Better Bonds and Best Practices
Overview
Launched in January 2021, the Public Finance Program (PFIN) aims to accelerate cross-sectoral outcomes through events, trainings, and technical assistance, and advance policy and financial innovation to address key challenges facing the $4 trillion public finance field. Our Advisory Council is composed of executive-level leadership who provide strategic program guidance on key emerging issues.
The Public Finance Forum is designed to foster cross-sectoral dialogue and collaboration. Through this forum, professionals from diverse backgrounds converge to address the multifaceted challenges that public finance faces. It serves as a hub for the exchange of innovative ideas, best practices, and experiences, creating a space where participants can explore new avenues for tackling complex financial issues and driving positive change.
Learn MoreFeatured 2023 Public Finance Forum Sessions
Watch AllThe CFO Forum provides an exclusive arena for in-depth discussions concerning financial strategies and trends that impact cities. Addressing the distinctive challenges that major city CFOs face, this peer-to-peer forum delves into topics ranging from municipal budgeting and urban investment to localized risk assessment and resource allocation. By fostering a community of city CFOs and offering a platform for networking and knowledge exchange, the City CFO Forum empowers financial leaders to navigate their roles with heightened confidence and foresight, directly contributing to the financial health and growth of urban areas.
Learn MoreRead the ESG letter from our Public Finance Advisory Council to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board.
Read Comment LetterRisk Management
We recognize the paramount importance of identifying, assessing, and mitigating financial risks. Our Enterprise Risk Management initiative focuses on equipping practitioners with the tools and strategies necessary to effectively manage uncertainties that can impact public finance decisions and avoid costs. By cultivating a comprehensive understanding of risk dynamics and offering insights into practical risk management approaches, we aim to bolster overall financial resilience and promote stability within the public finance arena.
Upcoming Product Launch: Fall 2023
Explore the Stories from the Field Collection
PFIN Fellows
We are proud to develop events, research and technical assistance products with the help of top-flight MI Finance and Public Finance Fellows:
Rachel Reilly
Natalie Cohen
Community Infrastructure
Overview
The Milken Institute Public Finance Program aims to close an expected $10 trillion gap in the funding and financing needed by 2050 to ensure that US infrastructure systems are high-performing, resilient, and equitable for all Americans. We do this by helping underserved areas develop the critical community infrastructure projects they need, from broadband to climate-smart buildings, and by accelerating the pipeline of investable infrastructure projects so that private, impact, institutional, pension, philanthropic, and muni bond capital can partner with public funding to promote long-term sustainable growth and economic competitiveness.
Our Key Initiatives
• The Community Infrastructure Center
• 10,000 Communities Initiative
• Regional Rally Ups
• Climate-Resilient Infrastructure Initiative
Community Infrastructure Center
Thousands of underserved and high-need communities in every area of the country often struggle to access the resources they need to build critical community infrastructure and economic development projects, from basic water and energy facilities to climate-smart buildings and housing to the new workforce and entrepreneurial systems that can drive long-term resilience and equitable growth. Launched in September 2022, the Community Infrastructure Center (CIC) serves as a connection point to link communities that have projects with trusted providers who can help with funding and expertise.
Learn More
• EDA announcement
• Predevelopment Accelerator Report
• Upload your community project
• Impact briefing: How the Milken Institute is connecting disadvantaged communities with critical project development financing
10,000 Communities Initiative
In partnership with other private and public organizations, the Milken Institute launched the 10,000 Communities Initiative to ensure that cross-sectoral attention, federal technical assistance funding, and impact capital are effectively deployed to the underserved communities that need it most. Despite myriad new federal and state funding opportunities, many urban and rural American communities are struggling to access the capital, capacity, and talent required to build critical community infrastructure projects. We invite organizations to help accelerate and advance these projects by signing onto our letter, which will help amplify the importance of direct support to underserved communities seeking access to capital and capacity.
Learn More
• Read the release
• Meet the partners
• Join the Initiative
Regional Rally Ups
The Milken Institute convenes project developers, communities, federal agencies, investors, and philanthropy at regional events across the country to catalyze infrastructure investment. Over the course of several days, the Institute invites experts to participate in panel discussions, project development workshops, and fireside dialogues designed to uncover regional project needs and opportunities, and to support both communities and developers in advancing their projects.
Learn More
• Midwest Regional Rally up in Cincinnati, Ohio
• California Strategic Growth Council Catalyst Event in Sacramento, California
• Southeast Regional Rally up in Atlanta and LaGrange, Georgia
• Accelerating Clean Energy in Riverside, California
• National Predevelopment Roundtable in Washington, DC
Climate-Resilient Infrastructure Initiative
MI Finance and MI Philanthropy have joined together to address the $10 trillion gap in funding, financing, and innovation for American infrastructure by 2050. Our Climate-Resilient Infrastructure Initiative aims to have a significant effect on the economy, environment, and communities while building long-term resilience and growth for the United States. We also work to incentivize more effective federal, state, and local outcomes in permitting and procurement, and develop new mid-stage financing mechanisms to facilitate participation of institutional capital in bundled products for project sizes below $200 million.
The Initiative will deploy all of the proven Milken Institute tools for advancing climate finance outcomes: market-making research, convenings, private strategy sessions, policy dialogues, Financial Innovations Labs, and philanthropic engagement designed to drive outcomes, impact, and deal flow that will build on the momentum of our past initiatives.
Learn More
• Capital Deployment: The Four Things We Need To Do This Decade To Get Climate Right
• The Value of Predevelopment
• Infrastructure 2050: Where we find the next $10 Trillion