We cannot afford to return to “normal”…
…because “normal” was fundamentally unjust, unhealthy, and unstable.
“Over 15 million people are out of work. The economic crisis has reinforced long standing injustices, as women, Black workers, and low-income households endure particularly severe job losses. Toxic pollution and escalating climate disasters only magnify the inequity by exacerbating threats to public health and economic security.”
- Marti Townsend, former Chapter Director
But together, we can build back better.
We need an economic renewal plan that is as big and interconnected as the crises we face.
So what will this plan do for the people of Hawaiʻi?
ROADS AND BRIDGES
In Hawaiʻi, there are 84 bridges and over 664 miles of highway in poor condition. Since 2011, commute times have increased by 9.7% in Hawaii and on average, each driver pays $818 per year in costs due to driving on roads in need of repair. The American Jobs Plan will devote more than $600 billion to transform our nations' transportation infrastructure and make it more resilient, including $115 billion repairing roads and bridges.
RESILIENT INFRASTRUCTURE
From 2010 to 2020, the United States has experienced 145 extreme weather events, costing the nation an estimated $921 billion in damages. The President is calling for $50 billion to improve the resiliency of our infrastructure and support communities’ recovery from disaster.
HOUSING
In part due to a lack of available and affordable housing, 98,000 renters in Hawaii are rent burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on rent. The President proposes investing over $200 billion to increase housing supply and address the affordable housing crisis.
CAREGIVING
Across the country, hundreds of thousands of older adults and people with disabilities are in need of home and community-based services. The President’s plan will invest $400 billion to help more people access care and improve the quality of caregiving jobs.
HOME ENERGY
In Hawaiʻi, an average low-income family spends 6-8% of their income on home energy costs forcing tough choices between paying energy bills and buying food, medicine or other essentials. The American Jobs Plan will upgrade low-income homes to make them more energy efficient through a historic investment in the Weatherization Assistance Program, a new Clean Energy and Sustainability Accelerator to finance building improvements, and expanded tax credits to support home energy upgrades.
CLEAN ENERGY JOBS
As of 2019, there were 13,927 people in Hawaiʻi working in clean energy, and the American Jobs Plan invests in creating more good paying union jobs advancing clean energy production by extending and expanding tax credits for clean energy generation, carbon capture and sequestration and clean energy manufacturing.
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
The people of Hawaiʻi who take public transportation spend an extra 77.2% of their time commuting and non-White households are 2.2 times more likely to commute via public transportation. 20% of trains and other transit vehicles in the state are past useful life. The American Jobs Plan will modernize public transit with an $85 billion investment.
DRINKING WATER
Over the next 20 years, Hawaii’s drinking water infrastructure will require $1.2 billion in additional funding. The American Jobs Plan includes a $111 billion investment to ensure clean, safe drinking water is a right in all communities.
BROADBAND INTERNET
44% of the people in Hawaiʻi live in areas where, by one definition, there is only one broadband internet provider that provides minimally acceptable speeds. Even where infrastructure is available, broadband may be too expensive to be within reach. 12% of Hawaiʻi households do not have an internet subscription. The American Jobs Plan will invest $100 billion to bring universal, reliable, high-speed, and affordable coverage to every family in America.
CHILD CARE
In Hawaiʻi, there is an estimated $88 million gap in what schools need to do maintenance and make improvements, and 68% of residents live in a childcare desert. The American Jobs Plan will modernize our nation’s schools and early learning facilities and build new ones in neighborhoods across Hawaiʻi and the country.
MANUFACTURING
Manufacturers account for more than $187 billion of total output in Hawaiʻi, employing 14,000 workers, or 2% of the state’s workforce. The American Job’s Plan will invest $300 billion to retool and revitalize American manufacturers.
VETERAN’S HEALTH
Hawaiʻi is home to over 112,304 veterans, 10.6% of whom are women and 44.6% of whom are over the age of 65. The President is calling for $18 billion to improve the infrastructure of VA health care facilities to ensure the delivery of world-class, state of the art care to veterans enrolled in the VA health care system. This includes improvements to ensure appropriate care for women and older veterans.
Hawaiʻi’s infrastructure received a D+ grade on its Infrastructure Report Card. We need repairs and updates, and we need them NOW.
And we need to help millions of people get back to work to build a more equitable, clean energy economy. Good thing the American Jobs Plan will make a historic investment in Hawaiʻi’s infrastructure and our people!