The Heritage Foundation recently released an insightful report by William Reinhardt and Ronald Utt on how public-private partnerships can help to fill the transportation funding gap facing our nation.

The Foundation reports that the House of Representatives and Senate are each working on language to reauthorize their highway plans. Unfortunately, the funds appropriated for infrastructure and transportation needs in the current proposal are less than previous proposals and the President’s February 2011 plan. In addition, the federal gas tax used to support transportation funding needs has not been raised since 1993. Fuel efficiencies have increased since then, leaving a major gap in revenues necessary to maintain and expand our nation’s highway system.

In light of diminishing government funds available for state and federal transportation initiatives, Texas should take advantage of opportunities to incorporate public-private partnerships (P3s) in transportation construction and maintenance plans.  Pairing public tax dollars with private-sector investment provides additional funding opportunities to meet Texas’s growing infrastructure needs.  In fact, given today’s economy and the significant fiscal challenges facing our state, P3s are sometimes the only option in ensuring this much-needed infrastructure can be built.

The Heritage Foundation highlights Texas as an example of how P3s can be successfully leveraged to fund and construct transportation projects, mentioning the $8.15 billion of concessions in our state’s P3 program since 2001. It also highlights Texas’s ability to multiply the state contribution of $990 million eight times by partnering with the private sector.  

The Foundation suggests several opportunities for P3s to flourish within states, such as doing away with the current practice of using P3s as fallback options and instead encouraging state governments to consider them from the beginning of a project proposal. With our increasing population and growing number of drivers, roads will only become more congested and in need of repair.  Texas lawmakers need to take a hard look at the need for a fully-funded transportation system and the innovative funding options – such as P3s – that can help us achieve a safe and reliable transportation system for all Texans.

Click here to read the full report on how public-private partnerships can benefit Texas’s transportation infrastructure.