Well the election of 2020 is all over but for the shouting, and I for one am glad to see it go. But what do the results mean for the aggregates industry?
If we proceed with the assumption that Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States and Donald Trump will not prevail in court to change the election results; and if we proceed with the assumption that the House of Representatives will remain under control of the Democrats and the Senate will remain under control of the Republicans, on the surface that looks like a recipe for gridlock.
Will Biden be able to take his experience as a senator and a vice president, and use it to forge compromises with Congress? Remains to be seen.
Can we harken back to previous times when old-school politicos gave a little to get a little? Not sure.
With a successor bill to the FAST Act due before the end of 2021, I predict we will definitely see that piece of legislation emerge. It is the one true bipartisan issue in play. That’s good news.
How successful will Biden be in instituting a rollback of regulatory reforms and a modification to corporate tax rates? He will be in for a fight there.
If nothing else, it is my fervent hope that a new form of stability is able to manifest in Washington, because stability is good for Wall Street, financial markets, and for business in general. And if we can move past the COVID era, that would be the icing on the cake.
It is important to note that voters in 18 states approved a record 94% of state and local ballot initiatives to date, providing an additional $14 billion in one-time and recurring revenue for transportation improvements throughout the country, according to an analysis by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association.
Almost every election, voters at the local level approve a majority of the transportation proposals put before them. It is a winning issue locally. Now if our national legislators would take a cue from that, it would be a positive step forward.