Infrastructure

Several municipal bond provisions that have gotten strong support from muni lobbyists, market participants, and state governments and which were included in the Senate-passed highway bill may not survive eleventh-hour House-Senate committee negotiations, stakeholders say.

With the initial development period on military housing privatization winding down, coping with uncertainty was the theme of the Bond Buyer conference in Washington.

The latest round of TIGER grant funding will disburse nearly $500 million to 47 projects in 34 states and the District of Columbia, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced Friday. The Department of Transportation received 703 applications from all 50 states, U.S. territories, and D.C. The awards ranged from $1 million to $21.6 million.

The American Public Power Association and a California Public Agency have commented on proposed IRS governmental plan regulations, suggesting changes to provide certainty to existing participants in governmental plans.

With the final step in the federal environmental review process completed this week, the $2.6 billion Ohio River Bridges Project will allow Kentucky and Indiana to award construction contracts before the end of the year and the spans will serve to ease congestion across the Ohio River, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has released $10 million under its TIGER grant program to modernize the infrastructure and warehouse facilities at the Hunts Point Terminal Market in New York City’s Bronx borough.

Chicago Blue Line Renewal & City Bike Share, Ill., $20 million I-95 HOT Lanes, Northern Va., $20 million State Route 91 Corridor Improvements, Calif., $20 million South Jersey Port Rail Improvements, N.J., $18.50 million LYNX Blue Line Capacity Expansion, N.C., $18 million Sellwood Bridge Replacement, Ore., $17.7 million Port of Long Beach Rail Realignment, Calif., $17 million Port of New Orleans Rail Yard Improvements, La., $16.7 million

The popular federal TIGER grant program for major transportation projects would be axed if Republicans get their way.

WASHINGTON — The push for Congress to pass long-term highway funding legislation is reaching a fever pitch two weeks before the current law expires, as Sen. Barbara Boxer led a rally Wednesday urging approval of her two-year transportation bill in time to avoid another extension.

States' fiscal conditions are improving and, despite ongoing uncertainties, many of them can be expected to maintain good credit ratings and to try to lock in low interest rates with additional bond financings, officials of two groups said Tuesday.

Between 3% and 8% of federal money earmarked for the highway system since 2010 has gone to waste on inactive projects, according to a new GAO Report, which cites lax federal oversight and recommends a narrower role for the FHA.

Backers of alternatives to traditional highway financing are ramping up efforts to win over policy makers and a skeptical public, as the groundswell against tolling remains strong and lawmakers labor to save the rapidly diminishing Highway Trust Fund.

WASHINGTON — Executives of two rail organizations that rely on municipal bonds to finance some projects told international advisory firm KPMG that getting stakeholders and policymakers to buy into and embrace a cultural shift will be key to successfully financing large fast-rail networks.