Dive Brief:

• President Barack Obama’s proposed budget for the coming fiscal year includes plans to increase funding for large transportation projects and construction of federal buildings.

• Obama has proposed new taxes on American businesses’ overseas earnings to pay for $478 billion worth of construction to improve roads, bridges and other infrastructure nationwide.

• At the same time, the 2016 budget request includes $2.2 billion for the General Services Administration to spend on renovating and constructing federal buildings.

Dive Insight:

The president’s plan for a tax increase is likely to face opposition from the Republican-controlled Congress. The proposed infrastructure upgrade calls for a one-time, 14% tax on the overseas earnings of American companies to close a legal loophole that allows some firms to avoid paying, and then imposes a permanent, 19% tax on those revenues.

Obama has said his plan could result in 30 times more federal hiring for transportation projects.