House Ways and Means Committee Turns Its Focus to Infrastructure Investment
March 07, 2019
The House Ways and Means Committee, the oldest committee in Congress and chief tax-writing committee, held its first hearing in nearly a decade yesterday on the topic of infrastructure. ASCE Past-President and Chair of the Committee for America’s Infrastructure, Greg DiLoreto, P.E. testified alongside AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO......
ASCE Supports Public Financing Tools to Fund Key Infrastructure Projects
January 31, 2019
This month, the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA), an ASCE coalition partner and lead of the Public Finance Network (PFN), released a report entitled, “Understanding Financing Options Used for Public Infrastructure.” For well over a century, state and local governments and public entities across our nation have used tax-exempt bonds as a means to provide......
House Panel Examines Federal Energy Management
December 13, 2018
The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy recently held a hearing entitled, “Public Private Partnerships (P3s) for Federal Energy Management.” Committee members discussed the current status, challenges, and opportunities for increasing energy efficiency savings and conservation in federal facilities and programs, which would be done through the primary U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)......
Congress Prepares for WRDA Floor Debate
June 06, 2018
The Senate is expected to vote on S.2800, America’s Water Infrastructure Act, or the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), in the coming weeks after about six months of Committee work, drafting, and negotiation. WRDA proposes continued American investment into infrastructure like dams, levees, and ports. If approved, WRDA will authorize water programs vital to American......
New Bill Would Reinstate Advance Refunding Bonds for Infrastructure
April 16, 2018
Congressman Randy Hultgren (R-IL) and Congressman C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD) introduced H.R. 5003, a bill to reinstate advance refunding bonds, which were replead in H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. During the tax bill debate the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) opposed provisions that eliminated financing tools, including advance refunding bonds and......
President Trump Releases Much Anticipated Infrastructure Plan
February 12, 2018
The Trump Administration has officially released an infrastructure proposal calling for $1.5 trillion in infrastructure investments, with $200 billion of direct federal spending over the course of 10 years. The federal investment is meant to spur investments from state and local governments and private investors. The proposal is divided into four main parts: funding and......
Public-Private Partnerships, A Tool in the Toolbox
January 23, 2018
Partnerships between public agencies – federal, state, and local – and private companies are an increasingly popular infrastructure financing policy tool. As public budgets continue to be squeezed; public-private partnerships (P3s) allow planners and policymakers more breathing room to invest. P3s can be an effective financing mechanism through tools such as municipal and private activity......
Tax Legislation Hurts Infrastructure, Engineers
November 28, 2017
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is concerned that Congress has missed a once-in-a-generation opportunity to address the nation’s infrastructure investment gap. Earlier this month, Congress began the process of crafting tax-cut legislation. The House Ways and Means Committee drafted H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which passed out of committee and......
New Report Helps State Legislators Better Understand P3s
August 08, 2017
Public-private partnerships (P3s) are increasingly becoming a recognized and tapped tool in the toolbox to fund infrastructure investments. While the early adopter states have many P3 ventures under their belts, others are still navigating the process of how to structure an effective P3. To help further the conversation, the National Conference of State Legislatures released......
National Conference of State Legislatures Legislative Summit Talks Infrastructure
August 11, 2016
This week the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) held its annual Legislative Summit in Chicago. Approximately 5,000 state legislators, legislative staffers, federal officials and others gathered to gain invaluable knowledge from experts and fellow legislators to take back to their respective states. Attendees participated in an array of policy-producing committee meetings, issue forums and deep-dive sessions, including on......