Md. Congressman John Delaney presents infrastructure bill
Many talk about the need to fix Americas infrastructure, but nobody seems to step forward to change anything. Rep. John Delaney, Marylands newest Democrat Congressman from District 6, wants to reverse that trend. Delaney points to his suitability for the task citing his extensive business experience before joining Congress. He recently introduced the Partnership to Build America Act (H.R. 2084) and gave a presentation on the bill to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
The bill would create a national fund for large-scale infrastructure financing. The $750 billion that would be given to localities over several decades would come not from federal funds, but from new Infrastructure Bonds. The bonds would have a 50-year term, a fixed interest rate of 1 percent and no federal government guarantee. At least 25 percent of the projects financed through the infrastructure fund would have to be public-private partnerships, for which at least 20 percent of the financing would come from private capital. The fund would be a nonprofit entity.
The House bill has 14 Democrat and 14 Republican supporters.
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