Posted January 23, 2013 by Steve Hymon
America Fast Forward gets another thumbs up review; check out list of loan applicants
First, a point of emphasis: the America Fast Forward program to expand federal funding to speed up the construction of transportation projects is very much a work-in-progress.
Congress adopted part of America Fast Forward last year — an expanded federal loan program called TIFIA that backs loans with the big wallet of the federal government and helps secure low interest rates. To put it another way, Low Interest Rates = Lower Project Costs.
The super-size version of TIFIA is so far drawing some pretty good reviews. The Brookings-Rockefeller Project on State and Metropolitan Innovation sung America Fast Forward's praises last week, saying it's one of the top programs of 2012 and poised to make a mark in the years ahead. “This metro-led reform signals a new bottom-up federalist approach that could be replicated to other economy-building efforts,” wrote the Project on its website (It's also on CNN's opinion pages).
It's fair to say other regions are certainly trying to benefit from the expanded TIFIA program. Check out this list of applicants for TIFIA loans below on the Federal Highway Administration's website (the agency that administers the program) — looks like a lot of big asks from Red and Blue states alike.
As I wrote above, America Fast Forward is not yet a complete program. While Congress expanded the TIFIA loan part of AFF last year, Metro is also advocating for an expanded federal bond program (called QTIB) that would supply more funds for transportation projects. More about that in this recent post.
FY 2013 MAP-21 TIFIA Letters of InterestSubmitted through January 17, 2013(Amounts in Millions of Dollars)
Continue Reading
Posted January 23, 2013 by Steve Hymon
America Fast Forward gets another thumbs up review; check out list of loan applicants
First, a point of emphasis: the America Fast Forward program to expand federal funding to speed up the construction of transportation projects is very much a work-in-progress.
Congress adopted part of America Fast Forward last year — an expanded federal loan program called TIFIA that backs loans with the big wallet of the federal government and helps secure low interest rates. To put it another way, Low Interest Rates = Lower Project Costs.
The super-size version of TIFIA is so far drawing some pretty good reviews. The Brookings-Rockefeller Project on State and Metropolitan Innovation sung America Fast Forward's praises last week, saying it's one of the top programs of 2012 and poised to make a mark in the years ahead. “This metro-led reform signals a new bottom-up federalist approach that could be replicated to other economy-building efforts,” wrote the Project on its website (It's also on CNN's opinion pages).
It's fair to say other regions are certainly trying to benefit from the expanded TIFIA program. Check out this list of applicants for TIFIA loans below on the Federal Highway Administration's website (the agency that administers the program) — looks like a lot of big asks from Red and Blue states alike.
As I wrote above, America Fast Forward is not yet a complete program. While Congress expanded the TIFIA loan part of AFF last year, Metro is also advocating for an expanded federal bond program (called QTIB) that would supply more funds for transportation projects. More about that in this recent post.
FY 2013 MAP-21 TIFIA Letters of InterestSubmitted through January 17, 2013(Amounts in Millions of Dollars) Continue Reading
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