WASHINGTON, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump Tuesday urged the Congress to pass a bipartisan infrastructure bill in order to create at least 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars of investment.
"I am calling on the Congress to produce a bill that generates at least 1.5 trillion (U.S. dollars) for the new infrastructure investment that our country so desperately needs," Trump said in his first State of the Union address before lawmakers.
He touted the idea of using federal government funds as incentives to stimulate state and local government funds as well as private capital in infrastructure investment.
In order to stimulate more investment in infrastructure, Trump also called on lawmakers to streamline the permitting and approval process for infrastructure investment.
"We built the Empire State Building in just one year. Isn't it a disgrace that it can now take 10 years just to get a permit approved for a simple road?" Trump said in his speech.
He called on the Congress to shorten the permitting process to "no more than two years."
According to a report by the Government Accountability Office, the median time to complete the environmental review of a complex highway project is at least seven years.
A statement released by the White House Tuesday said the administration will also enhance its support for infrastructure projects in rural areas.
Darrell West, a senior fellow at the Washington-based think tank Brookings Institution, told Xinhua that infrastructure might be the only possibility for bipartisanship.
"That may be an area where the parties could come together because each side understands the need to rebuild bridges, highways and dams," West said.
