Showing posts with label local. Show all posts
Showing posts with label local. Show all posts
Saturday, May 6, 2017
Thursday, February 16, 2017
Energy, Transportation & Missouri News
Buyer of TVA Nuclear Plant Plans
to Run It
We previously
posted that the Tennessee
Valley Authority (TVA) was
auctioning an unfinished nuclear
power plant near Hollywood,
Alabama.
The buyer, Nuclear
Development LLC, announced its intention to complete the plant and put it
into operation.
Before this can be done, the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission must transfer the operating license from TVA to
Nuclear Development. In addition, Nuclear Development must complete financing
arrangements.
Nuclear Development bid $111 million for the plant. In addition to two
nuclear reactors and supporting facilities, the property includes 1,600 acres
of land.
Canada, Finland Plan to Phase Out
Coal
Canadian
officials announced plans to phase out coal-powered
electric generation by 2030. They hope the country will be 90 percent powered
by sustainable sources by that time.
Findland also proposes to phase out coal by 2030. The country plans to
be carbon-neutral
by 2050.
Bill Would Make Sale of Municipal
Utilities Easier
A bill filed in the Missouri
General Assembly (HB
247), would lower the threshold of voter approval needed for a municipality
to sell a utility. If passed, it would lower the requirement from a
five-seventh majority to a simple majority. The Missouri
House Local Government Committee has taken up the bill.
Bill Would Transfer Some Missouri
Roads from State to Counties
Two bills in the Missouri
Senate (SB
38 and SJR
3), propose pathway for the transfer of responsibility for certain road,
letter routes, from the state to counties. About two-thirds of the current
state funds for maintaining these roads will be distributed to counties, the
remainder remaining with the state for other transportation needs.
County officials are opposed to the measure, saying it will shift much
of the state’s burden for road maintenance to even more cash-strapped counties.
These routes were maintained by counties until 1952, when the state took them
over as part of a road improvement program.
A similar proposal failed to pass in the 2016 session. SJR 3 also
includes a provision for raising fuel taxes. You can find out more about these
bills here.
Noisy Electric Cars
New rules will require electric cars traveling slower than 19 miles per
hour to produce a sound. This is to prevent accidents involving pedestrians who
can’t hear the very quiet electric motors operating in these vehicles. The National
Transportation Safety Administration anticipates this measure will prevent
2,400 injuries to pedestrians annually. New electric and hybrid cars must
comply with the rule by September 2019.
Sunday, March 13, 2016
Infrastructure Roundup
Missouri Highway Commission
Selects New Chair
Gregg
Smith has been appointed
chairman of the Missouri
Highways and Transportation Commission. Smith, who owns an automobile
dealership in Clinton,
MO, will chair the commission that oversees the state
Department of Transportation. You can find more here.
Superbug Found in Sewage
The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found carbapenem-resistant
enterobacteriaceae (CRE) in the sewage at a wastewater
treatment plant in Los
Angeles, CA. CRE is a lethal bacteria that is resistant to most
antibiotics. It was the cause of recent outbreaks in Los Angeles-area
hospitals. EPA did not test the discharge from the plant for the presence of
CRE, but researchers indicate that the bacteria is not destroyed or removed by
typical treatment and disinfection. You can find more about this issue here.
Monday, February 1, 2016
Transportation and Engineering News
Missouri Governor Proposes Funding
Increase for Amtrak
The budget
proposal submitted by Missouri
Governor
Jay Nixon included an additional $500,000 for Amtrak, for
a total of $10.2 million. Amtrak claims it will need $18 million from the state
to install positive train control, as mandated by Congress,
on the Missouri River Runner line, with a total cost of $30 million. You can
find more about this issue here.
Missouri Legislator Suggests Punt to
Counties
Missouri
State Representative Bryan Spencer proposed to make counties
responsible for the upkeep of certain roads that are currently maintained by
the state
(these are generally rural, two-lane highways). This would reduce the amount of
state-maintained roads by 19,000 miles. The roads in question have been
state-maintained since 1952, when they were shifted away from county
maintenance. To implement the proposal, the state constitution must be amended.
You can find more about this proposal here and here. Most proposals to improve Missouri’s
road funding problem involve raising the fuel tax.
WOMEN IN STEM
Women Take Lead at Engineering
Organization
The American Society
of Civil Engineers (ASCE) has nominated two women to the ballot for its
president-elect. Robin Kemper and
Kristina Swallow are both professional engineers, and one will be ASCE’s
president-elect and eventually president. Kemper provides expertise on
construction and professional liability issues at Zurich Services Corporation.
Swallow leads a team of public works engineers in Las Vegas. ASCE’s current
president-elect, Norma Jean Mattei, will step up to the office of president,
meaning the top two offices in the organization will be held by women for the
first time in the 164 years it has existed. You can find more here.
Sunday, January 10, 2016
Infrastructure & Environment Review
Ameren
Missouri Efficiency Program Ends
Unable to resolve
differences with state regulators, Ameren
Missouri has let its energy
efficiency rebate program lapse. Staff of the Missouri
Public Service Commission and the state’s Office
of Public Counsel believed that Ameren customer overpaid the cost of the
program, and opposed a three-year extension. A proposal from Kansas City Power & Light has been
approved, and it might serve as a model for a compromise between the state and
Ameren. You can read more about this issue here.
Bans
on Texting While Driving Introduced in Missouri
Bills that would
prohibit or greatly restrict texting while driving have been prefiled in the Missouri
General Assembly session that started January 6: HB1542 and SB821. Currently, texting while driving is
banned for drivers younger than 21 and for drivers of commercial vehicles. You
can find more about these bills here.
Bill
Would Add Missouri Highway Commissioners
HB1446 would increase the size of the Missouri
Highways and Transportation Commission from six members to eight. Each of
the seven Transportation
Department districts would be represented by a commissioner, and an eighth
commissioner would be appointed without regard to district residence.
Missouri
Legislators Propose Fuel Tax Increase
Two proposals have been
floated by Missouri
state legislators. One would increase the tax on
gasoline by 1.5 cents and diesel by 3.5 cents. Another would increase all fuel
taxes by 2 cents. You can find more about these proposals here or here.
As an alternative to the
fuel tax, SB645 would redirect 3 percent of
automobile sales tax revenues from state general revenue to the road fund.
Flooded
Wastewater Plants Release Sewage in St. Louis Area
Wastewater treatment
plants operated by the Metropolitan Sewer
District of St. Louis have released millions of gallons of sewage into
rivers. The Grand Glaize and Fenton plants were inundated by the recent floods
in Missouri. The two plants, which combined treat and average of 20 million
gallons of wastewater per day, discharge into the Meramec
River.
White
House Announces Water Strategy
The White House
announced a strategy to the sustainability of U.S. water
supplies and systems.
The cynic in me suspects that these strategies, programs, and actions were
things that were mostly in the works anyway, but someone cobbled them together
into a seemingly unified program (you can can get the details here). Even so, we need to take a serious look at our water
resources, policies and practices. Good policy that addresses today’s water
situation is needed, but sustainable water for our nation will come when we
have a culture that values water for the many roles it plays in our
environment, industry, health, recreation and almost every other aspect of
human life.
Sunday, December 13, 2015
All About Missouri This Week
Bill Prefiled to Ban Texting and
Driving
Missouri
State Senator David
Pearce has prefiled a bill that would prohibit the use by all drivers of
hand-held mobile phones to send, read or write text messages. Find out more here.
Gubernatorial Candidates Discuss
Tranportation Funding (Just a Little)
So far, Missouri’s candidates for governor have provide few details
about how the state will pay to maintain roads. Missouri is 7th
among the states in the size of its transportation
system, but 47th in state funding.
Candidate
Catherine Hanaway suggested that the $200 million annually in state
fuel tax
revenues that is used to fund the Highway Patrol
could be committed to transportation. The Highway Patrol would be funded from
general revenue, though Hanaway’s plan does not provide specifics about how
other general revenue-funded programs would be cut or how general revenue would
be increased. You can find more about Hanaway’s proposal here.
The state General Assembly is also
looking at the issue. A prefiled bill (HB
1381) would raise the state fuel tax from 17 cents to 19 cents per gallon.
First Woman Engineering Dean at
University of Missouri
My alma mater, the University of
Missouri College of Engineering,
has named its 11th dean, Elizabeth G. Loboa.
She is the first woman to hold the position. Loboa has a background in
biomedical engineer. Before coming to Mizzou, she held a joint appointment at
the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and North Carolina State
University.
Highway Commissioner Appointed
Gov. Jay Nixon appointed
Hannibal-area lawyer John Briscoe to serve on the Missouri Highway and
Transportation Commission. The appointment must be confirmed by the Senate.
Springfield Buying Wind Energy
City Utilities of Springfield announced it will be buying energy from a
wind farm to be built north of Oklahoma City, OK. The wind farm is being built
by Duke Energy Renewables and is designed to produce 200 megawatts.
Sunday, November 8, 2015
Transportation & Water Update
New
Transportation Director for Missouri
The Missouri
Highway and Transportation Commission has selected Patrick
McKenna to serve as director of the state Department
of Transportation (MoDOT). Presently, McKenna is deputy commissioner of the
New
Hampshire DOT. He will start his new job on December 7.
He will start his new job at an
agency facing many challenges, particularly low revenues. MoDOT has not significant improvement or
expansion projects slated for the next five years because of lack of funding.
The agency anticipates it will not even have enough money to fully maintain roads
and bridges in the state within a couple of years.
McKenna will be coming from a
different environment. New Hampshire raised its fuel tax in
2014. It also has toll roads; Missouri
has none, though McKenna has suggested it should be on the table as a way to
pay for roads.
You can find out more about
McKenna and his appointment in the Kansas City Star, Jefferson City News-Tribune, or St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
California
Communities Consider Direct Potable Reuse
The drought in California
has led to a discussion of direct potable
reuse of wastewater.
This “toilet-to-tap” practice involves sending treated wastewater directly to
treatment for drinking
water. Some Texas
communities have already adopted this practice as a response to drought. You
can find out more here.
Sunday, October 25, 2015
Infrastructure & Environment News
My lack of time to write for this blog has reduced me to a compiler of
infrastructure news, though such compilation has always been part of Infrastructure Watch. You
can links to several alternative
energy articles here.
Google pledged to invest in the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project in Kenya. You
can find more about this project here.
Low Gas Prices No Problem for
Solar
Low gas prices didn’t last long around here (at least they didn’t stay
less than $2 per gallon for long). Either way, Tony
Randall discusses why low oil prices are not a problem for the continued
growth of solar power in Bloomberg.
Renewables Generators Face
Distribution Problems
As the U.S. develops renewable
energy resources, it is facing a problem: the places where we most want to
use the energy are some distance from the places where we are best able to
generate it. States in
the middle of the country are becoming involved in conflicts between clean
energy proponents and landowners, sometimes turning environmental and energy
groups into uncomfortable allies.
Missouri
is one state where the issue has come to head. Earlier this year, the Public Service Commission rejected a project that
would carry energy from wind farms
in Kansas
to users in Indiana.
The commission determined that the project was not needed, and many of the
public comments received by the commission expressed opposition to the project.
The company behind the proposal, Clean
Line Energy Partners LLC of Texas, is
also proposing a line to connect Oklahoma
to Tennessee,
which faces opposition in Arkansas.
Environmental groups have been supportive of the Missouri project.
Missouri’s chapter of the Sierra
Club has acknowledged that the Clean Line route avoids many environmentally
sensitive areas, and expressed hope that it will help in the move away from
coal. The Sierra Club also supported a Clean Line project in part of Arkansas
where it was opposing an oil pipeline project.
Supreme
Court Hears Demand Response Case
The Supreme
Court has been hearing arguments in a case related to demand response.
Demand response refers to methods large energy
user adjust their use to reduced demand during normally high use times when
energy is expensive. Demand response reduces peak demand, evens out energy use,
and reduces cost of energy production.
Companies have created markets to trade these reductions in demand
(sometimes called negawatts) as if they were power being supplied to the
market. When major users reduce shift use or move use to off-peak times, they
reduce the need to ramp up additional generating units, and save money for
generators. The Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has enshrined this in regulations that
require energy wholesalers to pay for these commitments to reduce demand the
same amount they pay for a commitment to generate electricity.
The crux of the argument before the court is the regulatory authority
of FERC. FERC has authority related to wholesale energy markets, where
commitments to generate might be traded (and FERC rules say a commitment to
reduce demand should get an equal price). The utility customers who are making
the commitments to reduce demand are buying energy in the retail market, which
is regulated by states. Opponents of the
FERC rules say that it is getting into retail markets in which it has not
authority. FERC argues that it is the only agency that can effective regulate
this kind of trading, and that there is a public good in the demand reductions
and efficiencies provided by demand response.
You can find more about this case here,
along with a description of how it may become important to small retail
electricity users (i.e. almost all of us).
Infrastructure
John Oliver Thinks Infrastructure
Sexy
Comedian John Oliver featured America’s infrastructure in a segment on
his show Last Week Tonight.
Obviously, Oliver’s tone is humorous and mocking, but he presents a thoughtful
essay on the issue. You can see it
on YouTube.
New Environmental Director in Nebraska
Congratulations to Jim Macy, who was recently appointed by Gov. Pete Ricketts to
serve as director
of the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality. Macy has worked in the
area of environmental regulation and compliance for decades, including
leadership roles at the Missouri Department of
Natural Resources.
States Take Lead on Infrastructure Funding
Washington
senate leaders have proposed to raise the state gas tax to 11.7
cents per gallon over the next three years. The proposal would also redirect a
portion of the state’s sales tax to its transportation fund (more
here).
Oregon
will experiment with a program of fees based on miles driven rather than a gas
tax beginning this summer (more
here). Many think this is a more rational way to fund highways.
In my home state of the Missouri,
the governor came just short of calling for a gas tax hike as part of the state
of the state address. Tax Justice Blog has a nice summary of proposals
in several other states.
Baltimore Sewers Featured on Radio
The radio program Marketplace featured the Baltimore,
MD, sewer
system and the issues associated with a large, aging infrastructure (listen
to or read the story here). Baltimore is not unique; these problems are
plaguing cities across the nation.
San Francisco Opens New Hetch Hetchy Tunnel
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission opened the New Irvington
Tunnel. The 3.5-mile, 9-ft diameter tunnel will carry 265 million gallons a
day. It is part of the Hetch Hetchy system, which brings water from reservoirs
as far away as Yosemite National Park, 167 miles. (Read more about the project
at KQED.)
Real-Time Sensor for Bacteria in
Water
A device has been developed in Denmark that can detect bacteria in
water. Of course, not all bacteria is harmful, so it seems the usefulness of
the tool may be limited to screening for now. However, it continuous, real-time
monitoring could be a useful screen to determine when additional testing is
should be performed or when a contamination event started. If commercial
versions of the sensor are affordable, multiple sensors could be placed in a
drinking water distribution system to continuously monitor water quality,
disinfection effectiveness, and potential contamination. You can find out more about the sensor here.
Water and Art
Adres Jacque will build a temporary structure that uses plants to
purify water in the courtyard of MoMA PS1. Organisms in the structure will glow
in the dark to provide light. See this Fast
Company article for more information.
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Infrastructure & Environment News
My lack of time to write for this blog has reduced me to a compiler of
infrastructure news, though such compilation has always been part of Infrastructure Watch. You
can links to several alternative
energy articles here.
Low Gas Prices No Problem for
Solar
Low gas prices didn’t last long around here (at least they didn’t stay
less than $2 per gallon for long). Either way, Tony
Randall discusses why low oil prices are not a problem for the continued
growth of solar power in Bloomberg.
Infrastructure
John Oliver Thinks Infrastructure
Sexy
Comedian John Oliver featured America’s infrastructure in a segment on
his show Last Week Tonight.
Obviously, Oliver’s tone is humorous and mocking, but he presents a thoughtful
essay on the issue. You can see it
on YouTube.
New Environmental Director in Nebraska
Congratulations to Jim Macy, who was recently appointed by Gov. Pete Ricketts to
serve as director
of the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality. Macy has worked in the
area of environmental regulation and compliance for decades, including
leadership roles at the Missouri Department of
Natural Resources.
States
Take Lead on Infrastructure Funding
Washington
senate leaders have proposed to raise the state gas tax to 11.7
cents per gallon over the next three years. The proposal would also redirect a
portion of the state’s sales tax to its transportation fund (more
here).
Oregon
will experiment with a program of fees based on miles driven rather than a gas
tax beginning this summer (more
here). Many think this is a more rational way to fund highways.
In my home state of the Missouri,
the governor came just short of calling for a gas tax hike as part of the state
of the state address. Tax Justice Blog has a nice summary of proposals
in several other states.
Baltimore
Sewers Featured on Radio
The radio program Marketplace featured the Baltimore,
MD, sewer
system and the issues associated with a large, aging infrastructure (listen
to or read the story here). Baltimore is not unique; these problems are
plaguing cities across the nation.
San Francisco
Opens New Hetch Hetchy Tunnel
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission opened the New Irvington
Tunnel. The 3.5-mile, 9-ft diameter tunnel will carry 265 million gallons a
day. It is part of the Hetch Hetchy system, which brings water from reservoirs
as far away as Yosemite National Park, 167 miles. (Read more about the project
at KQED.)
Water and Art
Adres Jacque will build a temporary structure that uses plants to
purify water in the courtyard of MoMA PS1. Organisms in the structure will glow
in the dark to provide light. See this Fast
Company article for more information.
Monday, November 25, 2013
Funding Infrastructure
Crowdfunding
The American Institute of Architects
released Crowdfunding Architecture, a report
that explored the potential of raising private funds from many people
investing, loaning, or donating small sums. Crowdfunding is a growing trend in
other areas, especially in the arts and product development.
Of course, public civil infrastructure requires a lot of money. The
investors who might be able to put substantial sums into a project will expect
a return. This is an issue for other forms of private investment in public
infrastructure, often there is no revenue generated by the infrastructure to
pay back investors.
What do you think? Does crowdfunding have the potential to be a serious
source of funding for public infrastructure?
Related posts and articles
Roads by the Mile
IW has previously written
about declining
fuel tax revenues. An alternative to fuel taxes is a tax or fee based on miles
driven. Oregon
is planning to implement a program based on VMT (vehicle miles traveled).
Related posts and articles
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Literature Review: Cost Overruns & Delays in Municipal Construction Projects
I occasionally find an old piece
of school work that seems suitable for this blog. Previously, I posted a book
review I wrote for a class. This piece is a literature review related to cost
overruns in municipal construction projects. It was written in 1999, so the
references are a bit dated. I made no attempt to update the paper.
Literature Review
Problem Statement
Construction projects commonly suffer delays and cost overruns (Arditi
& Patel, 1989; Baldwin, Manthei, Rothbart & Harris, 1971; Kraiem &
Diekmann, 1987; Mahid & McCaffer, 1998; Mulholland & Christian, 1999).
In projects that often cost millions of dollars, even a relatively small
overrun can be very expensive. Likewise, construction delays may cause late
delivery of services and loss of revenues related to that service.
Municipal governments construct and maintain a significant public
infrastructure. Engineering construction accounts for 20 to 25 percent of the
market for new construction, most of which is publicly financed (Clough, 1989).
Even small cities will often be responsible for roads, wastewater collection and
treatment, drinking water distribution, parks, and public buildings.
Municipal governments often use federal and state grants and loans to
finance all or part of construction projects. For instance, the Missouri
Department of Natural Resources operates eight grant and loan programs
available to local governments for the construction of wastewater facilities,
drinking water facilities, parks, and energy efficiency improvements to public
buildings (Financial).
The reduction of cost overruns and delays could cause a reduction in
the cost of public services, especially at the local level where many services
utilize some constructed infrastructure. These savings could result in improved
economy of state and federal programs that provide financial assistance to
municipalities.
The actors involve in public construction are all levels of government,
contractors, architects and engineers, and the public. Local governments
directly experience the cost of construction projects. Federal and state
agencies are interested in the economy and efficiency of their programs and
accountability. Contractors are interested in the availability and
profitability of public projects. Architects and engineers are similarly
concerned about the amount of public work available and requirements for the
management and cost estimation of projects. The public is concerned with the
level of taxes and user fees necessary to pay for public services.
Key questions research might address include:
-How common and severe are cost overruns and delays in public works
projects?
-What characteristics of local government relate to cost overruns and
delays?
-What project characteristics relate to cost overruns and delays?
-Might some sort of intervention reduce the occurrence or severity of
cost overruns and delays?
Literature Review
Cost growth and schedule growth are common measures of construction
project success (Pocock, Hyun, Liu & Kim, 1996; Pocock, Liu & Kim,
1997; Sanvido, Grobler, Pafitt, Guvenis & Coyle, 1992; Songer &
Molenaar, 1997). The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has a great deal
of information available on cost and schedule for projects that received loans
for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. This includes contracts that describe
the project cost and schedule and change orders that incorporate any cost and
schedule changes into the contract. This information may also allow a review to
identify owner-initiated changes that increased the cost or lengthened the time
to project completion. However, municipalities do not appear to pursue claims
as vigorously as other levels of government or private organizations.
Therefore, these records may not clearly identify changes with the owner,
contractor, engineer, or unforeseen circumstances. A pool of project-level
information like this may be useful to this research because of the difficulty
of finding measures of comparison at the municipal level (Coe, 1999; Kopczynski
& Lombardo, 1999).
Projects funded through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund include
the construction of wastewater collection and treatment systems. These are
mostly government-owned systems. These projects involve many of the same
products and processes as other construction projects. They are comparable to other
projects that a municipality may construct.
Many of these questions relate to the owner’s role in the success of a
construction project. The owner controls a number of factors that have a
significant impact on the success of a construction project. These include a
well-defined scope, and understanding of the scope shared with other
participants, the owner’s construction sophistication, adequate owner staffing,
and an established budget (Sanvido et al., 1992; Songer & Molenaar, 1997).
Because these are mostly skills and practices related to the
development and management of projects, it seems reasonable to assume that municipal
authorities could be taught these skills. It would be difficult to measure the
availability of these skills in a number of cities over a short period, but
some indicators may be available. Specifically, form of government and population
may indicate the presence of these skills and practices.
Researchers still debate the efficiency of city manager governments relative
to mayor-council governments. Stumm & Corrigan 91998) found that city
manager cities have, on average, lower property taxes and general fund
expenditures than mayor-council cities. Others have found that city manager and
mayor-council cities do not differ in expenditures and efficiency (Deno &
Mehay, 1997; Hayes & Chang, 1990; Morgan & Pelissero, 1980).
If cities do not differ on the bottom line, city manager and
mayor-council governments appear to differ in their approach to capital
budgeting and management. In their approaches to budgeting, city managers more
often use a program budget while mayor-council governments more often use a
zero-base or target-base budget (Poister & McGowan, 1984). City managers
tend to spend more on infrastructure, use more sophisticate budgets and more
often use separate capital budgets than mayor-council cities (Doss, 1987; Nunn,
1996).
Likewise, city managers often use formal approaches to managing
capital. Doss (1987) found that city managers are more likely than
mayor-council governments to use formal capital improvement plans and routine
inspection programs.
Similarly, large municipalities tend to be more sophisticated. As
populations increase, municipalities more often adopt separate capital budgets
and make formal use of budget decision models (Doss, 1987; Sekwat, 1996).
In light of this, city manager governments and larger cities would seem
to have natural advantages. Because of the use of capital improvement plans and
separate capital budgets, city manager governments and larger cities seem more
likely to have a well-established budget and well-defined scope for any given
construction project.
Professional management is a fundamental of city manager governments.
This would seem to give city managers an advantage in construction sophistication
and experience, staffing and the ability to work with contractors to develop a
common understanding of project scope.
Large cities have a practical need for professional staff, so they may have
many of the same advantages as city manager cities. Because of the number of
projects large cities can be involved in, they are likely to have staff with
previous experience in many types of construction projects.
Previous research links form of government and population to a number
of factors that are likely to lead to successful construction projects. Much of
this research uses surveys of municipalities, contractors and engineers. While
surveys are difficult and expensive, population and form of government
information is readily available (Missouri Municipal, 1997; Official
Manual, 1996).
Construction projects vary widely in size and complexity. Research that
tries to attribute cost and schedule growth to specific factors must account
for differences that occur as project increase in size or complexity. This is
difficult to judge. However, because estimators attempt to consider these
complexities (Clough, 1989), the contractor’s bid may be taken as a reasonable
judgment of the size and complexity of a construction project.
A review of the literature leads to the following conclusions. Form of
government and population can indicate the likely presence of skills and
practices that lead to successful projects. Successful projects are those that
have no cost or schedule growth. It is possible to account for project
complexity in a comparison across projects and municipalities.
An assumption of this review is that municipal officials can learn the
skills and practices that contribute to construction project success.
Therefore, if it is found that form of government and population are related to
cost and schedule growth, an intervention that increases these skills may decrease
cost and schedule growth.
References
Arditi, D., & Patel, B. K. (1989). Impact analysis of
owner-directed acceleration. Journal of Construction Engineering Management.
115(1), 144-157.
Baldwin, J. R., Manthei, J. M., Rothbart, H., & Harris, R. B.
(1971). Causes of delays in the construction industry. Journal of the
Construction Division. 97(CO2), 177-187.
Clough, R. H. (1986). Construction Contracting. 5th
ed. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Coe, C. (1999). Local government benchmarking: Lessons from two major
multigovernment efforts. Public Administration Review. 59(2),
110-123.
Deno, K. T., & Mehay, S. L. (1987). Municipal management structures
and municipal services in America’s largest cities. Southern Economic
Journal. 53(3), 21-26.
Doss, C. B. (1987). The use of public budgeting procedures in U.S.
cities. Public Administration Review. 7(3), 57-59.
Financial Assistance Opportunities. Jefferson City, MO: Missouri
Department of Natural Resources.
Hayes, K., & Chang, S. (1990). The relative efficiency of city
manager and mayor-council forms of government. Southern Economic Journal.
57(1), 167-177.
Kopczynski, M., & Lombardo, M. (1999). Comparative performance
measures: Insights and lessons learned from a consortium effort. Public
Administration Review. 59(2), 124-134.
Kraiem, Z. M., & Diekmann, J. E. (1987). Concurrent delays in
construction projects. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management.
113(4), 591-602.
Mahid, M. Z. A., & McCaffer, R. (1998). Factors of non-excusable
delays that influence contractor’s performance. Journal of Management in
Engineering. 14(3), 42-49.
Missouri Municipal Officials 1997-98 Directory. (1997).
Jefferson City, MO: Missouri Municipal League.
Morgan, D. R., & Pelissero, J. P. (1980). Urban policy: Does
political structure matter? American Political Science Review. 26(1),
8-15.
Mulholland, B., & Christian, J. (1999). Risk management in
construction schedules. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management.
125(1), 8-15.
Nunn, S. (1996). Urban infrastructure and capital spending in city
manager and strong mayor cities. American Review of Public Administration.
26(1), 93-112.
Official Manual 1995-1996. (1996). Jefferson City, MO: Missouri
Secretary of State’s Office.
Pocock, J. B., Hyun, C. T., Liu, L. Y., & Kim, M. K. (1996).
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Friday, February 22, 2013
National League of Cities: Congress Must Address Water Infrastructure
Michael Sesma, a member of the Gaithersburg, MD, city council, testified
on behalf of the National League of Cities (NLC)
behalf before the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on
Environment and Economy. He asked the committee to "lead and serve the
country by addressing the underlying issue of aging infrastructure and unmet
infrastructure needs. This effort will strengthen the intergovernmental
partnership by enabling our cities and towns, our states, and country to meet
the challenges and opportunities of leading the world into the next
century."
The full testimony can be found at http://docs.house.gov/meetings/IF/IF18/20130215/100242/HHRG-113-IF18-Wstate-SesmaM-20130215.pdf.
You can read the original NLC news release here→.
Additionally, Sesma testified on the importance of local governments in
implementing federal environmental protection programs, serving as implementers
of state and federal environmental policies and programs and with authority
over local land use, zoning, and code development. He highlighted areas where
the federal-state-local partnership led to improved environmental protection.
Specifically:
- Federalism consultation - Consulting with cities earlier and more frequently on projects reduces the burden on local governments in both cost and regulatory requirements.
- Regulatory review - Looking at old and outdated regulations that add to the cost and paperwork burdens of cities.
- Integrated planning - Allowing local governments to identify opportunities to achieve the requirements of the Clean Water Act in an affordable manner.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Infrastructure & Engineering News Roundup
Engineering Week
We’re in the middle of Engineers Week 2013. Unfortunately, it is not
uncommon for IW to miss
taking not of this week. We encourage you to visit the Web
site of the National
Engineers Week Foundation. We’ve been tweeting about Engineers Week,
and if you use Twitter you can also promote the profession this week with an #EWeek2013
hashtag.
Mayors Support Texas Water
Resources Development Plan
The Texas
Legislature is considering a proposal to spend $2 billion from the state
rainy day fund to pay for projects in the state water
resources plan. The mayors of Dallas, Mesquite, Midland,
and San
Antonio expressed support for the bill (find about this in the Dallas
Morning News and the Houston
Chronicle).
NAE Honors Engineers
The National Academy of Engineering
recognized several engineers with prizes for their contributions to the
profession, engineering achievements, and advancements in engineering
education. The Draper
Prize is especially prestigious, and is sometimes called the “Nobel Prize
of engineering.” The Washington Post
web site has a very good blog
post about the prizes and winners.
National Infrastructure Bank
Proposed
Another infrastructure
bank proposal has been introduced. This one comes from Rep. John Delaney (MD). His bill would
create an Office of Infrastructure Investment in the Department of
Treasury. The office would oversee an American Infrastructure Fund and act
something like a bank, loaning
money to states
and guaranteeing state and local bonds.
The new
release from Rep. Delaney’s office suggests that public-private
partnerships will be encouraged by the office, but provides no specifics
about how this would work.
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