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Welcome to the Keston Institute

The Keston Institute for Public Finance and Infrastructure Policy seeks to actively address the economic policy, financial, demographic and other dimensions of public infrastructure development in California.

The Institute's purpose is the identification, research and dissemination of the most imaginative infrastructure strategies for the range of infrastructure challenges facing California as we enter the 21st century. Specifically:

  • We undertake research, outreach and educational activities to further understanding and awareness of infrastructure challenges.
  • We assist with policy prescriptions for public infrastructure development.
  • We compile, evaluate and disseminate data and research pertaining to California Infrastructure trends, mechanisms and implications for investment spending.

The Institute will focus on topics of transportation, water, power, environment and related municipal public works projects in the first years of operation and may be expanded at the discretion of the Institute's leadership.


                IN THE NEWS                                                  RECENT EVENTS



A cautionary tale to return to investment basics
October 7, 2009
Richard G. Little, Letters to the Editor, FT.com
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5f2fb72a-b2d9-11de-b7d2-00144feab49a,_i_email=y.html

Socio-Technological Systems Integration to Support Tsunami Warning and Evacuation: Proceedings of the 40th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2007
By Richard G. Little, Thomas A. Birkland, William A. Wallace and Pannapa Herebat
Socio-Technological Systems Integration to Support Tsunami Warning and Evacuation

Los Angeles' Water Main Breaks
Richard G. Little media interviews
Follow link for further details.

Repeating the mistakes made a century ago
Richard G. Little, Letters to the Editor, FT.com
Thursday, August 27, 2009

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/622c129c-92a0-11de-b63b-00144feabdc0.html

Richard Little will share his views on Public Private Partnerships at a webinar sponsored by the Institute for Emerging Issues at North Carolina State University on August 27, 2009.
http://ncsu.edu/iei/programs/growth/solutions/webinars.php

Bond insurance in another guise
Wednesday,May 6, 2009
Richard G. Little, Letters to the Editor, FT.com

Hi-Speed Rail Is an Answer If Standards Are Right
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Richard G. Little, Letters to the Editor, Wall Street Journa
l (News link)

Little Speaks at Asia Infrastructure Summit
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Christy Lytal

Appearing on a panel at the Financial Times’ Asia Infrastructure Summit, Richard Little, director of the USC Keston Institute for Public Finance and Infrastructure Policy, addressed the question of whether private investment in infrastructure could be Asia’s highway to economic growth. http//uscnews.usc.edu/politics_society/little-speaks_at_asia_infrastructure_summit.html

Seek water lessons everywhere

Friday, April 10, 2009

Richard G. Little, Letters to the Editor, Sacramento Bee (sacbee.com)

Alternatives for funding our vital infrastructure needs

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Richard G. Little, Letters to the Editor, Financial Times (ft.com)

 

De La Rosa Bulletin, State of California Update: GO Bonds, Capital Spending, Budget Deficits and Cash

Tuesay, April 7, 2009
On March 24, the State of California sold $6.5 billion of general obligation (GO) bonds. This was the State’s first GO sale in more than nine months. Although the State usually sells GO bonds five to six times a year, budget problems and the delay in addressing them had kept the State out of the market. The enactment of the February 20 budget set the stage for the new bond issue, but the budget and the bond sale do not entirely resolve the circumstances that have created cash pressures on the State and forced the suspension of spending on thousands of capital projects.

Why Not Tough Love For State Bailouts?

Monday, February 2, 2009

Richard G. Little, Letters to the Editor, Wall St. Journal

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123353343558737319.html

Not the Macquarie Model: Using U.S. Sovereign Wealth to Renew America’s Civil Infrastructure

Monday, January 26, 2009
In a report commissioned by America 2050, a national initiative to meet the infrastructure, economic development, and environmental challenges the nation will face by the year 2050, Keston Institute director Richard Little has proposed a novel approach to funding a comprehensive reinvestment in the infrastructure of the United States.  The core idea of the proposal is to utilize a combination of public and institutional pension funds and individual retirement accounts together with Social Security Trust Funds, to provide equity and debt shares to fund public works projects.
More information about America 2050 may be found at: http://www.america2050.org

Schwarzenegger Asks Obama for Public Works Investment: KQED Radio News | KQED Public Media for Northern CA
Guests: Richard Little, director of the Keston Institute for Public Finance at the University of Southern California
http://www.kqed.org/epArchive/R812021730

November 4, 2009

The 2006 Infrastructure Bonds: Assessing Performance & Progress

8:30AM - 12:00PM

The Embassy Room of USC's Davidson Center

FREE with RSVP

On November 7, 2006 California voters approved over $42 Billion in General Obligation Bonds to fund transportation, flood control, school construction, housing, and water supply protection. During the ensuing three years, projects have been identified and prioritized, funds have been allocated, bonds have been sold, and some projects are under contract. This fourth forum in the series will bring together representatives of major program agencies to discuss how the bonds are being used and the impact of the current financial situation on debt-funded capital construction.

With an introductory speech by Michael Keston, the discussion of on-going work on the infrastructure bond program was continued by John Decker, Executive Director of the California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission, Bimla Rhinehart, Executive Director of California Transportation Commission, Ron Gastelum, Former General Manager, The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Lynn Jacobs, Director of the California Department of Housing and Community Development, and Carole D’Elia, Deputy Executive Director of the Little Hoover Commission. The Forum was moderated by Nicole Bullock of the Financial Times.

 

 

 

 

                      


               WHAT'S NEW   


Negotiating and Implementing Private Participation in Infrastructure: What the U.S. Can Learn from the World Bank

May 2008 (PDF)

Richard G. Little, AICP

  1. Abstract
  2. World Bank Presentation

The Problem of Being Special: Special Assessment Districts and the Financing of Infrastructure in California

May 21, 2008 (PDF)

Vladimir Kogan and Mathew D.McCubbins

Paying For Tomorrow's Infrastructure: Options

and Strategies for Sustainable Financing

Options and Opportunities:

New Management Paradigms for Balboa Park

December 2007.  (PDF)

By Richard G. Little, Louise Nelson Dyble, and Tamara Gishri

Financial Planning Charrette:

710/210 Tunnel Connection

December 5, 2007.  (PDF)

By Louise Nelson Dyble

The Future of Infrastructure Finance

Podcast - December 2007.

Where is infrastructure in the United States headed?

With the Minnesota bridge collapse and other recent

infrastructure failures, the topic has been on the minds

of many Americans.

In this Podcast, we address this issue by taking a closer look at Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs). Dr. Richard Little, Editor of Public Works Management & Policy sits down with former treasurer of California, Kathleen Brown, to discuss her commentary on PPPs in Volume 12, Issue 1. Plus, an alternate view from Dr. John C. Morris of Old Dominion University in Virginia.


          PAST EVENTS


November 12, 2008

The 2006 Infrastructure Bonds: Assessing Performance & Progress

8:30AM - 12:00PM

The Board Room of USC's Davidson Center

FREE with RSVP

On November 7, 2006 California voters approved over $42 Billion in General Obligation Bonds to fund transportation, flood control, school construction, housing, and water supply protection. During the ensuing two years, projects have been identified and prioritized, funds have been allocated, bonds have been sold, and some projects are under contract. This forum will bring together representatives of major program agencies to discuss how the bonds are being used and the impact of the current financial situation on debt-funded capital construction.

Deputy State Treasurer Paul Rosenstiel will be joined by John Barna, Executive Director of California Transportation Commission; Lynn Jacobs, Director of the California Department of Housing and Community Development; and Sue Sims, Chief Deputy Director of California Department of Water Resources as they discuss on-going work on the infrastructure bond program. Carole D’Elia, Deputy Executive Director of the Little Hoover Commission will discuss the Commission’s efforts to assess whether on-going oversight of the bond program is adequate and whether additional opportunities exist to improve oversight.

2007 Bond Assessment discussion

 

 

 

 

March 28, 2008

Lessons Learned from Public Private Partnerships for Infrastructure

A one day workshop, held at USC's Davidson Center, to examine Public Private Partnerships for infrastructure as a means of informing the structure of future case study research and process improvement.

Conference Announcement

Conference Program

Conference Power Point Presentations:

 

March 13, 2008

Permanent Source Meeting

Please join the Department of Housing and Community Development in their efforts to develop an ongoing source or sources of funding to create affordable housing opportunities for California’s workforce, our neediest families and individuals.

March 6, 2008  

Paying For Tomorrow's Infrastructure: Options and Strategies for Sustainable Financing

One day conference held at the Sheraton Grand in Sacramento, CA

Conference Material (see bottom of page)

February 12, 2008

Special Lecture at USC's Ralph & Goldy Lewis Hall

Joel A. Tarr "Implementing Tomorrow's Technologies: Lessons Learned from the Evolution of Infrastructure"