Innovative Financing: The Creation Of The West Coast Infrastructure Exchange

By Mike Matichich

West Coast partners ‘raise their game’ by increasing funding for water infrastructure.

State and local governments throughout North America are finding their ability to finance infrastructure through traditional municipal bond markets increasingly constrained as a result of both reduced public budgets and market conditions. This capacity restriction comes at a time when demand for new infrastructure and for infrastructure improvement and innovation is increasing.

Estimates of the 30-year infrastructure investment need for three West Coast states and British Columbia easily top $1 trillion. Water projects alone are expected to cost, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers:

• an extra $4.6 billion a year in California (2012 data);
• an extra $2.8 billion over the next 20 years in Oregon (2009 data);
• an extra $6.7 billion over the next 20 years in Washington (2009 data);