Surrounded by members of his cabinet, congressional leaders, and others, President Biden on November 15 signed into law the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Passed by Congress on November 5, the measure had been whittled down from $2.3 trillion, largely to garner bipartisan support. In the end, the bill was endorsed by 19 Republican senators, as well as 13 GOP House members. With the legislation's passage, $550 billion in new spending will be allocated over the next five years to improve U.S. infrastructure; support carbon-free power generation, including endangered nuclear plants; and bolster emerging technologies. The bill provides $6 billion in Department of Energy funding to support nuclear facilities that are under economic threat of premature closure and $2.4 billion for microreactors, small modular reactors, and advanced reactors.
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