Bentz urges conservative spending
By Terry Murry on Tuesday, May 25th, 2021 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Biden administration has lowered its original infrastructure repair proposal from $2.3 trillion to $1.7 trillion. U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz (R-Ontario) said he knows the nation’s infrastructure needs repairing, but it needs to be done conservatively.
“Between $800 billion and $1 trillion is what the informed folks on the Republican side are saying,” Bentz said. “As you might guess, the real issue is how are you going to pay for it? That’s where discussions are right now.”
Bentz said his years as an Oregon state representative working on transportation and water issues have convinced him that aging infrastructure is a huge problem. The question is how do you get the money? The likely answer is some form of higher taxes.
“You can’t just print it,” Bentz said. “that does not work, and we’re seeing higher inflation now.”
