Bryan Steil, the House member for Wisconsin's 1st District, cast a deciding vote on May 22, 2025 for the House version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and voted for the final law on July 3, 2025, which took back up to $4.7 billion in transportation grants already awarded to communities. Milwaukee lost about $34 million it had been awarded to rebuild Sixth Street, a corridor with a high rate of serious crashes.
In November 2021 Steil voted against the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which most Americans supported, and in May 2026 he took credit for Wisconsin drinking water money that flows from that law.
Bryan Steil's Votes and Statements on Roads, Transit and Water Infrastructure
- Steil Voted Twice for the Law That Took Back $34 Million of Milwaukee's Grant to Rebuild Sixth Street, in 2025. On July 3, 2025, Bryan Steil voted yes as the House passed the final One Big Beautiful Bill Act 218 to 214. On May 22, 2025 he had voted for the House version, which passed 215 to 214 with one member voting present, so it would have failed without his vote. The law cancelled the unspent money in the Neighborhood Access and Equity grant program, and Transportation for America found it took back up to $4.7 billion in competitive grants already promised to communities. In Milwaukee, the city says that of its $36.56 million Sixth Street grant, beyond a $2.1 million engineering agreement, "the remainder of the funds for this project were rescinded by H.R.1" in July 2025.
- Steil Voted Against the 2021 Infrastructure Law That Most Americans Supported. On November 5, 2021, Steil voted no as the House passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act 228 to 206, sending it to the President. He said at the time that the bill "only directs a small portion of spending towards improving our roads and bridges," Civic Media reported. Weeks before the vote, an October 2021 Quinnipiac poll found 62% of Americans supported the infrastructure legislation, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs reported. The law created the $15 billion allocation that supports the drinking water fund now sending money to Wisconsin.
- Steil Took Credit in 2026 for Wisconsin Drinking Water Money From the Infrastructure Law He Voted Against. On May 27, 2026, Steil posted, "Great news for Wisconsin! Proud to have worked to bring safe drinking water funding to our state," with a link to an Environmental Protection Agency announcement, Civic Media reported. The money comes to Wisconsin from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, backed by $15 billion from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the law Steil voted against in November 2021.
What the Grant Cuts Bryan Steil Voted For Mean for Wisconsin
- Milwaukee lost the money to make a dangerous downtown corridor safer. Milwaukee's plan for a 2.6-mile stretch of Sixth Street would narrow a corridor where, between Clybourn Street and McKinley Avenue, "65% of all fatal or serious injury crashes" on the route happened from 2020 to 2024, the city says; a pedestrian was killed at Juneau Avenue. The city will finish preliminary design but is seeking other money for construction.
- Milwaukee lost a project the mayor said would create more than 450 jobs. Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson said the Sixth Street project would have "created over 450 jobs and tens of millions of dollars in local economic impacts," WISN reported in July 2025, and said it will no longer happen as planned because of the rescission.
Frequently Asked Questions About Bryan Steil on Infrastructure
What is Bryan Steil's record on infrastructure under Trump?
Bryan Steil cast a deciding vote for the House version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and voted for the final law, which took back awarded transportation grants including Milwaukee's money to rebuild Sixth Street. He voted against the 2021 infrastructure law, then in 2026 took credit for drinking water money that law created.
Did Bryan Steil vote for the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law?
No. Bryan Steil voted against the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act on November 5, 2021, when it passed 228 to 206. That law pays for the drinking water fund whose Wisconsin money he praised in May 2026.
What happened to Milwaukee's Sixth Street project under the law Bryan Steil voted for?
Bryan Steil voted for the 2025 law that took back the unspent part of Milwaukee's $36.56 million Sixth Street grant, leaving the city with $2.1 million for engineering and the environmental review. WISN reported that the city lost about $34 million in federal money for the project.
Last updated: 2026-10-26