Yesterday, the Miami-Dade County Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution establishing a Public Private Partnership Program for the County.

Purpose and Policy of the P3 Resolution

The stated purpose and policy of the resolution very effectively summarizes the case for public-private partnerships.  The resolution explains that infrastructure “is a vital and foundational element in the future of Miami-Dade County,” but that the County’s infrastructure requires “significant and on-going improvements and upgrades” and “funding from traditional sources” for these important projects is “inconsistent and unpredictable, with demand for funding clearly exceeding the resources available.”   Accordingly, “it is in the best interest of the County to work collaboratively” with private investors and organizations to establish and implement alternative financing methods for appropriate projects.

The resolution was sponsored by recently elected Commissioner Juan Zapata, who explained at the June 13 meeting of the Economic Development and Port Miami Committee that the resolution is intended to align County P3 regulations with the newly adopted state statute and to create a roadmap to establish productive P3s in the County that are based upon the best practices implemented in other communities.  The Economic Development and Port Miami Committee agreed with these goals and unanimously recommended the resolution for adoption, with Commissioner Lynda Bell, the chair of the committee, offering to co-sponsor the resolution.

Facilitating P3s in Miami-Dade County

Pursuant to the new resolution, the Mayor is charged with creating a written P3 plan within 90 days of the effective date of the resolution.  The P3 plan will identify model PPPs throughout the County, best practices, County infrastructure projects that could benefit from PPPs, and proposed legislative changes to streamline the P3 process.  The plan will be submitted to the Infrastructure Committee for review and approval and, after the initial plan is approved, the plan will be updated and resubmitted to the Committee every six months.

The new County resolution, combined with the new state legislation, which was signed by Governor Rick Scott last Thursday, improves the legal climate for public-private partnerships in South Florida and throughout the state.