Kentucky governor wants to allow private financing of highway projects

Enabling legislation needed before public-private partnership projects could be approved.    In his State of the Commonwealth address earlier this month, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear expressed support for expanding the state’s public-private partnership laws to allow financing for transportation projects. 
   Kentucky already uses such partnerships for a variety of projects and services, including marinas at state parks, new residence halls at the University of Kentucky and managed care in the Medicaid program. And the state also signed an agreement last month to use a P3 model to expand high-speed broadband access around the state.
   But P3 agreements aren’t allowed for highway and bridge projects.
   Other states have granted concessions to private operators to build and finance toll roads, but the number of infrastructure projects has been limited by a lack of understanding at the federal and state level for how to execute such deals in a way that benefits taxpayers. Political opposition to toll roads has also held back private investors from public projects.
   “Kentucky has large gaps in our road and bridge system, and federal resources aren’t enough to fill those gaps,” the Governor said. “Using current procurement and financing mechanisms, we are simply not equipped to tackle these ‘super-projects’ in a timely manner without squeezing out local projects,” he said, according to a copy of his speech.
   P3 legislation passed in the 2014 session of the legislature, but Beshear vetoed it because a late amendment prohibited tolls on the Brent Spence Bridge.
   The governor also urged the General Assembly to approve a constitutional amendment that will allow local communities to vote on a local sales tax for specific infrastructure projects they may need.