Infrastructure Funding and the Story ASCE Doesn't Consider or Want To

From report cards to public support apps to 60-Minutes profiles on our declining infrastructure, the American Society of Civil Engineers does an excellent job of painting the "what" picture regarding our infrastructure woes.  Unfortunately the ASCE goals and efforts struggle with the who, why, when, and the how parts of the story.  They can discuss what is wrong with the current infrastructure matrix, but rapidly depart from a more comprehensive analysis of root causes and innovative ideas.

The current issue of the Wall Street Journal has an excellent article by Stephen Eide - - Public-Pension Potholes in Wine Country Paradise.  You will never find this infrastructure dilemma on the ASCE website - "Why keep working past the age of 50 or 60 when one can bring in close to as income in retirement - especially since Sonoma extends its health-care coverage to retirees?"  From the article:

"On Tuesday voters will be asked to raise county sales taxes by a quarter-cent to fix their roads. California has the highest gas taxes in the nation, a portion of whose revenues is specifically dedicated to local transportation.  Yet Sonoma estimates that it needs to spend nearly $1 billion  over the next two decades to keep its roads in shape.  The county routinely ranks at or near the bottom in surveys of state and regional pavement conditions.  In 2010, the country director of transportation and public works ward that, without more investment in pavement, soon local roads would soon "feel and look like a loos cobble road."

All this cannot be caulked up to a weak tax base or punishing winters.  But retirement-benefit costs for its public employees are skyrocketing.  Between 2005 and 2014, Sonoma's annual required pension contribution more than doubled, to $52 million, while tax revenues increased 25%, to $247 million.  Thanks to state balanced-budget requirements, something had to give.  In Sonoma it was basic infrastructure."

It doesn't take a genius why ASCE it loathed to discussion or even acknowledge this complex issue. Link to the full report by Eide.