Last summer, U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Anthony Foxx announced the creation of the Build America Bureau. It was heralded as a one-stop shop to provide assistance to government entities in need of funding for transportation infrastructure projects. The new bureau was designed to provide support, information, expertise and advice related to DOT credit […]
He may be the President-elect, but by trade, Donald Trump is a billionaire businessman and developer. Most believe it was his business acumen that resulted in his successful campaign for the presidency. And while some of his campaign promises were a little unconventional – a wall between the U.S. and Mexico strong enough to stop […]
When a backlog of critical needs for state highways and bridges climbs to $13 billion, it’s time for innovative thinking on the part of government leaders. That’s the uphill climb that Louisiana officials are facing in the upcoming 2017 legislative session. Gov. John Edwards will have between now and the session’s April 10 start date […]
Infrastructure contractors have good reason to look forward to 2017, based on the emerging positive trends and encouraging new developments. A highly touted and promised federal infrastructure plan plus an abundance of private capital waiting to be tapped will likely result in the launching of hundreds of large new public sector projects by early 2017. […]
The Great Recession may be over, but fiscal issues in many states are still dire. Public officials at every level of government are also struggling to meet budgets that have not expanded in years. Even after seven years of recovery efforts, more than 20 states still collect less tax revenue than they did prior to […]
It took eight long years, but stable, moderate spending and revenue growth in most state budgets have returned to the level prior to the Great Recession. A report from the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO) this week notes that state budgets for Fiscal Year 2016 as a whole have finally returned to their […]
A $7.1 billion bill reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was passed by the U.S. Senate today and is now headed for debate in the House. The bill would expire at the end of Fiscal Year 2017, only 18 months from now. One of the many provisions in the Senate version of the bill would […]