ICYMI: Alongside President Joe Biden, Senator Warren Celebrates Federal Funding Awarded to Boston Logan Airport
Boston, MA -- Today, during an event with President Joe Biden, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) delivered remarks celebrating the $62 million dollar Airport Terminal Program awarded to Boston Logan Airport for their Terminal E modernization improvements and terminal roadways. The funding is a result of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Full remarks below as prepared for delivery.
September 12, 2022
U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren:
I’m here today with President Biden and our federal, state and local partners to celebrate an historic investment for Boston Logan Airport.
For most travelers from abroad, the Logan terminal is their first entry point into the United States. It’s also their first impression of this country, this Commonwealth and this city. Logan has served the airport and its passengers well for years, but after a while, everyone needs an upgrade.
Logan’s E Terminal was built in 1974 to serve 1.4 million passengers but saw a whopping 5 million passengers in 2019.
This $62 million in federal funding from the Infrastructure Law is part of a bold plan to modernize the airport to not only enhance the passenger experience, but also to help transform one of the busiest airports in the world to one that is also environmentally cleaner and more sustainable.
Funding from this grant will increase energy efficiency in Terminal E, assist Massport in meeting its Gold LEED certification goal, and save money in day to day operations.
Critics have long said that we can either spur economic development or address the climate crisis. But this project shows we can do both.
This grant will fund 154 full time jobs during construction—good union jobs.
That is only right: if taxpayers are spending their money to invest in America’s infrastructure, they have a right to know that those dollars are supporting work that is of the highest quality from well-trained professionals—and that means from union-certified specialists.
Taxpayers also have a right to know that their money helps support good jobs that strengthen this economy and lift workers up instead of tearing them down.
Unions built America’s middle class and union jobs will rebuild it.
This grant will also help increase the airport's capacity, which means more tourism for the entire Commonwealth. And that means more people going to our restaurants in cities and towns throughout Massachusetts—more visitors to MassMOCA, more Europeans discovering the Berkshires, more tourists visiting each of our beautiful ocean-front communities. It also means more business travel and more business for the companies that were hit so hard during COVID and that are still recovering from the pandemic.
And the best news is that there is more federal help on the way. Massachusetts will receive billions of dollars in additional funding for our highways, roads, transit and bridges. Boston is the site of today’s celebration, but it is critical that we work with the new state government to improve infrastructure in every part of this state.
The Democrats in Congress recently passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which is the boldest environmental bill of our lifetime. We could not get a single Republican vote, but we went ahead with a plan that will cut emissions by 40%--a 40% cut in less than eight years. It will also create 9 million new jobs. And it is paid for with my 15% minimum tax on billionaire corporations!
But that isn’t all we should be celebrating. Congress passed the CHIPS and SCIENCE Act which will nearly double funding for the National Science Foundation and other critical research work. That investment will drive innovation for decades to come.
And while we’re talking about investing in our future, I want to mention something that Congresswoman Pressley and I have been working on with the President for a long time – we’ve finally taken a big step to help people with their student loan debt.
This is all thanks to President Biden and to those of us on this stage who try hard to work together and who share a vision for an America in which opportunity is not reserved just for the richest among us, but is an American that builds opportunity for all our people.
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