The two U.S. senators from Illinois are pushing opposing agendas regarding public private partnerships to finance construction of highways, bridges, airports, railroads and other transportation facilities.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill) has introduced, “The Protecting Taxpayers in Transportation Asset Transfers Act”, that would require public involvement before major transportation projects could be leased or sold. The legislation which would make it difficult for states and cities to lease public transportation assets to private investors, a practice that has been used successfully in some states to entice private investment. The proposal would require the federal government to be reimbursed for any federal funds used to build a facility before any deal to lease the facility could be made. Additionally, the legislation requires the disclosure of any depreciation or other tax benefits that would accrue to private investors and estimates of savings from the reduction of jobs, pay, or benefits. The measure would only apply to existing transportation assets and are not meant to affect new privatization proposals.
Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill) introduced, “The Lincoln Legacy Development Act”, legislation that would remove federal restrictions on public-private partnerships while requiring that the proceeds of leases or sales be reinvested in infrastructure. Some of the features in the bill include:
- Increases annual funding for the TIFIA program from $122 million to $750 million.
- Creates a Private-Public Partnership Challenge Grant Program to encourage States to pass legislation enabling private-public partnerships.
- Additional resources are deposited into the Highway Trust Fund to pay for the expansion via a half-percentage point decrease in federal civilian pay growth and a surcharge on safety rest area development.
- Removes caps on Interstate tolling pilot programs, encouraging greater local control of highway financing.
- Allows commercialization of safety rest areas, providing additional resources to states with budget shortfalls.
- Ensures taxpayer accountability by requiring proceeds of leases, concessions or sales of highways to be reinvested in infrastructure.
- Lifts caps on highway private activity bonds to provide additional financing options for projects.