Author: Mary Scott Nabers

As environmental concerns force us to rethink how we power our urban centers, the massive losses sustained from sudden natural disasters expose the need for us to initiate change sooner rather than later. The future of our energy supply must face the dual challenges of sustainability and reliability. These challenges are spurring new waves of […]

Federal funding continues to flow, and it is available now to government officials throughout the country. Just weeks ago, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced yet another $272 million that is available for rural drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects. USDA will finance 114 projects through the Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant […]

School districts throughout the U.S. are on the verge of letting large construction projects with new funding from citizen-supported bond elections. Some school districts already have secured their funding, and others will ask voters to approve bond packages in November and December. Cumulatively, the upcoming opportunities will represent billions in new spending, and although the […]

There are, of course, some people who know about what follows … but not the public at large. And, very few taxpayers, large companies, media outlets, and citizens have heard the news. Strange as it may sound, even many public officials appear to have little knowledge of this. Ready for it? Hang on … this […]

Airports in America are undergoing significant changes as focus has shifted to long-overdue, critical needs related to modernization. Finally, there is funding for these efforts. Public officials are preparing to launch thousands of projects with objectives related to expansion, safety, increased efficiency, and compliance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules. Most of the projects will […]

Ports throughout the U.S. have extremely critical infrastructure needs, and port officials in numerous states are readying projects for launch. America’s ports are in desperate need of modernization, expansion, upgrades, and repairs if they are to remain viable. Because of the economic contributions that ports provide to the U.S. economy, officials can no longer ignore […]

As public assets become weathered over time, repair and maintenance costs accumulate. Without attention, the assets lose value and eventually become inefficient and unsafe. With local government budgets stretched to the breaking point, thousands of public assets throughout the country have spiraled into disrepair over the past few decades. However, there’s a growing trend to […]

The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) appropriated $350 billion to state, local, territorial, and tribal governments. After the bill was signed, the U.S. Department of Treasury released a Compliance and Reporting Guidance document that outlines provisions related to the funding. Public officials have until December 31, 2024, to use the money, and many […]

There’s a trend gaining strength that is worth watching. Private sector investors are beginning to seek investment opportunities that provide more than good returns. There is great appeal for investments focused on sustainability. Nowhere is this trend more clearly illustrated than in the surging popularity of green bonds. Green bonds are traditional fixed-income securities issued […]

Federal funding and community supported bond packages will provide funding for new public safety projects in the very near future. It appears that almost every state in the U.S. will launch projects similar to the ones that follow. Nevada The city of Henderson plans to upgrade older fire stations and build several new ones beginning […]

After long overdue attention to maintenance, repair, upgrades, and expansions, public officials throughout the country are preparing to launch projects to reverse the trend of deferrals. The inattention in the past resulted because there was simply no available funding. That inactivity is changing, and citizens, students and taxpayers will benefit. Demand over the next two […]

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced in August that $766 million in grant funding is available to airports for improvement projects. But, there’s much more. Funding is flowing to airports from numerous sources, and the types of projects ready for launch are extremely diverse. Of high interest to the federal government are purchases of zero-emission […]

Technology firms offering software and related services will find an abundance of upcoming opportunities in local government next year. Municipal leaders throughout the country have announced plans to upgrade old technology, and software purchases are imbedded in almost every plan. It is important to note that interested contractors should get involved immediately because most technology […]

At least 580,000 people experienced homelessness on a given day in January 2020. That number has increased significantly since then. Today, reporting organizations say there is no recent accounting and gathering the data will be more difficult in the months to come. However, data does point to increases in America’s homeless population over the past […]

Funding for rail projects will be significant in the new infrastructure bill, but even now before new allocations are available, upcoming rail projects are being announced on a weekly basis. The diversity of projects is evidence of public officials at various levels of government working hard to incentivize ridership on public railways.   Northeast Corridor […]

New funding is available for upcoming projects related to parks and outdoor activities. The Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA), a program overseen by the Department of the Interior, has $900 million to be used for projects at government facilities on public lands and tribal schools. The objective is to begin to address the Interior’s deferred […]

Elementary and secondary schools were allocated $122.7 billion in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The law stipulates that funding is to be distributed as Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) grants, and education leaders have until the end of the 2023-2024 school year to spend the new revenue. The U.S. Department of Education […]

Earlier this week, I was in California to participate in a large public-private partnership (P3) conference that focused on airports. It was rewarding to feel the energy and excitement as well as hear from aviation officials. The industry sector is alive and well, and airports throughout the U.S. will soon be launching large infrastructure projects. […]

People are on the move again, and many are relying on public transit. In fact, transit ridership is up more than 80 percent since 2020, according to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and other grant programs have provided billions in funding for transit authorities nationwide. If Congress passes the […]

Industry leaders and public officials are gathering for a July 19-20 conference in California to work on ‘best practices’ related to infrastructure and collaborative initiatives. The objectives of the P3 Airport Summit will be to provide information, guidance, and networking opportunities to public owners and private sector contractors and investors. The primary focus of this […]

America’s water infrastructure may soon get the attention it deserves now that funding is available. Billions of dollars from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) are on the way to public officials throughout the U.S. Most states are allocating additional funding as well, and many local officials will take advantage of consolidating the two new […]

The world is changing rapidly, and technology is morphing so quickly that individual lives are being impacted in ways that may have escaped notice. Staying abreast of life-changing trends has never been harder. One more recent trend is worthy of note – a steady shift toward all individuals having digital IDs. Numerous states have either […]

Smart City competition continues, and benefits are coming not only to citizens at the local level of government but also to the entire country as new initiatives are launched, tested, and perfected. Recognition for exemplary effort is now more prevalent than ever as states and national organizations seek out and reward public agencies for visionary […]

At a time when an abundance of federal funding is already aiding state and local governments, even more is about to be released. This new funding will be allocated to public entities to support critical projects related to disaster mitigation. The funding will come from a Hazard Mitigation Assistance program within the Federal Emergency Management […]

Less than a month ago, President Biden released his proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2022 that includes $9.8 billion in funding for cybersecurity enhancements. Cyberbreaches are making the headlines too often – almost on a weekly basis – and those are only the attacks that are reported. Not only are the breaches costly, but they […]