One of the signature public policy accomplishments of the last decade was the successful leasing of the Indiana Toll Road to private vendors.  This program brought Indiana nearly $4 billion in infrastructure money to build new roads (like the long-promised I 69 extension to Southwest Indiana) and also help free up dollars to repair and upgrade exsiting roads.  In the process, jobs were created in a time when Indiana desperately needed them.

In the upcoming legislative session, Aiming Higher will support efforts by the General Assembly to broaden public-private partnerships (P3) for public infrastructure in order to:

• Free state government to enlist the private sector as a partner in building new roads, bridges, and other infrastructure.
• Save taxpayers money by allowing the private sector to complete tasks in coordination with the government.

Inside Indiana Business referred to P3 as “a tried and true solution…public-private partnerships reduce risk, secure development capital at reasonable rates, and provide a high return on investment for taxpayers and developers alike” (http://bit.ly/fxIc4g). This article from Reason.com (http://bit.ly/g3JoNW) provides some examples from Chicago and New York regarding the benefits that P3 can bring to taxpayers. In his testimony to the Indiana Senate Appropriations Committee, Geoffrey Segal of the Reason Foundation explains the characteristics of public-private partnerships and their merits by examining them in the context of the Indiana toll road privatization (http://bit.ly/9eZxe0). Check out the website for the National Council for Public-Private Partnerships to learn more (http://bit.ly/hmFlPt).

Its clear that as the economics of running government change, states should increasinly look for P3 opportunites to provide services.  All over the world roads are built and run by private entities. Indiana should seek to continue to be a leader in this field.