Our bridges, levees, water mains, roads, sewers and dams are deteriorating. Yet we put off their maintenance even though we need the jobs. Thing will only get worse with climate change. For our next meeting, we will discuss the state of our infrastructure and the politics behind it. Here are the videos we will use for background:
- Crumbling America - A History Channel Documentary
- LaHood, Rendell make push to revitalize US infrastructure - PBS News Hour
- Infrastructure - John Oliver
While I was with the Army in Germany we constantly faced a budget shortfall and constantly allowed backlogged maintenance to grow. At one time the European BMAR (Backlog of Maintenance and Repair) approached $4 Billion. Facilities maintenance is always the first thing cut in a budget.
ReplyDeleteThe Army got smart and began to supply us "Fenced Funds" to be spend on BMAR reduction only!
In Maryland, we have some taxes for dedicated purposes, but somehow they get reallocated during crisis.
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