Infrastructure
BOMA Position
The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International supports increased federal, state and local infrastructure investment as a critical component of a thriving commercial real estate industry. Robust investment in our nation’s roads, bridges, rail, transit, and other infrastructure is vital to the economy, and connectivity strategies are crucial for the success of commercial real estate as well as businesses and other entities which occupy the same space. A solid and reliable infrastructure is necessary to facilitate the movement of people to the places they live and work. All levels of government should pursue new and updated funding mechanisms solely dedicated to infrastructure improvements and policies that maintain safe, reliable and usable forms of transportation. Further, infrastructure planning and development should be expedited through all levels of permitting processes in a way that takes into account environmental safeguards and final product longevity.
Background
In 2017, the American Society of Civil Engineers released a report giving America’s Infrastructure a D+ grade. The report projects that the U.S. will face an infrastructure-funding gap of more than $1.4 trillion in the next decade. The U.S. also ranks a disappointing 11th globally for infrastructure according to the 2016 World Economic Forum’s Competitiveness Report. As the world’s greatest economy, we are severely underfunding infrastructure investments, which will have damaging effects to our economy for decades if not addressed in the near future.
Established during the Eisenhower administration to finance the Interstate Highway System, the Highway Trust Fund is seeded via the federal gas tax and remains the primary coffer for all infrastructure improvement in the U.S. Last increased in 1993, this funding mechanism no longer meets the needs of our current infrastructure and it is clear that new and innovative funding sources are needed to create and maintain the next generation of roads, bridges, and mass transit that our country needs to remain competitive.
In 2017, President Donald Trump has discussed a $1 trillion infrastructure bill and proposed spending $200 billion in federal money in the next ten years. Despite Congress passing transportation bills in the recent past with supporting funding mechanisms, the current state of investment capital remains inadequate and does not support long-term planning.