PART I: FACING THE CHALLENGES

HNTB’s National Practice Consultant, federal transportation policy expert, and keynote speaker George Riccardo joins The INTERSECTION to offer a national perspective on the current and future landscape for infrastructure funding policy. The former U.S. DOT advisor will look at where we are 6 months into the current administration, how HNTB is planning ahead, and what impacts or opportunities we can anticipate in Georgia. In the famous words of Gretzky, let’s “skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been.”

Federal legislation has authorized substantial funding to metro Atlanta infrastructure improvements through programs like ARPA and IIJA over the last several years. With speculation buzzing across headlines daily, state and local policy makers can’t know what lies ahead with the new administration’s redirected spending and budget cuts. Former Democrat Congresswoman Carolyn Bourdeaux and former Republican Congressman Tom Graves join The INTERSECTION to share their perspectives on a new age for federal infrastructure funding. Moderated by AJC’s Chief Political Reporter Greg Bluestein, this Congressional Conversation will offer an insider’s look at the future of federal investments in our region.

Higher interest rates, inflation, waning ARPA relief funds, uncertain SPLOST referendums, fierce competition for federal infrastructure grants, and tight local budgets all challenge local government efforts to improve transportation, utilities, and public safety. Despite significant financial barriers, increasing needs around water resources, roadway and transportation improvements, walkability initiatives, and public amenities are at the forefront of every city planning process. Mayors from the cities of Clarkston, Union City, and Sandy Springs will join The INTERSECTION to share how they navigate fiscal uncertainty to fund critical infrastructure projects in their communities.

Mike Alexander joins The INTERSECTION to offer a look at all the funding mechanisms available to local governments in Georgia today. From Tax Allocation Districts (TADs) and Special Service Districts (SSDs) to Community Improvement Districts (CIDs) or SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) programs, ARC’s Chief Operating Officer lays out the local options and how they can best be leveraged in metro Atlanta’s growing communities.

PART 2: FINDING THE SOLUTIONS

Keynote Jared Fleisher joins The INTERSECTION from Detroit to talk about what he accomplished in Michigan to generate foundational investment in infrastructure through state legislation. An expert on innovative funding models for public infrastructure, Fleisher sees the SPLOST model as the most straightforward method for funding these projects. As he works with other states to fight for local sales tax options, he brings a “you don’t know how good you have it” approach and provokes a new way of thinking about something that’s become rather “run of the mill” here in Georgia.

Robert Criste brings a new approach to infrastructure to The INTERSECTION…one that lifts the burden of debt and increases the fiscal health of our public entities. Sustainability Partners is working nationally to resurrect underperforming infrastructure through a transformational change in mindset: Local governments don’t have to own all their infrastructure. The chronically overwhelming cost of upkeep and maintenance has bubbled up to the surface in local communities and created a value engineering pandemic. Criste’s “infrastructure as a service” model offers a way to invest in optimally operating infrastructure and a clean balance sheet.

Last November, there were 370 transportation funding measures on state and local ballots across the U.S. Voters approved 77% of those measures, which will generate a collective $41 billion in new or renewed funding for roads, bridges, trails, and rail nationally. Unfortunately, Georgia didn’t have the same rate of success at the ballot box last year. As a state that continually ranks among the highest in infrastructure investment and innovation, how does Georgia measure up to other states passing local transportation measures? Transportation funding policy expert Carolyn Simons joins The INTERSECTION to offer a national view of transportation funding initiatives, voter trends, what works, what doesn’t, and what we can expect going forward.

View the 2024 Local Ballot Data Across the U.S.

Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) is a critical funding mechanism for county governments in Georgia. These renewable voter- approved sales taxes have funded significant transportation, public safety, parks and recreation, and other capital improvement projects across the region and state since its inception in 1985. However, voter approval is trending in the wrong direction. The “Race to Regional Connectivity” for TSPLOSTs was lost at the ballot box last year…And the programs that did pass, passed at a smaller margin than before. County Chairs will join The INTERSECTION from Cobb, Gwinnett, and Henry to share their response to SPLOST programs — successes, failures, alternatives, and how to turn the vote around.

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