This is a guest opinion

Investing in Alabama’s infrastructure will help create shovel-ready jobs, support local businesses and industries, and boost local economies in communities throughout the state. However, for us to fully realize the potential of federal infrastructure investments, lawmakers in Congress must also pass permitting reform at the national level.

Through the bipartisan infrastructure law, Alabama is set to receive $5.8 billion just for upgrading, improving, and building out our core transportation infrastructure, including funding for road and bridges, like Highway 45. That could help move critical, long-overdue projects forward, like building a new bridge across Mobile Bay to ease traffic congestion, facilitate commerce, and improve quality of life for Alabamians.

These kinds of projects are vital to spurring economic growth and creating new opportunities in Alabama communities. However, without federal permitting reform, major infrastructure projects could get tied up in the review and approvals process for years, preventing or majorly delaying residents and businesses from reaping the benefits these initiatives could create.

The current permitting process can take many years to complete. Not only does that delay the actual construction of infrastructure projects, but it also drives up costs, makes investors hesitant to fund, and undermines financial liability. Without federal permitting reform, the United States will fall behind the rest of the world, particularly when it comes to infrastructure and energy development.

We need commonsense permitting reform that increases transparency, keeps infrastructure and energy projects on a reasonable timeline, and, most importantly, encourages businesses to continue investing in Alabama. Senator Katie Boyd Britt and our entire congressional delegation should continue working to get bipartisan permitting reform across the finish line before the end of this legislative session.

Rep. Shane Stringer, of north Mobile County, represents District 102 in the Alabama House of Representatives