U.S. Senate Republicans unveil 568 bln USD infrastructure investment plan

WASHINGTON, April 22 (Xinhua) -- A group of U.S. Senate Republicans on Thursday unveiled a 568-billion-U.S. dollar infrastructure investment plan over a five-year period as they seek compromise with Democrats on the issue.

"This is the largest infrastructure investment Republicans have come forward with," Shelley Moore Capito, the top Republican on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said at a press conference unveiling the proposal.

"We see this as an offer that is on the table and deserves a response. I think we will get a response. We look forward to that and we're ready to get to work," she said.

Pat Toomey, a Republican senator from Pennsylvania, also noted that this Republican proposal would sensibly rebuild the nation's real infrastructure "without raising taxes or increasing the debt."

"When Americans think of rebuilding our nation's infrastructure, they think of fixing roads, bridges, airports, ports, and waterways -- not expanding the welfare state as the Democrats have proposed," Toomey said.

The Republican proposal came after U.S. President Joe Biden last month proposed a series of corporate tax changes that could raise roughly 2 trillion dollars over 15 years to pay for infrastructure investments in eight years.

The Biden proposal, dubbed the American Jobs Plan, was widely welcomed by Democrats, but Republicans have flatly rejected any increase in taxes. Meanwhile, concerns over mounting debt and inflationary risks are expected to further complicate the plan's prospects.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday that the Republican proposal marked a starting point for discussions but didn't comment on the details.

"And the next steps will be conversations at the staff level, conversations between senior members of our administration, members of Congress, appropriate committee staff through the course of next week," Psaki said at a daily press briefing, adding the president will invite lawmakers to the White House for further discussions.