National Lobster Day

Floor Speech

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The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Hassan). Without objection, it is so ordered. Amendment No. 2354

Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Madam President, I want to start by thanking some of our colleagues--Senators Rounds, Ernst, and Kelly--for cosponsoring the provisions of this amendment, and thank the chairman and ranking member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, Senators Carper and Capito, for their support as well.

I also want to acknowledge the good work of our House colleague, Congressman Steve Lynch, on championing this issue.

So what is this amendment about? It is a commonsense amendment to ensure that as we work on a bipartisan basis to modernize our infrastructure for the 21st century, we also work together to ensure that new infrastructure projects that flow from this bill and others are financed securely.

Most Federal projects are financed securely by law. Most require some kind of surety bond. That has been the case for almost 100 years in this country. But because of an odd and old loophole, public-private infrastructure partnerships, or P3 projects, often do not maintain the same level of protection that has been required for public infrastructure projects over time. That can spell disaster for subcontractors, for workers, for taxpayers, and for the success of projects that are not so secure.

We know that contractor defaults can cause costly delays, waste taxpayer money, and leave residents and local stakeholders and project workers in the lurch. In fact, one developer defaulted on a P3 project in Indiana and left subcontractors without pay and left taxpayers on the hook for over $300 million in additional project costs.

This amendment simply requires that P3 projects using TIFIA financing--that is Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act financing--be secured with a surety bond. That way, in the event a contractor defaults, the protections by that bond ensure the completion of those projects. They protect taxpayers, and they ensure that workers and subcontractors and suppliers are paid for their work.

Not surprisingly, this effort is supported by a broad coalition of organizations, including the American Subcontractors Association, the National Association of Minority Contractors, and a wide range of other contractors, because it will ensure that they are paid for the work they do, and it will also protect taxpayers who otherwise are left in the lurch if a contractor goes belly up and we do not have the protection of this kind of surety bond. That is why this amendment has broad bipartisan support, and I urge its adoption.

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