Developing a Framework for Financial Achievability of Department of Transportation Research and Development Projects

The article of record as published may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.3141/2480-02A financial analysis framework was developed to allow departments of transportation to assess research projects better. The framework recognizes that the research process contains multiple stages of decision making, and the framework details the information needed at each stage. The framework is described as it applies to each step in the research process: identifying potential research projects, evaluating research proposals, monitoring ongoing research projects, and evaluating final research reports. The framework also considers the decision to implement the research and its potential effects on employees. The application of the framework is illustrated with several Florida Department of Transportation research projects that involve the development of a multipurpose survey vehicle for evaluation of Florida roadways. This illustration allows for an explanation of each step in the framework with actual data from research reports and other internal or external sources. Although the framework is flexible and can be adapted for use in evaluating different types of projects, some judgment will be required when the specific inputs to the model are considered. Successful implementation of the framework will require focused data collection with emphasis on identifying the potential net benefits of research projects

Market Reaction to Regulatory Capture and Political Risk in a Highly-Salient Environment

The catastrophic losses from the combined 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons resulted in significant price increases and mass non-renewals in the residential property insurance market in Florida. The public outcry to these insurer decisions yielded a highly salient insurance pricing environment. On November 29, 2006, Governor-elect Crist called for a special legislative session to provide relief to Florida residents and businesses, making good on his campaign pledge of addressing high insurance costs. We hypothesize that the call for the special session was indicative of consumer groups having captured the regulatory/legislative process, to the detriment of the insurance industry. The apparent shift in regulatory capture from the insurance industry to consumers implies an increase in political risk. Consistent with our hypothesis, we find that publicly traded homeowners’ and commercial multi-peril insurers with Florida exposure experienced a negative stock price reaction to the announcement of the special session

The Capitalization of Building Codes in House Prices

Building code, Safety, Housing prices, Catastrophic risk, Hedonic pricing model,