WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Biden administration is looking for projects to revamp U.S. ports as it ramps up spending from the $1 trillion infrastructure bill.
President Joe Biden, facing political pressure as Americans worry about higher inflation and supply chain woes, has tried to clear port backlogs that have slowed the movement of a record number of goods to market as the U.S. economy recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The U.S. Department of Transportation on Wednesday requested proposals for $450 million in grants to expand port terminals, piers, rail yards and storage facilities. It's the highest amount ever offered through the Port Infrastructure Development Program, officials said.
Overall, some $17 billion will be spent on the ports effort. Biden officials hope that smoother-functioning infrastructure will get imported goods on store shelves faster and at lower cost. They also hope Buy American provisions in the overall infrastructure bill will lift domestic manufacturing businesses.
The Department of Transportation plans to release a broad report this week laying out further recommendations on freight and logistics issues.