Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., is turning up the heat on President Trump to back a provision in the final version of a water infrastructure bill that would require American steel and iron be used for water infrastructure projects, a move that could hold up passage of the bill, or even drive up costs for contractors.
The provision was not included in the House’s version of the legislation that passed this month.
The White House announced in June that Trump’s advisers are recommending the president approve the House’s Water Resources Development Act, which authorizes projects from the Army Corps of Engineers, should it reach Trump’s desk in the current form.
But Baldwin is calling on Trump to “correct the omission” of the House’s version of WRDA to include her “Buy America” reform that would require that only American-made iron and steel be used in projects supported by the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund.
“I strongly believe American workers should build our infrastructure with American products, and taxpayers’ money should not be spent to support foreign workers,” Baldwin wrote in a letter to Trump this month. “Our American manufacturers and workers deserve a permanent Buy America pledge from Washington that rewards their hard work and my legislation … provides this commitment.”
The “Buy America” provision was included in the WRDA legislation approved last month by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and Baldwin noted that Trump backed her legislation last year when he said “I agree with her 100 percent” during a visit to Kenosha, Wis.
“However, this House bill fails to include a strong and permanent Buy America standard that you have previously supported,” Baldwin said in the letter.
“In closing, I again urge you to correct the omission of the House WRDA by ensuring that the WRDA legislation that reaches your desk includes this crucial reform that we both support to require that our nation’s drinking water infrastructure is built with American workers and American-made materials,” she added.
This isn’t the first time Baldwin has attempted to insert her “Buy America” reform provision into WRDA. The Senate’s version of WRDA in 2016 included the language as well, but it was later withdrawn from the final version by House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin. Baldwin cited in her letter media reports that claimed Ryan removed the language after urging from lobbyists for foreign steelmakers.
As a result, Baldwin said she wants Trump to communicate to Republican leaders such as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Ryan that she wants her “Buy America” provision included in the final WRDA bill.
“President Trump has supported my permanent Buy America reform and he should make it clear to Majority Leader McConnell and Speaker Ryan that he wants it included in the water infrastructure legislation that goes to his desk,” Baldwin said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
Joseph Kane, a senior research analyst and associate fellow of the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution, said it was hard to anticipate the impact of such a provision, but noted it could drive up costs for contractors.
He also predicted that the administration will support Baldwin’s push to include the provision in WRDA.
“The president has commented on his support for WRDA, and for getting the bill done,” Kane said. “And so I imagine that this provision, since it falls in line with what he and his administration have called for in the past, I don’t see there being necessarily hesitation from that side of things.”
But Kane said it was an open question as to how lawmakers would proceed. He also pointed out that the WRDA has been passed on a biennial schedule since 2014 and is progressing through Congress. Kane said this means the larger issue will be whether congressional leadership would be willing to delay the legislation over the “Buy America” provision.
“If it does turn into a sticking point, and it may not, but if it does and it gets stripped out or if there are disagreements, to what extent will Hill leaders be willing to hold up WRDA to hash out this issue?” Kane said.
“Whatever the House does is going to have to be hashed out in conjunction with the Senate,” Kane added. “The conversation, if anything, is going to continue and it’s going to go beyond Paul Ryan and Tammy Baldwin.”
