$1.5T for Infrastructure in Proposed “Moving Forward” Act, Municipal-Friendly Elements Included
06/22/2020
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The U.S. House unveiled its H.R. 2, Moving Forward Act last Thursday. The text of the bill was finally uncovered today, June 22nd. The Moving Forward Act is a $1.5 trillion package that combines several infrastructure-related elements.
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Some of the municipal bond market-friendly items will: seek to permanently reinstate a Build America Bond (BAB)-like infrastructure bond program that’s exempt from sequestration, permanently reinstate the use of tax-exempt bonds for advance refundings, permanently increase the bank-qualified limit to $30 million, and increase and expand issuance authority of private activity bonds. It also seeks to reinstate Qualified Zone Academy bonds and authorizes a new category of taxable school infrastructure bonds.
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The U.S. House is expected to vote on the Moving Forward Act proposal before the July 4th holiday.
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What is unclear is if the Moving Forward Act, including the municipal-friendly elements, has a realistic chance to become law by the November 2020 election. What is clear is that the inclusion of the municipal-friendly elements is a short-term success that can hopefully be built upon.
