Open Competition’s Role in the Nation’s Infrastructure Plan

In the recent State of the Union address, President Trump called for about $1.5 trillion in infrastructure funding through public-private partnerships. The federal government would fund at least $200 billion. “Every federal dollar should be leveraged by partnering with state and local governments and – where appropriate – tapping into private sector investment to permanently fix the infrastructure deficit,” Trump said.

What is open completion’s role in the nation’s infrastructure plan?

Open competition is legislation that requires municipal engineers to consider all qualifying materials when making their selection for infrastructure projects. “Open completion, at its core, is about fixing crumbling infrastructure for the American people,” says Kevin Koonce, VP of Government Affairs. “Studies show it [open competition] ensures the best price for whichever material is chosen – allowing more projects, and it’s the best use of the taxpayers’ dollars.”

According to the American Chemistry Council’s Guaranteeing Competition: Saving Taxpayers Money While Modernizing America’s Infrastructure, without open competition, we spend 30-50% more on infrastructure projects to subsidize the ductile iron pipe industry. Even when ductile iron pipe is chosen over PVC pipe under open competition, states save money. Furthermore, the National Taxpayers Union estimates that replacing the entire water infrastructure in the U.S. would cost $1.32 trillion and that by switching to a process of open competition, more than $371 billion could be saved.

Check out the infographic below to better understand the benefits of open competition.