GLDPartners participates the opening of the new Build America Bureau at the U.S. Department of Transportation
Yesterday on July 20th, I attended the opening of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s new Build America Bureau, the latest evolution in the Department’s efforts to streamline and simplify the approval and funding process for infrastructure projects, particularly freight projects with a high level of highway connectivity. This an important development as the federal government is focusing heavily on how to expedite the acceptance and approval of infrastructure projects.
Authorized under the recently passed The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, the Build America Bureau (https://www.transportation.gov/buildamerica) is intended to bring substantive and procedural changes to the TIFIA and RRIF financing programs, provide guidance on FASTLANE discretionary grant applications, and serve as the single point-of-contact for screening and defining project support needs.
In his comments at the opening of the bureau this week, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx said, “the bureau builds upon the foundation established by the Build America Transportation Investment Center (the “BATIC“).” The BATIC, created under the last surface transportation act, MAP-21, served as the single point of contact and coordination for states, municipalities and project sponsors looking to utilize federal transportation expertise, apply for federal transportation credit programs and explore ways to access private capital in public private partnerships.
“The Bureau,” said Foxx, “combines the BATIC, TIFIA and RRIF loan programs, Private Activity Bonds (PABs), and the new $800 million FASTLANE discretionary grant program all under one roof within the Office of the Undersecretary for Transportation Policy.”
Andrew Right, the acting executive director of the Bureau, noted that the Bureau will be responsible for driving transportation infrastructure development projects in the United States by streamlining credit opportunities and grants and providing access to the credit and grant programs with more speed and transparency, while also providing technical assistance and encouraging innovative best practices in project planning, financing, delivery, and monitoring.
As GLDPartners’ Washington, D.C.-based policy and public funding solutions advisor, I observed that the Bureau will draw upon the full resources of U.S. DOT to best utilize the expertise of all the modes within the Department while promoting a culture of innovation and customer service. This is an aggressive strategy intended to break down the modal silos and promote a broader intermodal transportation systems philosophy to addressing the nation’s infrastructure challenges.
GLDPartners new Policy and Public Finance Solutions Practice is designed to put clients in a proactive position in developing creative project delivery strategies. By understanding the new structure of the Government’s policy direction and federal resources we will prepare our clients – present and future – for interaction with the Bureau, positioning them to establish the best understanding of what they will need, and what they can expect as they pursue federal support. Additionally, GLDPartners will examine barriers and policy differences that unnecessarily obstruct the development and maintenance of the nation’s transportation and economic development infrastructure.
We believe that transportation project sponsors and asset owners considering new projects should engage with the Bureau early on and we invite you to chat with us about your project plans.
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GLDPartners is an international investment and advisory firm. GLDPartners operates two main businesses: 1) provision of supply chain strategy and site selection advice to global companies, and 2) market-driven project development and strategy at and around airports, seaports and inland trade and logistics hubs. GLDPartners performs forensic sector intelligence and sophisticated customized competitiveness analytics to provide real-world project strategies, with an emphasis on revenue enhancement and project delivery, including project finance. This strong reality-based market orientation helps translate concepts into reality. The firm has offices in the US, Mexico, Canada and in the UK.
