Federal agencies are disclosing more American Recovery and Reinvestment Act construction plans. The Housing and Urban Development Dept. on May 5 outlined how it will allot $980 million in Community Development Block Grants, some of which is expected to go for infrastructure. The Dept. of Transportation on May 7 announced it will divide $743 million in stimulus aid among 11 transit projects. On May 8, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced $111.9 million for brownfield cleanups, including $37.3 million from the stimulus. HUD’s stimulus CDBGs will be split among some 1,200 states, cities and counties by a formula that includes
With President Obama’s May 7 release of his detailed budget proposal for the coming fiscal year, the tussle over 2010 federal funding will intensify. Taking a tougher line on spending, Obama highlighted a plan to terminate or trim 121 programs, aiming to save $16.7 billion. Cuts would include about $1.5 billion from construction accounts. The Democratic Congress is likely to defer to Obama’s first budget request, but only to a degree. Lawmakers are not expected to rubber-stamp every line. Photo: AP/Wideworld OMB Director Orszag and Obama spell out cuts in some federal programs. Jeffrey D. Shoaf, Associated General Contractors’ senior
Faced with political opposition and inconsistent rules from state to state, public-private partnerships used to finance public transportation projects lag in the U.S., compared to Europe and Australia, says a new survey by McGraw-Hill Construction, the parent of ENR. The analysis is based on detailed interviews of 75 state and municipal public-works officials with varying levels of PPP experience. About one-third of survey respondents were currently involved with the approach or used it in the last decade. According to the survey, the biggest PPP obstacle is respondents’ perception of “unacceptable profits” by private developers. Other negative perceptions cited are tolling
In the first 77 days after the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was signed into law, only about $28.5 billion of the statute's $787-billion total has turned into actual outlays, according to the Obama administration's first quarterly report on the stimulus measure. Related Links: Complete ARRA Report It also appears that relatively little of those outlays have been for construction programs. Vice President Joe Biden, who issued the report on May 13, says that there has been "significant progress" in implementing the massive stimulus package. In a letter to President Obama that accompanies the report, Biden added, "We remain ahead
Faced with political opposition and inconsistent rules from state to state, partnerships that channel private investment into public works have lagged badly in the U.S. compared to Europe and Australia. A new survey report suggests that public officials that have experience in building via public-private partnerships consider the method an important and useful development tool, but that there is a long way to go in gaining broader acceptance. Photo: Missouri DOT Can PPPs fund special truck lanes, such as the ones shown in this experiment in Missiouri? Related Links: Experienced Officials Support PPPs McGraw-Hill Construction’s PPP SmartMarket Report Released at
The Dept. of Housing and Urban Development on May 5 announced how it will divide $980 million that the economic-stimulus legislation--the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act--provided for Community Development Block Grants. The CDBG aid will be split among about 1,200 state, city and county governments. Related Links: Notice of HUD Program Requirements CDBGs, established in 1974, can be used for many different purposes. Over the program's history, the most popular uses have been affordable-housing rehabilitation and upgrades to infrastructure such as streets, sewers and community centers. But for the stimulus CDBGs, HUD says in a May 5 technical guidance document
First it was President Obama, the bearer of economic stimulus gifts. Now it’s Obama the budget-cutter. Related Links: Proposed Cuts As part of his budget request for the next fiscal year, the President has proposed terminating or trimming back 121 federal programs, which officials say would save an estimated $16.7 billion in 2010. By ENR's estimate, $1.5 billion of the terminations and reductions, outlined by administration officials on May 6, are in construction programs at agencies such as the Army Corps of Engineers, Environmental Protection Agency and the Energy and Transportation departments. The administration also is proposing to reduce the
Funds totaling $786.5 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will be applied to accelerate biofuels research and commercialization. On May 5, the Dept. of Energy announced it would award $480 million for integrated biorefinery technologies that produce advanced biofuels, bioproducts and heat and power in an integrated system. Awards will be up to $25 million for pilot-scale projects and $50 million for demonstrations. All projects are to be operational by 2012. In addition, funding for two or more biorefinery projects awarded in the last two years will be increased by $176.5 million to expedite construction. An additional $110
Chief financial officers of more than 100 large and small engineering firms are forecasting 4% average annual growth for the group in 2009, the lowest average since 1996, according to a survey by New York City-based industry management consultant EFCG Inc. The firms, which had 2008 revenue totaling $43 billion, are more optimistic about prospects in 2010, expecting 5.5% growth. CFOs had expected 10% revenue growth for 2008 in the same survey done a year ago, says EFCG President Paul J. Zofnass. Among respondents, 59% say their current outlook for 2009 was unchanged from a few months ago, while 32%
Flights at Chicago Midway International Airport will continue to take off as usual, but a multibillion-dollar deal to privatize the airport will remain grounded, at least until the U.S. economy refuels. The sale, valued at $2.52 billion and set up for a 99-year lease, was scheduled for signatures on April 6, but Midway Investment and Development Co., a joint venture of Citi Infrastructure Investors, John Hancock Life Insurance Co. and Vancouver Airport Services, failed to come up with the capital needed to close the deal. MIDCo finally broke talks with the city in late April after it was granted a
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