Expert Insights

As Congressional leaders in Washington debate an infrastructure bill, elected officials at the state and local levels of government are not waiting…they have been moving ahead for the last two years.  In many states, collaborative initiatives have been launched to...

Over the past two decades, schools throughout the country have beefed up campus security – so much so that the school security market has become a multi-billion-dollar industry. Market research firm, IHS Markit, estimates school spending on security projects totaled...

Sports and entertainment venues contribute significantly to the U.S. economy. The activities associated with both appeal to millions of people.  They generate revenue, attract retail establishments and provide benefits of all types to government. Because of this,...

Something good could happen as a result of congressional action.  A recently introduced bill would provide a $5 billion boost for the construction and rehabilitation of government-owned buildings.  The Public Buildings Renewal Act (S. 932), if passed by Congress, will...

A few motorists - those who are aware of America’s bridge conditions - are occasionally selective about the bridges they cross. Millions of other motorists, however, are unaware of the fact that government leaders nationwide are scrambling to find funds to repair old...

Municipal leaders throughout the country are focusing lots of attention on convention centers. That’s because convention-related business contributes millions to city coffers. Two years ago, communities in the United States with convention centers shared in $845...

The United States has incredibly busy airports – in fact, some of the busiest in the world. That’s good, because it indicates that many of the more than 4 billion global air passengers each year are flying in or out of America. However, a sobering statistic is...

Lots of funding is flowing to public transit authorities.  An American Public Transportation Association (APTA) report points out that there’s approximately $232 billion in critical public transportation needs across the country, and if that $232 billion were spent...

Government data centers reached a tipping point some time ago and now big changes are occurring.  A recent Gartner report explained that traditional (and older) data centers, which are exactly what most governmental entities rely on, are being relegated to legacy...

Most elected officials, especially at the local levels of government, desperately need more revenue. There are critical needs in their communities but they have no funds to address the problems. Although alternative funding is available, government leaders in many...

Cities and counties have common problems throughout the U.S. And, these common issues are opening up a new marketplace that is catching the attention of investors and contractors.  There’s definitely a trend developing here. Public officials at the state and local...

A new U.S. marketplace is growing so fast many have not noticed it - the charter school network.  It is already extremely large and it touches almost every region of this country. Contractors of all types and sizes should take notice of the abundance of upcoming...

After a long period of totally inadequate funding for critical water projects, the tide appears to be turning and funding is becoming more readily available. Late in 2018, authorization was given for almost $6 billion in funding for water infrastructure projects. The...

Ports of entry in the United States will hold an abundance of contracting opportunities in 2019.  That’s because the needs are great and these border crossings are receiving lots of scrutiny. Long neglected, the country’s border crossings now face a $4 billion deficit...

Public libraries are no longer just repositories for books, newspapers and magazines. They are much more, and new libraries bear little resemblance to libraries of the past. Twenty-first century libraries are state-of-the-art facilities - innovative, thoughtfully...

President Trump talked a lot about health issues (cancer treatment, HIV research, drug prices, etc.) in his recent State of the Union address. Other elected officials throughout the country are also speaking out about healthcare issues. There is no alternative to...

Two rather shocking predictions are worthy of note. According to Cybersecurity Ventures, cybercrimes are expected to cost $6 trillion annually worldwide by 2021… and 2019 could be the worst year yet for cyberbreaches. Government portals are immediate targets for cyber...

Across America, ports are expanding and posting record cargo growth. This will result in huge economic gains throughout the country.  However, the positive impact is vulnerable because many critical components in the infrastructure network that allow the movement of...

Growth and change are descriptors common to colleges and universities throughout the country. That’s where the focus is…but managing the two is almost impossible without an abundance of human effort and financial investment. It would be hard to find individuals...

People in law enforcement have been under siege throughout the country for the past several years. Criticism comes from citizens who aren’t satisfied with the norm and want more protection. Angst, anger and fear are also evident from citizens who believe law...

Sometimes bad things happen…and lately, a number of calamities have stretched emergency operations almost to the brink of failure.  Lives have been lost and damages have resulted in horrifically high costs. Natural disasters are on the increase, affecting millions of...

While most people are preparing to file tax returns, elected officials throughout the country are looking at government coffers and evaluating whether they will raise taxes. They are also making decisions about how to spend funding that has not been available to them...

The longest government shutdown in history continues and the impact has spread far beyond government workers and their families.  It is difficult to find any business, school, hospital, city, county, college, university or local government organization that is not...

Hard to believe…but spending on urban parks is up 30 percent over last year.  At least that is what the U.S. Department of Commerce reports. This statistic is important because it represents millions of dollars of new contracting opportunities for companies from...

Blockchain technology is relatively new. However, it is having a widespread impact on state and local governments… and, it is likely to impact citizens and taxpayers in the very near future.  Public officials and industry executives are now claiming that blockchain...

2018 was supposed to be a banner year for self-driving cars - or autonomous vehicles.  It didn’t happen! After pedestrian deaths in March, both Uber and Tesla scaled back significantly on initiatives that were on a fast track. The future for self-driving vehicles...

While thousands of road projects languish for lack of funding, 2019 promises to be a banner year for new transit projects. Big changes are coming, funding is available and contracting opportunities will be abundant. Successful bond issues, federal grant programs and...

There’s new funding – $1.5 billion – now available to fund critical transportation projects.  Government officials are moving quickly to finalize plans and contracting solicitations should be rolled out soon.  More than 90 road, rail, transit and port projects planned...

2018 has been a year of devastation! Wildfires in California, hurricanes, flooding, earthquakes and gas line explosions were horrific.  The carnage was great and public infrastructure assets were significantly impacted. One infrastructure category that may have been...

Recognizing that two heads really are better than one, governmental officials nationwide are taking the very old adage to the extreme as they work toward “smart city” status. In what is already a major trend, cities are partnering with private-sector businesses,...