By Mary Kerr 202-225-6260
In letters sent today, Rep. James L. Oberstar (Minn.), Chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure has notified the three states that have best utilized highway funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (P. L. 111-5) (Recovery Act), and also notified the three worst-performing states. The rankings were based on State Progress Reports submitted by all 50 states and the District of Columbia to the Committee in July 2009.
“Our Committee has analyzed the percentage of Recovery Act highway formula funds that have been put out to bid, are under contract, and are underway. Over the past five months, most states have moved forward aggressively to use the highway funds to create and sustain family-wage jobs. According to our analysis, Wyoming has performed the best, with New Hampshire and Oklahoma close behind,” said Rep. Oberstar. “Unfortunately, a few states have fallen far behind in putting their Recovery Act highway formula funds to work. Florida has been the slowest state in utilizing its funding allocation, while Hawaii and South Carolina rank 50th and 49th respectively.”
As of June 30, Florida had begun construction of projects totaling only two percent of the state’s funding, while Wyoming had begun construction of projects totaling 76 percent of its funding allocation.
“I commend Wyoming and other high-performing states for investing Recovery Act funding quickly and efficiently. By moving swiftly and responsibly, those states have contributed to our nation’s long-term economic growth and are helping the United States recover from the worst recession since the Great Depression,” said Oberstar. “I also urge Florida, Hawaii, and South Carolina to refocus their efforts to implement the Recovery Act. As we move forward, our Committee will continue to require transparency and accountability information to ensure that taxpayers are getting the best bang for their buck.”
The Committee will release comprehensive data on the performance of all states in September.
Find out more about the ARRA elsewhere on the T& I Website at:
http://transportation.house.gov/singlepages/singlepages.aspx?NewsID=852
and
http://transportation.house.gov/Media/file/Highways/HPP/OBERST_044_xml.pdf.
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