MINING THE GOVERNMENT BALANCE SHEET: WHAT CITIES AND STATES HAVE TO SELL

President Bush's Executive Order (No. 12803) on Infrastructure Privatization of April 30, 1992 cleared away federal barriers to cities and states selling or leasing existing public works infrastructure to private investors. This report reviews the potential for state and local governments to make use of the new option granted them by the Executive Order. Based largely on international experience, estimations of the market value of privatized infrastructure are derived. Applied to the numbers of commercial infrastructure enterprises owned by cities and states (airports, highways and bridges, ports, turnpikes, etc.), valuation rules of thumb yield estimates of the potential sales value which cities and states could realize via privatization. This preliminary estimate is $227 billion.

• Corporate Authors:

  Reason Foundation

  3415 S Sepulveda Boulevard, Suite 400
  Los Angeles, CA  United States  90034
• Authors:
  • Poole Jr, R W
  • Haarmeyer, D
  • Scarlett, L
• Publication Date: 1992-4

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: 16 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Estimates; Infrastructure; Local government; Market value; Privatization; State government
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Aviation; Finance; Highways; Marine Transportation; Public Transportation; I10: Economics and Administration;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00624840
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: Policy Insight No. 139
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Aug 28 1993 12:00AM