As the legislative session is only a week away,
our pending public/private partnership bill looks like it’s full steam
ahead. All industry participants of whom I’m aware are on board, with only a few
concerns having been raised thus far, none of which appear strong enough to
derail the momentum. The bill has already passed its first Senate committee
unanimously and the sponsors of a competing bill agreed to merge theirs into
ours in exchange for changes that will make ours a stronger bill than before.
They include the appointment of a task force to create guidelines for a public
agency receiving and processing P3 proposals, added flexibility in determining
the amount of time for competitive bidding after an unsolicited proposal has
been received, and authorizing discretionary interim agreements where
appropriate, whereby the private entity can be compensated during the due
diligence phase of the project as a means of ensuring issues like zoning,
environmental mitigation, design, etc. are properly aligned for the job.
Keep an eye on this spot as we continue tracking
SB 84
and the companion HB
85. The newly formed Florida Council for Public/Private Partnerships is
planning on conducting a P3 seminar focused largely on how to implement the new
legislation on May 16 and 17 in Orlando. Put this on your calendar and contact
me if you wish to be notified when conference registration is available.
