Note: This is an update to our prior posts tracking the Administration unveiling of its plan to deploy approximately $50 billion dollars of private capital designated for improved U.S. infrastructure
The Obama Administration hosted the Build America Infrastructure Investment Summit at the Department of Treasury on Tuesday to engage leaders from a variety of disciplines with key Administration officials. We originally posted when the President announced the Build America Initiative in July 2014. The Summit was designed to be a collaborative workshop to expand public-private partnerships in the transportation, water, telecommunications and energy sectors. A full White House fact sheet can be found here. Highlights from the summit include:
Municipal investments in water infrastructure
Thirty cities and public water utilities are announcing plans to collectively invest $233 billion in operating and improving their municipal water systems over the next 10 years. The 30-city consortium is also releasing a study that highlights the benefits of water infrastructure investments for job creation and economic growth.
Innovative finance tools
The Build America Transportation Investment Center is providing a range of educational and technical assistance resources to support project sponsors who are considering PPPs and other forms of innovative finance. The Department of Treasury is releasing the first in a series of new model contract provisions to serve as a guide for highway toll concession PPP contract agreements. A subsequent guide in this series will address availability payment concession PPP contract agreements. The Department is also publishing a series of new “Project Highlights” that provide a plain-language account of how project sponsors assembled the funding and financing necessary to complete public-private partnerships.
We will continue to monitor developments at the federal and state level concerning opportunities for infrastructure improvements and public-private partnerships.