Category: Financial

October 6, 2021

After a slight dip in 2020 as activity in the U.S. slowed due to uncertainty caused by the pandemic, contech funding exploded in 2021. Early stage funding in 2021 reached $738.3 million, while late stage funding increased to $1.1 billion, […]

October 6, 2021

At the crux of the issue is widespread violence in Alabama prisons. On Dec. 9, 2020, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the state of Alabama for what it called “unconstitutional conditions” in the prison system, such as […]

October 6, 2021

Oklahoma officials approved more than 300 additional projects worth nearly $2 billion for the state Dept. of Transportation’s eight-year construction plan on Oct. 4. ODOT now plans to spend $7.7 billion on more than 1,600 projects through 2029. The projects […]

October 4, 2021

Alabama officials have approved a plan to fund $1.3 billion in prison construction and renovations using COVID-19 relief money from the American Rescue Plan, among other sources. The state plans to build a pair of 4,000-bed “megaprisons” for men, to […]

September 30, 2021

With a deadline looming, Congress Sept. 30 approved a spending package that temporarily averted a shutdown of most federal agencies, including many construction programs, and provides nearly $29 billion in emergency funds to help states recover and rebuild after Hurricane […]

September 22, 2021

Every $1 increase in federal highway, bridge, and public transit investment under the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJA) will generate as much as $3.60 in economic activity, according to a new analysis from IHS Markit. According to the American […]

September 15, 2021

A key House committee has approved an infrastructure funding boost of more than $40 billion—including money for transit, highways, wastewater treatment and buildings—as part of the sweeping $3.5-trillion budget reconciliation package the chamber is now assembling. After a 15-hour meeting […]

September 14, 2021

Congress directed close to $200 billion to state and local education agencies in 2020 and 2021 to help reopen schools battered by COVID-19 through the ARP. The plan, signed into law by President Joe Biden in March, directly addresses pandemic-related […]

August 19, 2021

Overall construction input prices increased 23.1% from a year ago, as of July, according the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index. Non-residential construction rose 23.4% in the same time period, with steel mill products soaring 108.6%. Energy prices […]

August 13, 2021

ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu pointed to several reasons for the escalation, including a rebounding economy, ongoing supply chain disruptions and limited productive capacity. “Many economists insist that the current situation is merely temporary; still, today’s input price increases can […]