No, we don't just work on credit card reform! We work to protect taxpayers, too (among other things). On Friday, in addition to the credit card bill, the President also signed PIRG-backed legislation to reform the Pentagon weapons purchasing system (PIRG statement). Also, yesterday's New York Times has a story Turning the Infrastructure Into Profits about the growing international interest in investing in public infrastructure, from roads and bridges to sewage plants. The story also points out that many consultants and developers and their frontmen are taking advantage of government "budgetary constraints" to push, for example, lucrative (to them) toll road privatization deals. As the story notes, U.S. PIRG has been concerned that in most deals we've seen, the risks still accrue to the public, while the private sector takes all the cash.

At the end of last year, there were 15 roads in 10 states in private hands, according to a recent report by the Public Interest Research Group Education Fund, and an additional 79 roads in 25 states are under consideration for some form of privatization.

Grimm analyzes the failed deal opposed by most Floridians and then closes:

But would-be bidders couldn't finagle a loan for the up-front cash. It says something about the state of the global credit market when big-time corporations can't borrow $500 million to consummate highway robbery.

If only I had known. It could have been me cheating Floridians out of their toll road. I could be peddling the naming rights (think Land Shark Alley), jamming billboards along the berm, charging roadside fishermen hooking fees and cutting a deal with the Seminoles to install drive-through slot machines along the Alley.

Think of the phat lifestyle I could have squeezed out of a public highway. And, as the lease holder, I'd naturally expect first dibs on road kill.

Also on Tuesday, Californians approved by 52-48 the CALPIRG-backed Proposition 1A to promote the development of high speed rail. Most other large spending proposals were sent to defeat by voters (AP via San Diego Tribune). From statement of CALPIRG consumer advocate Emily Rusch:

We saw gas prices hover well above $4 a gallon in California all summer. California has three of the top five most congested regions in the country, costing commuters billions in time and money. Continued oil dependence puts our environment, our economy, and national security at risk.

High-speed rail will allow Californians to travel from the Bay Area to Los Angeles in two and a half hours, without the hassle of the airport. High speed rail is predicted to take up to 92 million drivers off the road annually and attract 18 million travelers who would otherwise fly. In doing so, high speed rail would eliminate the need for construction of 2,970 additional highway miles and 91 airport gates.

U.S. PIRG Staff attorney John Krieger testifies (his testimony) today before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee at a hearing on “Improving the Federal Bridge Program: Including an Assessment of S. 3338 and H.R. 3999.” Hearing video on this page. Excerpt from Krieger's testimony:

In order to revamp our transportation system for the needs of the 21st century, “fix it first” policies and accountability for spending must be prioritized. Unless we change the way that America finances bridge repair, we remain doomed to repeat mistakes of the past. The bridge collapse in Minnesota should serve as a wake-up call. We urge this committee to embrace an approach to highway spending that prioritizes maintenance and repair of our existing roadways and bridges. Our country can no longer afford the cost of inaction and misplaced priorities as our bridges continue to age and deteriorate.

My colleague Dr. Phineas Baxandall, Ph.D, U.S. PIRG's senior analyst for tax and budget policy, testified today (his written testimony) before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee at a Hearing on H.R. 6707, the "Taking Responsible Action for Community Safety Act." Link to full hearing. Excerpt from Baxandall's testimony:

The TRACS Act would address the fact that mergers can also undermine the public interest by affecting how railway companies reroute traffic, maintain existing tracks, or develop new lines. The legislation would appropriately empower the Surface Transportation Board to consider the broader public interest, including the impacts on commuter and intercity rail. This makes sense as we look toward the challenges of the future and the role that transportation must play in meeting those challenges.

The state PIRGs and U.S. PIRG are devoting significant efforts to mass transportation, infrastructure rebuilding and state budget policies. We want to build a 21st Century transportation system. This week, Georgia PIRG attorney Sandra Glaze had an op-ed column The crack in bridge policies appear in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Also this week, U.S. PIRG senior analyst Phineas Baxandall, Ph.D., commented in a story Is leasing roads a viable option? by George Spohr in upstate New York's Times-Herald Record:

The downside is that states enter into long-term leases -- typically between 75 and 100 years — and there's no way of knowing how valuable the assets will be in the future, Baxandall said. And the private companies have leeway to get what they want to turn a profit. "It's a lot like your HMO, where you've got an army of lawyers aimed at providing as little service as they can," he said.

Over at the New Rules Project of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, Stacy Mitchell has a new issue of her email-able journal The Hometown Advantage. Among its highlights is a link to the Big Box Toolkit for assisting activists fighting Wal-Marts and similar big box proposals, along with these stories: