$15 billion to replace lead pipes, plus money for roads and internet

This law sent new federal money to states and cities for five years to fix roads, bridges and transit, clean up drinking water, and bring high-speed internet to more homes. It included $15 billion to find and replace lead pipes, which can leach lead into tap water. States distribute that money through drinking water funds, and 49% goes to disadvantaged communities, as each state defines them, as grants or forgivable loans. You do not apply; your water utility, transit agency, or state does.

The law also created the Affordable Connectivity Program, which took up to $30 a month off internet bills for low-income households, or $75 on tribal lands. More than 23 million households signed up. Congress did not add money when the $14.2 billion ran out, and the program ended June 1, 2024.

A ten-senator group led by Rob Portman, a Republican, and Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat, wrote the deal. Bill Cassidy, Susan Collins, Joe Manchin, Lisa Murkowski, Mitt Romney, Jeanne Shaheen, Jon Tester, and Mark Warner also negotiated it. It passed the Senate 69–30, with 19 Republicans voting yes, and the House 228–206. The Senate deal went into Rep. Peter DeFazio’s bill; President Joe Biden negotiated with the group and signed it on November 15, 2021. Congress partly paid for the law by rescinding $41.8 billion in unobligated COVID relief and adopting new revenue measures, including cryptocurrency broker reporting. CBO still estimated that it would add $256 billion to deficits through 2031. Congress did not renew the five annual rounds of advance appropriations after fiscal 2026, but projects already funded are still being built, including broadband networks expected to finish in 2030 and beyond.