Infrastructure

BRADENTON, Fla. — In an effort to convince Gov. Rick Scott that Florida’s high-speed rail project is viable and as risk-free to taxpayers as possible, mayors and prominent business groups said Thursday that a proposal is on the table that answers Scott’s concerns.

WASHINGTON — Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., wants to write a second chapter for the popular Build America Bond program, by reviving the federally subsidized taxable bonds to specifically fund transportation projects.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Gov. Rick Scott told the Florida Supreme Court in a brief Wednesday that the decision to reject federal funds for high-speed rail rests with him and a petition to overturn his decision has come from “state senators whose policy preferences have not prevailed in the political process.”

DALLAS — Colorado’s Regional Transportation District should shelve plans to for a tax-hike referendum this year or risk rejection of additional funds to complete the FasTracks rail projects by 2017, according to an advisory group.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Wednesday that he is open to interstate tolling, which could provide funds for the Obama administration’s ambitious agenda, as an alternative to raising the federal gas tax, the current source of revenues for most transportation projects.

Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell unveiled an analysis Tuesday showing the potential employment and economic growth offered by his $4 billion transportation spending plan.

Standard & Poor’s Tuesday raised its long-term rating to AA-plus from AA on the Columbus Airport Commission’s lease revenue bonds. The outlook is stable.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Two Florida senators, a Republican and a Democrat, filed a 281-page petition Tuesday with the state Supreme Court seeking an emergency ruling to block Gov. Rick Scott from rejecting $2.4 billion of federal funds for high-speed rail.

Court hearings on a lawsuit challenging Chicago’s authority to proceed with $3.36 billion worth of expansion projects at O’Hare International Airport without airline approval have been pushed back due to ongoing settlement negotiations.

WASHINGTON — States officials are eyeing $2.4 billion of federal high-speed rail money that was allocated for Florida, but is now up for grabs after Gov. Rick Scott effectively ended the state’s project by rejecting the funding earlier this month.