White House races to dole out funding from key legislation before Trump takes office

By: CNN

Posted: Nov 11, 2024 6:08 AM CST
Updated: Nov 11, 2024 4:30 PM CST

Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP via CNN Newsource

By Arlette Saenz

(CNN) — The White House is racing to dole out remaining funds appropriated from key legislation President Joe Biden signed before President-elect Donald Trump takes office in 10 weeks.

That includes finalizing agreements between the Commerce Department and manufacturing companies for federal semiconductor subsidies; allocating grants for climate initiatives; and surging available money and weaponry to war-torn Ukraine.

The implementation efforts reflect one slice of how the Biden administration is working to shore up key initiatives as the second Trump presidency approaches.

After he bowed out of the 2024 race in July, Biden tasked his team with ramping up the implementation of key legislation, including the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law; the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act; and the health care and climate law known as the Inflation Reduction Act, which passed along party lines.

That directive has taken on heightened significance since voters decided to send Trump back to the White House next year, leaving Democrats with a narrow window to finish their work.

White House deputy chief of staff Natalie Quillian, who has focused on the implementation of Biden’s “Investing in America” agenda, said teams across the administration are spending the next 10 weeks “really heads down” trying to “get this money out the door, get agreements signed and get these benefits to the American people.”

“We have had that urgency since the day these bills have passed because we know the power of this agenda and the power of the transformational work that is happening as we implement each piece of legislation,” Quillian added.

“We still have plenty of work to do, and we have around 72 days, I think, to get it done,” said John Podesta, a senior White House adviser on clean energy who is also leading the US delegation at the UN climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, the first official day at COP29, Podesta said the Biden administration is “fully committed” to obligating outstanding funding under Biden’s climate law, the Inflation Reduction Act.

Feeling the impact down the road

Since Trump’s victory last week, Biden has touted the accomplishments of his administration, arguing his team’s work will endure after he leaves the White House.

But the president has acknowledged it’s going to take time for many Americans to see and feel the effects of these laws, highlighting one of the challenges he faced when he was seeking reelection.

Behind the scenes, the president at times grew impatient that it could take years for many of the tangible benefits of new legislation — from construction projects to newly created jobs in manufacturing plants — to be seen by voters.

Speaking in the Rose Garden on Thursday, Biden said the “vast majority” of his administration’s work will be felt over the next decade, adding that some of the legislation is “only now just really kicking in.”

“We’re going to see over a trillion dollars’ worth of infrastructure work done, changing people’s lives in rural communities and communities that are in real difficulty, because it takes time to get it done. … But it’s there,” he said.

A look at the money

Much of the work of implementation focuses on pushing the funding already approved by Congress out to different sectors across the country.

Since taking office, Biden has signed the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law; the $200 billion CHIPS and Science Act, including $50 billion for the Commerce Department’s CHIPS efforts, aimed at boosting semiconductor manufacturing in the US; and the $750 billion Inflation Reduction Act, which touches health care, taxes and climate initiatives.

The Biden administration has announced $642.1 billion in total from those three pieces of legislation — which represents 92% of the funding available to spend by the end of the fiscal year 2024, a White House official said.

That has included $504.1 billion for infrastructure, making up 96% of the funding available from the infrastructure law. About $288 billion won’t be available until fiscal year 2025 or later. That formula funding goes to states for work on roads, bridges and clean water programs.

About $103 billion in Inflation Reduction Act funding, which makes up 92% of the law’s total, has been announced as of late October. That money can be used for things such as clean energy rebates, helping coastal communities prepare for rising seas, and slashing pollution from oil and gas operations. There is also $14.8 billion for the law after fiscal year 2025.

House Republicans have tried to repeal some of the Inflation Reduction Act’s biggest programs. But administration officials and outside clean energy experts feel more confident that Republicans will leave some of the biggest tax credits, including those focusing on manufacturing, alone — because red districts are benefiting from them.

Biden also signed the $1.9 trillion Covid-19 economic relief package known as the American Rescue Plan. Most of that money has been spent, less a small amount pulled back by Congress.

On Ukraine, Biden is eager to get as much money and weaponry directly to the country before he leaves office, well aware that the future of its US support hangs in the balance under Trump. Democrats have acknowledged that whatever is unspent from the $61 billion in funding passed by Congress earlier this year could be clawed back down the road.

Semiconductor subsidy funding

Through the CHIPS Act, the Commerce Department has $39 billion available for federal subsidies for companies as they aim to boost semiconductor chip manufacturing in the US, along with $11 billion in research and development funding.

The department has allocated the vast majority of the federal incentives — about $36 billion — and plans to announce the rest by the end of the year, a White House official said. Additional CHIPS announcements could come as soon as this week, an administration official said.

The Commerce Department has entered into preliminary agreements for subsidies with more than 20 companies, including two announced last week that would give a $32 million grant to New York-based glass company Corning and $3 million to semiconductor manufacturer Powerex in Pennsylvania.

But so far, only one legally durable award has been finalized. That award provides up to $123 million to Polar Semiconductor to ramp up production of sensor and power chips at its manufacturing facility in Minnesota.

Much of the department’s work in the final months could focus on getting more awards and investments across the finish line. Some of the biggest outstanding tentative agreements included billions in subsidy funding for companies such as GlobalFoundries, Intel, Micron Technology, Samsung and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company.

Awards are legally binding and structured to provide funding once certain benchmarks are met, administration officials said, meaning the funding can be rescinded only if the companies fail to meet the agreed upon standards or by an act of Congress.

While Trump has criticized the CHIPS legislation as “so bad,” it has enjoyed bipartisan support because the plans could create jobs and infuse money into local communities.

“The CHIPS and Science Act passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, and it has unlocked more than $400 billion in total investments, is expected to create more than 125,000 jobs, and produced historic gains in American manufacturing investments,” a Commerce Department spokesperson said.

As House Speaker Mike Johnson campaigned with a vulnerable Republican lawmaker in New York last month, the Louisiana Republican quickly walked back comments that he’d consider repealing the measure. He has said Republicans could work to “streamline” parts of the bill, including environmental requirements.

CNN’s Betsy Klein and Ella Nilsen contributed to this report.