My career at the Trucking Association and you dont ever get it out of your blood i dont think so it is an important topic at the right time. Thank you to the partners and sponsors and the talented team for putting this together. The chamber is a founding sponsor which by the way i meant to ask the team. We are proud to see how this event has grown and reached scope every year. You know more about infrastructure than i will ever learn so i dont need to tell you the problem this is for the country. The nationwide challenge. The next five days businesses around the nation will gather with government officials at some 100 events nation wide, boston, las vegas, la and right here in the nations capital. Through all the activities as you just heard we will send a strong and unified message that its time to build. We have a once in a Generation Opportunity to make progress modernizing the nations infrastructure and we must seize it with urgency. Weve had the need to build for years. Now we have the leadership to do something about it. The president promised action and we conducted a new poll revealed 70 of americans surveyed want the federal government to invest in infrastructure and by similar margins we understand it closeparen in the economy and help businesses and create jobs. We heard the same message all over the country talking to small and mediumsized business leaders. We know infrastructure is important and worth the investment so with the political stars are lining longterm strategic investment in rebuilding our country is now possible. The to make the most of this moment. It starts right here right now with each of you. Over the course of the program we will hear from a lineup of industries in the political spectrum. Lets hear from a longtime partner and advocate for infrastructure. Im the president oi am the e aflcio. Welcome to infrastructure we 2017. I want to thank my friend and partner for his commitment to rebuilding america. We started this campaign five years ago to raise awareness about infrastructure needs and weve done exactly that. Now is the time for the leaders to act. If they bille they build it it e frofrom the good jobs, higher wages, Economic Growth but this is a field of dreams. We have been discussing and delaying and it is time to build. Every day we wait is an opportunity lost. President s trump proposed 1 trillion of infrastructure investment. My question is this. Where is the bill, it is go time. Bring legislation to the floor. All that we ask is that it is done the right way with public funding and higher labor standards supporting american jobs, American Resources and american steel. Business and labor are divided on a lot of issues but infrastructure isnt one of them. The American People want us to build today. Roads, bridges, schools, water, sewer, electricity, you name it. Our mandate is clear. Its time to build. So lets get to work. [applause] its sort of wakes us up in the morning. With the Labor Union Leaders in the country on the fundamental realities we face that is how do we rebuild americas infrastructure. So, one thing is certain, we can agree on this is surely the one we will work on vigorously and continually. As suzanne said a minute ago, it is about time. Ive been fighting infrastructure for many years. Remember i used to be at the american Trucking Associations and in all of my time in washington its hard to think of another movement and the potential for real and meaningful progress on infrastructure has been so gre great. Im not saying it its going te easy or quick but its possible and its likely so now we have to welcome the challenge. The debate over what the infrastructure package should be is heating up. We are looking forward from the secretary of transportation in wayne chil elaine chao she sas more to come in the immediate future. The chamber is ready to work closely with her end of the leaders at pennsylvania avenue to get this done. This morning i want to lay out the priorities for the infrastructure package that we believe will be the key to success. Its got to be about Economic Growth and im not talking about a sugar rush of the spending feel good in the moment. Im talking serious Strategic Investments that support the nations longterm growth and competitiveness and that means taking on the big projects the way the Transcontinental Railroad did in the 19th century that will broaden the physical platform. Our investments today must support the 21st century economy and its involving need. Pipelines and power grid to connect the nation digitally and physically. We have to build one that they cannot break into so easily. Projects should be funded for the longterm Economic Growth not placed on the speed that they can be completed. Theres 250 billion in the private capital available for infrastructure investment. My own view there is a lot more than that. Here in the United States and available from investors all over the world we need to remove the barriers for getting that money. They could jumpstart that investment. We should think about it this way. Most people dont go out and buy a house and pay cash or a car and pay cash. They agreed to pay a certain amount of cash all the time and that is what we have to do to finance these projects. We need more money, but it has to be the amount to pay down the longterm investments. We all share a passage last year but after 36 shortterm extensions over ten years card that was a huge victory. But the underlying problem is the solvency of the highway trust fund. Those problems havent gone away. It doesnt win many popularity contests, but i continue to call for a modest increase in the federal fuel tax for 24 years we havent increased its so it is half of what it was before when you figure the miles per gallon. He expressed his openness to consider such a solution. Its how the existing programs can be used and if necessarily improved. We cant take it without the cash. The third priority is to adopt the needed reform to ensure the right projects get done in a transparent Cost Effective way and you all know we need greater accountability to focus on the best practices and improve the issues on permitting and followup transparency that is the key to attracting private investment. They wont do money to go to the agreed and have it be spent accordingly. We must invest in the future. Technology innovation will increase so weve got to equip the infrastructure now with new advances. The process must be quick and nimble. We are confident is an infrastructure package is built around these priorities and will have the support needed to move the congress and most importantly achieved the goal of building an infrastructure system may be the secretary of transportation with her influence at home and abroad will be able to find a way to do things that are built. Kicking the can down the road is not acceptable that its time to get started and do it now so let me introduce the woman that is going to be in charge. We are privileged to hear from one of the leaders that will be at the senates. This is the first time we are hosting secretary elaine chao but she is no stranger to the community. We go all the way back to when she was the deputy secretary after Christopher Columbus came. For me she was very young at the time and we continued working closely when she was the secretary of labor. We know she is going to be just as dedicated and effective in their new role. I cant think of anyone better suited to lead the infrastructure conversation unfolding here and around the country then secretary chao. She has the experience and determination to see through. They have been hard at work to get the Team Together working on this project in the Business Community they are partners ready to lend a hand so please join me in welcoming the secretary is a great leader for the project. [applause] thank you for that gracious introduction even though you said it was the Christopher Columbus area but thats okay. In a very special thank you to the infrastructure for putting together the series of events all across the country highlighting the infrastructure challenges. As you know, the infrastructure is the backbone of the economy. One of the most productive and dynamic in the world. It is a key factor in productivity and Economic Growth which has provided millions of hardworking americans for the standard of living that is truly envy of the world. And its also provided the country with unprecedented mobility, safety and security. And yet today they are threatened by crumbling infrastructure that is increasingly congested in need of repair and unable to keep pace with technological change. We are fortunate to have a president that understands the challenge. Hes made revitalizing the infrastructure one of the top priority is. They will share their vision of what the infrastructure plan will look like in the next several which will kick off the collaboration with congress. To put the proposal together, the white house launched a wideranging consultative consultative process and is included in Interagency Task force, consisting of 16 different federal Government Departments and agencies including transportation, omb, treasury, commerce, interior, epa, agriculture, labor, energy, the department of defense, veterans affairs, the council of Environmental Quality is in the white house, the Education Department and others. In meetings and consultations with governors, leaders. Its important to hear from the myriad of stakeholders and not repeat the mistakes of the past. As the omb director recently announced, the infrastructure plan will include 200 billion in direct federal funds. They will be used to leverage a trillion dollars of Infrastructure Investments over the next ten years. The omb is identifying offsets to avoid future generations with more debt and thats why the key feature of the infrastructure plan will be unleashing billions of dollars in private capital available for investment in infrastructure. Theyve told us again and again that there is Ample Capital available waiting to invest in infrastructure. The problem is the delay caused by the government permitting indian approval process which hold up to projects for years and decades. These increase the cost and the risk adding uncertainty and billions of dollars to the projects. Thats why another key part of the infrastructure plan will include commonsense regulatory administrative organizational policy changes to speed up the project delivery and reduce uncertainty. Many of the departments and agencies mentioned in the Interagency Task force will have a role in addressing these issues. The department of transportation has already initiated an internal regulatory review process, the federal Highway Administration for example has taken the first steps to reduce the Regulatory Burden and is looking for more ways to speed things up. The task force on the department of transportation has been assembled and identified many legislative regulatory changes that could streamline project approval. Not only cuts costs that could improve the environmental outcomes by delivering Infrastructure Improvements more quickly and sending resources on actual Environmental Mitigation rather than the stacks of paperwork. This picture shows the collapsed bridge, and the second shows the new bridge which was just replaced in 49 days. The department of transportation was off the ground immediately after the incident and within 12 hours, the department had delivered 10 million of emergency relief funds to help replace the bridge. It was identified and expedited to ensure timely execution of contracts. Now of course replacing a structure starting a project from scratch. Every project from years two months there is much room for improvement. Atlanta is an example of what you can accomplish with the government working together. As we begin to implement the infrastructure reforms that will hopefully be created. This will help projects that are being funded and financed so for example states and localities that have some funding or financing of their own Infrastructure Projects will be given to use it as an incentive to get the project is underway and built more quickly with greater participation by state, local and private partners. This approach is in line with studies that show that federal spending often substitutes rather than augments the state and local spending on infrastructure. That was a conclusion on the spending. The administration would like to avoid that outcome. Currently less than one fifth of all Infrastructure Spending is that the. The rest comes from state, local and private sources. The administration wants to maintain the privacy of state and local spending and use federal funding as the leverage to increase the total amount available for infrastructure. At the same time, everyone recognizes there is no onesizefitsall revenue model for the project. The roads may work well in the areas they generate consistent revenue because of high traffic and high demand to lower demand may not generate enough to repay private investment. This administration is committed to in infrastructure package that addresses the needs of the entire country urban and rural. Available via the payments for example are one of the most widely used alternative financing methods for the infrastructure in the world and in this model to build, operate and maintain a piece of infrastructure. In return they receive payments from the government over a specified period ospecific perid certain milestones and targets are met. Using this approach, the government doesnt have to bear the full cost of infrastructure upfront and missed th the risk e public and private sector is mitigated so there are many models out there to be considered. The administrations definition of infrastructure is broad and inclusive and not only recognizes traditional infrastructure such as the roads, bridges, railroads, airports it may also include energy, water, broadband, veterans hospitals as well and that is why there are 16 different departments working to put together this initiative. In addition a few special projects that are not candidates for private investments will likely be identified and funded directly. Candidates for the special category may include projects that have the potential to lift the americans. As well as streamlining the process will have the biggest impact on the infrastructure development. But in the process of revitalizing the infrastructure we are also looking at ways to revitalize the countrys workforce. This is especially important to me. Far too many workers are being left behind because they are not equipped with the skills and the demand in the rapidly changing economy. In transportation for example, drivers of the future will be in charge of the fleet that talk to one another. Drones will inspect the infrastructure with precision and reliability that require human control, oversight and analysis for the Digital Literacy and higher skills will be key. They dont need an expensive degree to access a piece jobs. The program at the local Community College is an important resource as well. Training to High School Students and excellent Training Programs offered by many skilled trade unions. To be relevant, all of the skills Training Programs have caught to involve the employers because they know which ones they require. Lets add the emerging technology requires an approach on safety while encouraging innovation and preserve creativity. Creativity and innovation are the greatest genius of america, one of its hallmarks and in the policymaking arena we must safeguard and nurture this legacy. But they share with the public their understanding of the new technology and address legitimate public concerns about safety and privacy. But he closelet me close by note heard from other speakers theres never been in more a moe exciting time to be involved in infrastructure. Its a National Priority and has growing public support. Theres also rare bipartisan consensus that now is the time to act. Thank you for inviting me today. I look forward to working with you to incentivize the barriers to change an usher a new era of prosperity for the country and its residents and thank you for helping us highlight these important issues across the country. [applause] and the effect of the nomination this from a meeting on the association in indianapolis earlier this month. Its an hour and 15 minutes. Good morning ladies and gentlemen thank you for being here this beautiful afternoon. My name is