ROCKVILLE, MD (March 9, 2017) — The Maryland Public Policy Institute today released a primer on how the Trump Administration can improve federal infrastructure spending. The report, entitled “How to Spend a Trillion Dollars on Infrastructure,” adds new insights as the Trump Administration and Congress begin negotiations on a national infrastructure spending plan. The full report can be viewed at mdpolicy.org.  

Dr. Ronald Utt, author of the report and President Reagan’s Director of Privatization, notes that “harnessing the resources and talents of the private sector promises better services at lower costs, saving the taxpayer the trillion dollar hit to their wallets.”

“With up to a trillion dollars now being discussed in Washington, the political pressure to abuse taxpayer money through earmarking will be powerful,” said Christopher B. Summers. “Washington must avoid the temptation to build new Bridges to Nowhere and instead invest wisely in infrastructure projects that will actually improve quality of life.”

The report calls on Congress and the Trump Administration to take three key steps:

•  Distinguish between projects national in responsibility—and thus suitable for federal support—versus those that are largely of benefit to state and local communities;

• Identify those projects that are amenable and suitable for private-sector participation, thereby reducing taxpayer liabilities, and;
• Establish an objective, transparent, and quantitative evaluation system to allow public officials to select the best among the many projects seeking public funding.
  
  

The report is authored by Ronald D. Utt, Ph.D., an adjunct fellow at the Maryland Public Policy Institute.

About the Maryland Public Policy Institute: Founded in 2001, the Maryland Public Policy Institute is a nonpartisan public policy research and education organization that focuses on state policy issues. The Institute’s mission is to formulate and promote public policies at all levels of government based on principles of free enterprise, limited government, and civil society.  Learn more at mdpolicy.org.

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