Internal Senate memo highlights Biden admin efforts to tie highway funding to woke priorities

FIRST ON FOX: An internal memorandum flowed amongst legislators by Senate Commerce Committee Republicans highlights how the Biden administration is connecting billions of dollars in taxpayer funds to “woke efforts.”

The memo, very first acquired by Fox News Digital, was sent out late Monday night and led by Commerce Committee Ranking Member Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who is preparing to author legislation that would restrict the Department of Transport (DOT) from connecting federal funds to left-wing concerns. It especially targets DOT’s management of 3 grant programs that work as essential lorries to money different kinds of surface area transport tasks across the country.

” Billions upon billions of taxpayer dollars suggested for facilities tasks are connected to woke efforts that are more concentrated on taking apart America’s facilities in the name of ‘equity’ and ‘environment modification’ than developing roadways, bridges, and highways to link the nation,” the memo states.

” Congress should not enable the Department of Transport to press the ridiculous principle of ‘racist roadways’ to avoid Americans from getting much-needed enhancements to their highways,” it continued. “The financing notifications released by DOT needs to concentrate on the law as composed, not woke concerns.”

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In June, Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg revealed that his company had actually begun accepting applications for the National Facilities Task Help, Facilities for Reconstructing America (INFRA), and Rural Surface area Transport Grant programs. The 3 programs got a cumulative $5.6 billion increase, the majority of which supports INFRA, under the Facilities Financial Investment and Jobs Act of 2021.

Buttigieg stated the grants ultimately granted under the programs would support “transformational facilities tasks throughout the country.” However the Notification of Financing Chance (NOFO) the DOT released as part of its grant awarding procedure states receivers need to broadly deal with equity and environment issues

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” Tasks that have actually not adequately thought about equity and barriers to chance in their preparation, as figured out by the Department, will be needed to do so before getting funds for building,” the DOT’s NOFO states.

” Tasks that have actually not adequately thought about environment modification and ecological justice in their preparation, as figured out by the Department, will be needed to do so before getting funds for building,” the file includes.

The 2 financing conditions point out President Biden’s day-one executive order entitled “Advancing Racial Equity and Assistance for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Federal government.”

Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg stated in 2021 that there is “bigotry physically constructed into a few of our highways.” ( AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Following Buttigieg’s statement, Cruz composed in July to the Federal Government Responsibility Workplace, requesting for verification that the NOFO is a guideline and, for that reason, undergoes Congressional Evaluation Act (CRA), a law going back almost 3 years that enables Congress to withdraw federal guidelines. The federal guard dog reacted last month, stating it was, in truth, based on the law.

According to the memo flowed Monday, Cruz will quickly present a CRA resolution “difficult ‘woke’ anti-highway policy in DOT grants.” The resolution would furthermore target other DOT policies such as framing roadway structure as increasing “vehicle reliance,” and condemning highway growth tasks that do not include electrical car charging stations or bike lanes.

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” Taken together, these additions, which significantly differ the requirements in law, will prefer states looking for to broaden public transportation and bike courses over states wishing to develop roadways. The additional requirements on grant contracts, which are required for cash to be paid after awards are revealed, are especially pernicious,” the memo includes.

” The DOT financing notification warranties that candidates will not get building funds unless they welcome the administration’s severe views on environment and equity,” it mentions, requiring Congress to support Cruz’s upcoming resolution that opposes the Biden administration’s “anti-highway program.”

The Transport Department’s financing choice focusing on equity and environment modification has actually been used to programs produced under President Biden’s 2021 Facilities Financial investment and Jobs Act. ( ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP by means of Getty Images)

For many years, left-wing groups like the American Civil Liberties Union and activists have actually argued U.S. cities traditionally utilized highway facilities to additional racist discrimination. Buttigieg has actually looked for to reverse previous racist policies that resulted in specific facilities choices.

” There is bigotry physically constructed into a few of our highways, which’s why the tasks prepare has actually particularly dedicated to reconnect a few of the neighborhoods that were divided by these dollars,” Buttigieg stated in an interview with theGrio in 2021.

In June 2022, Buttigieg introduced the $1 billion Reconnecting Neighborhoods program that intends to reverse facilities policies that divide neighborhoods and detach specific areas from financial chances.

” Transport can link us to tasks, services and liked ones, however we have actually likewise seen many cases around the nation where a piece of facilities cuts off a community or a neighborhood since of how it was constructed,” Buttigieg stated at the time.

” However we can’t disregard the standard reality that a few of the organizers and political leaders behind those tasks constructed them straight through the heart of dynamic, inhabited, neighborhoods– often in an effort to enhance partition,” he stated. “In some cases since individuals there had less power to withstand. And often as part of a direct effort to change or remove Black areas.”

The DOT didn’t instantly react to an ask for remark.