Ruminations on Pending P3 Legislation
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.
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