Last May, Congressmen James Oberstar and Peter DeFazio wrote a letter to all governors and their state transportation department heads, threatening them with undoing public private partnerships they didn’t like. Reason Foundation responded strongly, with a commentary by Sam Staley published in the Washington Examiner, commentary by Geoff Segal , and a lenger response by Bob Poole and Peter Samuel. Now, the nations governor’s are weighing in. Gov. Rick Perry in Texas doesn’t pull punches in his letter when criticizing Congressional meddling in state affairs:
As governor, I will not sit by and allow gridlock to consumer our state’s roads. With the support of local and state leaders, we have created a new approach to transportation funding. We are empowering regional leaders to solve their own problems, and we are engaging the private sector to help us meet these transportation challenges.
“We are already seeing the impact of market forces that are driving down the cost of transportation projects and expediting their completion for the driving public,” Gov. Perry continues. “We cannot turn back now; congestion doesn’t wait for Congress to make up its mind.” (emphasis added) The National Governors Association has also weighed in with a letter to the Congressmen:
We believe that, in pursuing innovative financing and project delivery methods with the private sector, states have been careful and prudent in their analysis, negotiation, and oversight to ensure adequate protections for the public interest.
Stay tuned for the next round….