what we build lasts.”
