**TL;DR: Allowing local hires in federal infrastructure programs can boost regional development and promote equality.** On March 2, 2021, more than 150 local officials and organizations called on Joe Biden to list local hire bans for federal infrastructure programs. [1] The ban leaves the right to choose workers to the contractors, rather than cities themselves. Many have seen local hires as the key to vitalizing regional economies. Infrastructure has traditionally served as an effective economic and labor stimulus. During the Obama era, cities used infrastructure to generate economic activities and employment opportunities with notable success. [2] However, the ban on local hires can reduce the development impacts of these projects. Right now, cities have to use taxpayer money to fund expensive projects with the spill-over effects of local employment. Local hires can also have a positive effect on economic equality. Cities can use the chance to target low-income workers or minority groups. These employment opportunities can give them new experiences, skills, and connections to achieve sustainable income long after the conclusion of the infrastructure projects. [3] By creating these benefits, local hires can fix the historical injustice of federal infrastructure programs. Too often, vulnerable communities suffered, instead of benefited, from mass constructions. Between the 1950s and 1960s, Construction of Interstate-94 highway Minnesota cut the thriving African American Rondo neighborhood in half, delivering significant cultural and economic damages to the community. [4] Targeted and managed local hires can ensure infrastructure benefits to minority communities and amend for a legacy of racial harm. For these reasons, federal infrastructure programs in the United States should allow local hires. [1]. Castronuovo, Celine. 2021. "Mayors Join Calls For Biden Administration To End Ban On Local Hires In Federal Infrastructure Projects". The Hill, , 2021. https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/541189-mayors-join-coalition-urging-biden-administration-to-end-ban-on-local?rl=1. [2]. Cohen, Patricia. 2017. "Linking Public Works To Local Hiring Faces A Trump Challenge". The New York Times, , 2017. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/03/business/economy/local-hiring-laws-public-projects.html. [3]. Cantrell, Jennifer, and Suparna Jain. 2013. "Enforceability Of Local Hire Preference Programs". Legal Problems Arising Out Of Highway Programs. The National Cooperative Highway Research Program. https://www.apta.com/wp-content/uploads/Resources/gap/fedreg/Documents/Legal%20Research%20Digest%20No.59%20-%20Enforceability%20of%20Localk%20Hire%20Preferences%20Programs.pdf. [4]. Alam, Ehsan. 2017. "Before It Was Cut In Half By I-94, St. Paul’S Rondo Was A Thriving African-American Cultural Center". Minnpost, , 2017. https://www.minnpost.com/mnopedia/2017/06/it-was-cut-half-i-94-st-paul-s-rondo-was-thriving-african-american-cultural-center/.