Senator Durbin Bill Designed to Throw Wrench in Wall Street Infrastructure Heist

The Durbin legislation seeks to curb these abuses. Huffington Post summarizes its main provisions:


The bill would require states and cities to repay any federal funds they used to build or maintain the assets, such as toll roads or airports, as a condition of leasing them, likely thwarting many deals before they happen. It would also call for more transparency in the negotiation of such deals….

“I’m really trying to stake some ground here on a principle and position that we ought to reflect on,” Durbin told HuffPost. “The federal government is in debt. We are borrowing money to sustain our operations, and we’re sending some of that money to states and localities for investment in infrastructure. We’re making quite a sacrifice. If a decision is made by a local unit of government to privatize that public infrastructure, federal taxpayers should have a seat at the table.”….

Durbin’s bill would pertain only to transportation assets, and it would attach a federal lien on any transportation project that has received more than $25 million in federal money or is valued at more than $500 million.

If passed, the law would likely bring to an end the proposed privatization of Amtrak. This week House Transportation Committee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) rolled out a plan to privatize the rail service in the Northeast, claiming trains would run smoother between Washington and Boston if they were in the hands of private entities.