Michael Hiltzik: The infrastructure bill offers lots for California, and social spending you wouldn't expect
Most people probably think they know how to define "infrastructure": Roads, bridges, school buildings, maybe (this being the 21st century) even broadband networks.
The $1.2-trillion infrastructure package just passed by Congress and awaiting President Biden's signature shows that the term needs updating. The measure does provide billions for those traditional purposes, as well as other enhancements to our physical surroundings.
But it broadens the definition of infrastructure to include means to combat global warming, to strengthen labor laws and privacy protections, to prepare for the next pandemic (or pandemics), and to stop tax cheating by wealthy Americans.
One can see that the bill transforms the very concept of infrastructure into a social structure. That's long overdue.
As the largest state, California stands to gain the largest share of much of this spending, based
