by Bill Swinford
In his March 1 State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, President Joe Biden presented a number of policy plans and proposals. Among those matters most important to state policymakers, the president:
— Noting “…most Americans and most of the country can now go mask-free…”, announced an updated federal approach to the COVID-19 pandemic, including:
- Continuing to protect against and treat the virus (including making antiviral pills available to anyone who tests positive at a pharmacy — called “test to treat”).
- Preparing for possible new variants.
- Preventing renewed shutdowns of schools and businesses.
- Expanding availability of vaccines worldwide.
— Highlighted portions of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act:
- “We’ll build a national network of 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations, begin to replace the poisonous lead pipes — so every child — every American — has clean water to drink at home and at school.
- “We’re going to provide affordable high-speed internet for every American — rural, urban, suburban and tribal communities.
- “Four thousand projects have already been announced…
- “We will start fixing over 65,000 miles of highway and 1,500 bridges in disrepair.”
— Announced proposals designed to reduce inflation, including:
- Investing in U.S.-based manufacturing.
- Addressing supply chain challenges.
- Subsidizing child care and elder care.
- Reducing prescription drug prices (in part by letting Medicare negotiate drug prices).
- Cutting energy prices through climate change initiatives:
- “…investments and tax credits to weatherize your homes and businesses to be energy efficient.
- “double America’s clean energy production in solar, wind, and so much more.
- “lower the price of electric vehicles…”
— Called for passage of “…the Bipartisan Innovation Act sitting in Congress that will make record investments in emerging technologies and American manufacturing.”
— Called on Congress to strengthen privacy protections across social media platforms. As noted in the recently released CSG Capitol Ideas magazine, “Technology companies (“Big Tech”) regularly collect millions of points of data on an individual. From online searches to social media posts, activity is tracked and catalogued to create a profile of an individual which facilitates tailoring the ads, sponsored content and recommendations to which they become exposed…In 2019, a study by the Pew Research Center found 81% of people believe they are unable to control the data collected by companies.”