Barney Allison Quoted on TIFIA Program

Barney Allison, a Partner in Nossaman’s Infrastructure Group, was quoted in the Bond Buyer article “TIFIA Program For P3s Is Underused.”  The piece examines how approximately $1 billion of federal loan authority (available under the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act—TIFIA) for public-private partnerships remains underused because of bureaucratic delays and a lack of clarity on borrowing requirements. 

Commenting on improvements that could be made to the TIFIA program, Barney stated that he thinks what would help is “streamlining the process [and having a] more objective lending criteria.  If you could get more objectivity in the program, I think you’d get more people interested in it.” 

He added that “the major advantage of TIFIA is that the borrowing rate is the Treasury rate so there’s no spread, it is a drawdown loan, payment can be delayed until after completion and there’s no underwriter fees…but if it takes you a year and half to get through the credit process and the negotiation of commercial terms [everyone involved] is waiting to get the deal closed.” 

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