The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has established the Build America Bureau to assist in streamlining credit and grant opportunities for transportation infrastructure development projects in the United States.
The new bureau, which utilizes the full resources of all the modes within DOT, will offer customers a single entity in charge of DOT credit, large scale, and intermodal project development, and a single point of contact for working with DOT on infrastructure finance and development. The bureau will also provide technical assistance and encourage innovative best practices in project planning, financing, delivery, and monitoring.
“The Build America Bureau will be a one-stop shop to help develop projects and provide financing in a single streamlined, effective, and comprehensive manner,” said DOT Secretary Anthony Foxx, who announced the new bureau. “It will allow DOT to be responsive to America’s changing transportation needs and opportunities, so we can deliver real, tangible infrastructure development for local, regional, and national population centers.”
The Build America Bureau combines the following DOT programs: the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA); the Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Financing (RRIF); the private activity bond (PAB); the Build America Transportation Investment Center (BATIC); and the new $800 million Fostering Advancements in Shipping and Transportation for the Long-term Achievement of National Efficiencies (FASTLANE) grant program.
The Bureau Outreach and Development team will work with project sponsors to aid them on combining DOT credit, funding, and innovative project delivery such as public-private partnerships, and then offer project-level technical assistance to get them ready to pursue it. This team will continue the work of the BATIC.
The Department’s Credit team will be able to underwrite loans from multiple sources together, so that the customer is no longer getting a TIFIA loan or a RRIF loan, but instead a single credit package from DOT. The Bureau will also manage the application and evaluation process for the FASTLANE grant program.
Announced in 2014, BATIC serves as a single point of contact and coordination for states, municipalities, and project sponsors looking to utilize federal transportation expertise, apply for federal transportation credit programs, and explore ways to access private capital in public private partnerships.