Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soybean Transportation Coalition, told Farm Progress that investment in repairs for roads and bridges, and further attention to inland waterway systems, are key to increasing competitiveness and productivity of soybean transportation. What's next: It's now up to lawmakers to write the legislation and move it through both chambers of Congress, a process that could drag on for months. While Democrats largely deferred to Biden on the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill, they're expected to put more of their own stamp on the infrastructure package. LABOR ADVOCATES RAISE CAUTION ON BIDEN'S GREEN ENERGY PUSH: Biden's infrastructure focus on clean energy has also raised concerns over job security in rural America, POLITICO's Rebecca Rainey and Eric Wolff report. Not so fast: Labor groups and congressional Republicans are warning of the harm that removing coal mines and fossil fuel power plants could have on rural communities. While the push to reduce emissions would increase the demand for construction and production of clean energy sources like solar, wind and battery projects, those positions are not only temporary but may not be a direct transfer for workers already in other sectors, like mining. Money best spent? Biden also plans to have the infrastructure plan boost productivity and reduce inequality, which could help long-neglected communities including in deeply red rural areas, Pro's Victoria Guida reports. But some critics say money would be better spent on making it easier for people to move to more viable regions rather than trying to help economically depressed sectors. In Biden's favor , the long-term timeline of his plan means interruptions will not be as abrupt and even the process of decarbonizing the economy (or eliminating the kind of steady, fixed-location jobs that come with coal mines or fossil fuel power plants) can take decades, making the transition smoother for workers. Read on about what you may have missed inside Biden's infrastructure plan. SCHUMER SAYS HE'LL BACK LEGALIZING WEED, WITH OR WITHOUT BIDEN'S SUPPORT: Biden has been a conspicuous outlier among Democrats when it comes to supporting marijuana legalization. But Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told POLITICO in an interview late last week that Biden's reluctance won't deter the Senate from taking aggressive action to loosen federal restrictions. "I want to make my arguments to him, as many other advocates will," Schumer said. "But at some point we're going to move forward, period." Here are a few other key takeaways from POLITICO's chat with Schumer: - Schumer has a compromise line on cannabis legalization. He'll work with people on small changes, but removing important policy points like expungement of records is not on the table. - Schumer is personally for legalization, but won't say if his bill will remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act. A bill he introduced in the last Congress would have decriminalized marijuana, but there is other legislation such as the previously introduced bipartisan STATES Act that would leave it on the controlled substances list. - Schumer wants to move banking changes at the same time. The majority leader says he agrees with Banking Committee Chair Sherrod Brown, who said standalone cannabis legislation focused on the cannabis industry — like the SAFE Banking Act — shouldn't move before Congress deals with the criminal justice aspects of marijuana. - Vice President Kamala Harris isn't involved in this process at the moment, but Schumer said he would like to get her in the room to discuss marijuana overhaul. She was the lead sponsor of a legalization bill in the last Congress. - Still no hard date for introducing this bill. Schumer would not enlighten us any further about when he plans to introduce the bill that he and Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) are putting together right now. "I'll stick to what I said: soon," he said. | 
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