Public-Private Partnerships

Last week, the GSA Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) released a Report explaining how GSA decided to abandon previous plans to build a new suburban campus for the FBI, and instead demolish and then rebuild the J. Edgar Hoover (“JEH”) building in Washington, D.C.  Although much of the coverage of the Report has focused on the role of the White House in the decision-making process and the GSA Administrator’s failure to acknowledge that role in testimony before Congress, the Report also highlights the Office of Management and Budget’s (“OMB”) strict approach to the budget scoring rules found in OMB Circular A-11, Appendices A and B.
Continue Reading OIG Report Chronicles Recent Attempts To Construct FBI Headquarters Through Public-Private Partnership, Highlights Proposed Use of Federal Capital Revolving Fund

Registration will open soon for the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority’s (“BARDA”) 2018 Industry Day to be held on October 29 and 30 at the Grand Hyatt in Washington, D.C. This event has been an integral part of BARDA’s outreach efforts to the life sciences community since 2007, and the newest version of this event promises to continue to provide meaningful insight into BARDA’s role in the nation’s public health preparedness efforts.

BARDA is expected to revisit annual topics like revisions to its broad agency announcement and updates to its goals and Government-wide strategic plans. In addition, this year BARDA will have a particular focus on innovation with the rollout of its Division of Research, Innovation, and Ventures (“DRIVe”) and lightning talks on noteworthy development efforts. Applications to participate in lightning talks are due soon, and potential participants should consider whether to take advantage of this unique opportunity.Continue Reading Save the Date – BARDA Industry Day Is Coming

[This article was originally published in Law360 and has been modified for the blog.]

Earlier this year, President Trump revealed his plan to facilitate new (and much-needed) federal real property projects in part through a $10 billion “mandatory revolving fund,” commonly known as the Federal Capital Financing Fund or the Federal Capital Revolving Fund (the “Revolving Fund” or “FCRF”).  In this article, we take a close look at the Revolving Fund, and discuss the interaction between the Revolving Fund and the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) budgetary scoring rules.  As described below, the Revolving Fund is structured to allow federal agencies to meet the large, upfront dollar obligations often required by OMB’s budgetary scoring rules.  But despite this welcome and significant development, questions still remain about the scope and operation of the Revolving Fund.Continue Reading How Trump Plans To Finance Federal Real Property Projects

Last week, President Donald Trump released his long-awaited infrastructure plan, entitled a “Legislative Outline for Rebuilding Infrastructure in America.”  Clocking-in at 53 pages, this plan is designed to “stimulate at least $1.5 trillion in new investment over the next 10 years” through $200 billion of federal funding.  The infrastructure plan is intended to provide a “roadmap for the Congress to draft and pass the most comprehensive infrastructure bill in our Nation’s history.”  Our high-level key takeaways from that plan are discussed below.
Continue Reading Key Takeaways from Trump’s Infrastructure Plan—Private Financing And A Capital Budget, But No “Buy American” Requirements?

During his first State of the Union address on January 30, 2018, President Trump informed the country that “it is time to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure.”  He called on Congress to “produce a bill that generates at least $1.5 trillion for the new infrastructure investment we need.”  And, the President suggested that “every Federal dollar should be leveraged by partnering with State and local governments and, where appropriate, tapping into private sector investment — to permanently fix the infrastructure deficit.”

The President’s full infrastructure plan has yet to be unveiled, but a leaked summary of the plan from January 22 suggests that the plan will heavily depend upon encouraging “state, local and private investment” by providing incentives in the forms of grants.  Fixing federal infrastructure may be made difficult, however, due to the budgetary scoring rules implemented by the Office of Management & Budget (“OMB”).
Continue Reading Will President Trump’s Infrastructure Plan Address OMB Scoring?

In response to a request from the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) recently reported on the “limited role” that public-private partnerships (“PPP”) play in disposing of and managing the federal government’s “excess or unneeded real property.”  Despite recent “[h]igh profile projects” — such as the 60-year lease of the Old Post Office in Washington, DC to be converted into Trump International Hotel — the General Services Administration (“GSA”) “consider[s]” PPPs “for fewer than ten cases each year.”  And while GAO identified three state governments that might use PPPs to dispose of unneeded real property, none was able to point to any recent instances.
Continue Reading GAO Reports on “Limited Role” of Public-Private Partnerships in Disposing of and Managing Excess Real Property