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Construction Law Authority / Posts tagged "public/private"

Update on Public/Private Partnership Legislation

March 14, 2013
Lee Weintraub
Legislation

 SB 84 and HB 85, as amended to reflect the merger with a competing bill, continues to pick up momentum. The House Bill passed the Government Operations Subcommittee three days ago by a vote of 11 to 1 and the Senate Bill is set for the Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee today. Many interested parties have raised very good suggestions for changes in the statutory language and we’re addressing as many of them as we can. We’re excited that this legislation has garnered so much attention, as that indicates people are preparing themselves to implement it upon passage. Keep up the support!

I was recently interviewed by Carolina Bolado at Law360 about the legislation and the portion of her article addressing it is reprinted below. In the meantime, the newly formed Florida Council of Public/Private Partnerships is putting the final touches on our P3 conference set for May 16 and 17 in Orlando, which will coincide with the statewide launch of that trade association to the public. If you want to be on the e-mailing list to receive notice of the seminar when registration opens shortly, let me know. 

 

In the meantime, keep up the P3 momentum! Here is the segment of the Law360 article on P3:

 

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Prominent Investor in P3 Projects Speaks About Florida’s Prospects

March 27, 2012
Lee Weintraub
Procurement, Public Construction

 

Jane Garvey, the North American Chair of Meridiam Infrastructure, knows a thing or two about public/private partnerships (“P3”). Meridiam is one of the country’s leaders in P3 projects, from compiling the P3 team and fertilizing it with ideas and experience to investing in the enterprise as a shareholder or lender. Jane is their top person in North America and shared her thoughts with me about Florida’s potential for P3 development. In this blog post and some that will follow, I will share her thoughts with you.

P3s are not ideal for every job. They’re more appropriate for large, complex, innovative projects not neatly fitting into traditional capital programs. The project must be critical to the public owner, as criticality will ensure the facility will be operated for the long-term, thus generating the necessary operational revenue to repay private investors and contractors for their risks. Criticality also ensures strong public sector buy-in, as lack of public commitment to the job may dilute the prospects of success. Historically, critical projects have included transportation as well as social infrastructure, such as schools, courthouses, and teaching hospitals.

 

The proposed P3 project must have a good revenue stream or it won’t attract investors or lenders. Stable revenue tied to the job, such as shares of federal funds, sales taxes or impact fees, will lure investors. Riskier prospects may deter investors. Without private funding, the P3 delivery method will fail, so it is important for funding to be attracted through assurances of stable revenue sources from which investors may earn an appropriate return on their investment.   

 

 

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