Toward a Federal Infrastructure Strategy


Book Description




Innovative Infrastructure Finance


Book Description

Infrastructure is the foundation of modern economies. A robust, efficient, and well-maintained infrastructure system is critical to support the nation’s economy, improve quality of life, and strengthen global competitiveness. The serious infrastructure deficit in the U.S. is well-known. State and local governments are struggling to finance the needed expansion, upgrades, and repairs. Meeting the infrastructure financing challenge has emerged as one of the most urgent issues facing the country. Despite the growing number of innovations in state and local infrastructure financing, current information on innovative infrastructure financing is scattered and time-consuming to find. Until now, there was no detailed, comprehensive assessment of current knowledge and practice in innovative infrastructure financing. This book fills that gap and offers policy suggestions for state and local government managers who are considering the adoption and implementation of innovative infrastructure financing. It provides detailed case studies and rich examples that describe innovative approaches to fund state and local infrastructure development. These experiences and lessons in applying these innovations will be particularly useful for state and local government practitioners, professors, applied policy analysts, and students in public administration, policy, and public finance.










Getting More Out of State Transportation Infrastructure Spending


Book Description

Recent trends suggest that the federal role in funding highways is likely to decline in the future. As a result, state and local governments will likely shoulder a larger portion of the costs of building and maintaining roads and highways. Like the federal government, however, many states do not employ their transportation revenues as efficiently as they could. In this study, we explore changes states could make to allow surface transportation dollars to go further, thereby better serving taxpayers and road users alike. Specifically, we examine how states can reduce costs created by regulations, can better allocate transportation funds to their most highly valued use, and can strengthen the link between driversņ willingness to pay and the amount spent on transportation infrastructure. We also explore the role that changes in incentives could play in reducing congestion; improving development patterns; and contributing to a more efficient mix of streets, roads, and public transportation infrastructure.







Not Everything Is Broken


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The Future of Public Health


Book Description

"The Nation has lost sight of its public health goals and has allowed the system of public health to fall into 'disarray'," from The Future of Public Health. This startling book contains proposals for ensuring that public health service programs are efficient and effective enough to deal not only with the topics of today, but also with those of tomorrow. In addition, the authors make recommendations for core functions in public health assessment, policy development, and service assurances, and identify the level of government--federal, state, and local--at which these functions would best be handled.