Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 249 / Thursday, December 28, 1995 / Notices 67159

C. Modifications for Americans with

Disabilities Act Compliance (Impose

and Use).

D. West Ramp High Mast Lighting

(Impose and Use).

E. Rehabilitation of Northwest

Terminal Support Area Ramp (Impose

and Use).

F. Design of Airport Road Interchange

and Expansion—East and West (Impose

Only).

G. Construction of Airport Road

Interchange and Expansion—East and

West (Impose Only).

H. Design and Mid-Crossfield

Taxiway Bridge Expansion (Impose and

Use).

I. Deleted.

J. Expansion of Existing International

Facilities (Impose and Use).

Class or classes of air carriers which

the public agency has requested not be

required to collect PFCs: None.

Any person may inspect the

application in person at the FAA office

listed above under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT.

In addition, any person may, upon

request, inspect the application, notice

and other documents germane to the

application in person at the Greater

Orlando Aviation Authority.

Issued in Orlando, Florida on December

20, 1995.

Charles E. Blair,

Manager, Orlando Airports District Office,

Southern Region.

[FR Doc. 95–31419 Filed 12–28–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–13–M

Federal Highway Administration

Federal Railroad Administration

Federal Transit Administration

Participation in the State Infrastructure

Bank Pilot Program

AGENCY: Federal Highway

Administration (FHWA), Federal

Railroad Administration (FRA), and

Federal Transit Administration (FTA),

Department of Transportation.

ACTION: Notice of Request for

Participation.

SUMMARY: This notice invites States to

make applications for participation in

the State Infrastructure Bank (SIB) Pilot

Program established by the National

Highway System Designation Act of

1995 (the Act). Pursuant to Section 350

of the Act, USDOT is authorized to enter

into agreements with up to ten States to

establish State Infrastructure Banks or

multistate infrastructure banks. The

purpose of this notice is to invite

interested parties to participate in the

SIB Pilot Program and to outline the

procedures that will be established for

designation of States to be included in

the Pilot Program.

DATES: Applications for participation

will be accepted until Pilot SIBs are

designated for ten (10) States. USDOT

will begin processing applications as

received but will not designate any SIBs

until January 29, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.

Cynthia Burbank, FHWA Office of

Policy Development, (202) 366–9208;

Mr. John Paolella, FRA Office of Policy

and Program Development, (202) 366–

0380; or Mr. Richard Steinmann, FTA

Office of Budget and Policy, (202) 366–

4060. Application requests and specific

questions regarding the SIB Pilot

Program may also be directed to the

contact person(s) named in this notice

or the Divisional or Regional Offices of

FHWA, FRA, or FTA in your State.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose

President Clinton’s vision for

sustained economic growth and

prosperity and for improving

international competitiveness for the

Nation means investing in America and

its infrastructure. Executive Order

12893 signed by the President in

January 1994 reinforced the

Administration’s position that

investment in transportation

infrastructure lays the foundation for

economic growth in the next century.

The challenge facing USDOT, its

modal administrations, States and local

governments is finding ways to more

effectively employ Federal funds by

leveraging existing resources to

encourage new investment in

transportation infrastructure. USDOT

and its modal administrations have

accepted this challenge, and through

their innovative finance initiatives have

encouraged States, local governments

and other affected groups to identify

and develop innovative financing

mechanisms which seek to better

manage available resources and create

new financing opportunities. States

responded with an extensive list of

projects and financing ideas. USDOT’s

Partnership for Investment has used

these to develop a wide array of

innovative financing mechanisms,

including the State Infrastructure Bank

proposal, which address the need to

leverage scarce Federal and State

resources. USDOT approved over 90

projects under the Partnership for

Investment.

In response to State requests for

greater flexibility, Congress has made a

number of changes in Federal surface

transportation financing legislation,

including the establishment of a Pilot

Program for State Infrastructure Banks

through Section 350 of the Act (Pub. L.

104–59, § 350). That section authorizes

USDOT to enter into cooperative

agreements with up to ten States for the

establishment of SIBs or multistate

infrastructure banks for making loans

and providing other assistance to public

and private entities carrying out or

proposing to carry out projects eligible

for assistance under the section. The Act

requires that the Secretary review the

financial condition of each SIB

established pursuant to the Act and

report to Congress on the results of the

review not later than March 1, 1997.

This notice serves to announce the

Pilot Program and provide information

regarding the Pilot Program,

participation qualifications, and

application procedures. The Pilot

Program and subsequent

implementation by designated SIBs will

help USDOT determine how to proceed

with the SIB concept while

simultaneously advancing projects. In

addition, it will help USDOT inform

Congress about the status of the

program, as required under the Act, and

how to expand program flexibility for

State and local governments.

Definitions

State Infrastructure Bank (SIB)

An infrastructure investment fund

established to facilitate and encourage

investment in eligible transportation

infrastructure projects sponsored by

public and/or private entities. Through

a SIB, a State can use its initial capital,

provided by its Federal-aid highway

apportionment, Federal transit

allocations, and non-Federal monies, to

make loans, provide credit

enhancement, serve as a capital reserve

for bond or debt financing, subsidize

interest rates, issue letters of credit,

finance purchase and lease agreements,

provide debt financing security, or

provide other forms of financial

assistance for construction of projects

qualified under the Federal-aid highway

program and transit capital projects. As

the funds are repaid or compensation is

provided, the SIB can make new

financial assistance available to other

projects, continually recycling the

initial monies, thus leveraging the

initial funds available.

Infrastructure Bank Application

Instructions

A series of questions provided by

USDOT to be answered by States

interested in participating in the SIB

Pilot Program. The responses will be
67160 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 249 / Thursday, December 28, 1995 / Notices

used by USDOT to evaluate which

States will be included in the Pilot

Program.

Multistate Infrastructure Bank

Interstate compact among two (2) or

more States to enter into a cooperative

agreement with USDOT to establish a

SIB.

Notice of Request for Participation

This Notice of Request for

Participation is the initial step in the

process that will lead to cooperative

agreements for up to ten States for the

SIB Pilot Program. Interested applicants

will be asked to respond to a series of

questions posed in the Infrastructure

Bank application instructions to be

made available by USDOT as part of this

designation process. The application

responses submitted by the State will

provide the basis for determining a

State’s interest in the Pilot Program, its

ability and qualifications to implement

a SIB, and the initial projects it expects

to facilitate through financial support

for the SIB. The application instructions

are also designed to assist States as they

seek to develop a framework for

establishing a SIB.

In the interest of providing a timely

response to Congress as required under

the Act, USDOT will begin processing

applications as they are received but

will not designate any SIBs until thirty

(30) days following publication of this

notice. USDOT anticipates designations

to be made on an individual, rolling

basis to permit interested States to

accelerate implementation, and to

facilitate a qualitative response to

Congress regarding the program. The

application will be available from the

USDOT contact persons referenced in

this notice, or any of USDOT’s modal

administrations, FHWA, FRA or FTA,

and their Divisional or Regional offices.

USDOT recognizes that this is a Pilot

Program, and is receptive to

nontraditional as well as traditional

approaches to establishing a SIB and

defining the types of assistance that

might be offered. Subject to the

limitations of the Act, USDOT has no

preconceived concept of how SIBs

should be implemented and seeks to

work in cooperation with the States to

define the implementation program.

USDOT will not promulgate any

regulations for the Pilot Program prior to

the designation process. USDOT will

not require that all Pilot SIBs be

configured in the same way or that they

provide the same forms of assistance.

This Pilot Program, therefore, gives

States an opportunity to determine how

they might best structure SIBs. USDOT

will be interested in information

detailing how States propose to

establish and implement SIBs, and is

looking for evidence of well thought out

proposals. In addition, applications can

be enhanced by providing information

in the following areas:

• The types of assistance to be

provided by the SIB (e.g., loans, credit

enhancements, capital reserves for debt

financing, interest rates subsidies,

letters of credit);

• Identification of projects to be

advanced as a result of Pilot

designation;

• Status of any enabling legislation, if

required by a State prior to establishing

a SIB;

• How the SIB relates to other

innovative financing efforts underway

or planned by States and how their

experience under the innovative

financing programs to date can reflect

this;

• The relationship of the projects

proposed for the SIB to the Statewide

Transportation Plan, the approved State

Transportation Improvement Program

(STIP) and any other Federally required

plans;

• How the SIB will more effectively

use Federal monies;

• The sources of funds that will be

used to capitalize the SIB (CMAQ and

ISTEA demonstration funds cannot be

utilized), including the availability of

non-Federal matching funds required by

Section 350(e);

• The proposed institutional

framework for the SIB;

• Proposed mechanisms and internal

procedures to monitor and/or track the

flow of Federal funds to accounts in the

SIB and the State’s preferred reporting

procedures to USDOT, given that

Section 350 requires maintenance of

separate accounts for highway and

transit; and

• The use of a SIB to facilitate

development of intermodal or multistate

projects.

USDOT has established a fast track

schedule for this new Pilot Program and

the opportunities that it will create for

States. Responses provided by States in

the application and subsequent

implementation of selected SIBs will

help USDOT determine how to move

forward with the Pilot Program, while

simultaneously advancing projects.

States should indicate in their

applications the type and extent of any

technical assistance they might need to

expedite implementation if designated

as a pilot.

Interested States should request

Infrastructure Bank application

instructions. Copies of the enabling

legislation (Section 350) will be

provided with the application

instructions, which will be available

from the USDOT contact persons

referenced in this notice, or any

Divisional or Regional Office of FHWA,

FRA or FTA. Completed applications

should be submitted to the Divisional or

Regional Offices of FHWA, FRA or FTA.

USDOT and its modal administrations

may seek further clarification of SIB

applications in writing or through an

informal interview process with States.

Authority: Pub. L. 104–59, § 350, 109 Stat.

568, 618–622 (1995).

Issued on: December 21, 1995.

Rodney E. Slater,

Federal Highway Administration.

Issued on: December 21, 1995.

Gordon J. Linton,

Federal Transit Administration.

Issued on: December 21, 1995.

Jolene M. Molitoris,

Federal Railroad Administration.

[FR Doc. 95–31407 Filed 12–27–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–22–P

Federal Railroad Administration

[BS–AP–No. 3360]

Norfolk Southern Railway Co.; Public

Hearing

The Norfolk Southern Railway

Company, Central of Georgia Railroad

has petitioned the Federal Railroad

Administration (FRA), seeking approval

of the proposed discontinuance and

removal of the automatic block signal

and traffic control signal systems, on the

single main track ‘‘P’’ Line and sidings

between Columbus, Georgia, milepost

P–291.8 and Leeds, Alabama, milepost

P–423.8, Alabama Division, Columbus

and Norris Yard District, a distance of

approximately 132 miles.

This proceeding is identified as FRA

Block Signal Application Number 3360.

FRA has issued a public notice

seeking comments of interested parties

and has conducted a field investigation

in this matter. After examining the

proposal, field report, and letters of

protest, the FRA has determined that a

public hearing is necessary before a

final decision is made on this proposal.

Accordingly, a public hearing is

hereby set for 10 a.m. on Thursday,

January 25, 1996, in the G. W. Andrews

Federal Court House Building, located

at 701 Avenue A, in Opelika, Alabama.

Interested parties are invited to present

oral statements at the hearing.

The hearing will be an informal one

and will be conducted in accordance

with Rule 25 of the FRA Rules of

Practice (Title 49 CFR 211.25), by a

representative designated by the FRA.