Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Washington, D.C. – Representatives Dina Titus and Shelley Berkley of Nevada sent a letter to Governor Jim Gibbons today regarding a report by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that ranked Nevada 46 out of 51 states and the District of Columbia on Recovery Act funding that has been put out to bid, is under contract, or is underway for transportation projects.

In the letter the Representatives wrote:

“Under the Recovery Act, Nevada received more than $201 million in formula funding for “shovel ready” highway and bridge projects. This funding was meant to be spent quickly and efficiently to maximize its job-creating potential. However, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee found that Nevada is lagging far behind all but five other States in its allocation of funds for highway and bridge projects…

“It is inexcusable that Nevada ranked 46 out of 51 in its implementation of this critical component of the Recovery Act. Unemployment in Nevada is 12.5 percent, the third worst in the nation. Successful implementation of the Recovery Act, and particularly its transportation and infrastructure programs, is essential to create and sustain middle-class jobs in our State. We urge you to take the steps necessary to ensure that Nevada improves its implementation of the Recovery Act to create jobs in Southern Nevada and across the State.”

Below is the text of the letter:

September 16, 2009

The Honorable Jim Gibbons
Governor
State Capitol
101 N. Carson Street
Carson City, NV 89701

Dear Governor Gibbons,

We are writing to express our concern and disappointment that the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee recently ranked Nevada 46 out of 51 among all states and the District of Columbia based on an analysis of the percentage of Recovery Act highway formula funds put out to bid, under contract, and underway.

As you know, Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in February 2009 to save and create jobs, help states and municipalities meet pressing fiscal challenges, and get our economy moving again. We were particularly pleased to support this legislation because of the significant investment it made in Nevada’s infrastructure. Investing in infrastructure ensures the safety of our roads, bridges, transit, and water infrastructure. Equally important, public investment in infrastructure creates jobs, which are desperately needed in Southern Nevada and across the State, and will put us on the path to long-term economic growth.

Under the Recovery Act, Nevada received more than $201 million in formula funding for “shovel ready” highway and bridge projects. This funding was meant to be spent quickly and efficiently to maximize its job-creating potential. However, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee found that Nevada is lagging far behind all but five other States in its allocation of funds for highway and bridge projects. The Committee found that Nevada has put out to bid projects totaling only 35 percent of the State’s funding, has under contract projects totaling only 25.6 percent of the State’s funding, and has begun work on projects totaling only 23.1 percent of the State’s funding, for an average of 26.7 percent. By comparison, Wyoming, the top ranking state, has an average of 94.6 percent and Iowa, the next best performing state, has an average of 80.6 percent.

It is inexcusable that Nevada ranked 46 out of 51 in its implementation of this critical component of the Recovery Act. Unemployment in Nevada is 12.5 percent, the third worst in the nation. Successful implementation of the Recovery Act, and particularly its transportation and infrastructure programs, is essential to create and sustain middle-class jobs in our State. We urge you to take the steps necessary to ensure that Nevada improves its implementation of the Recovery Act to create jobs in Southern Nevada and across the State. We respectfully request that you provide us with a detailed explanation of why Nevada has performed so poorly thus far and the steps you plan to take to improve upon this performance in the future. Please do not hesitate to call on us if we can be helpful in this endeavor.

Sincerely,

Dina Titus                              Shelley Berkley
Member of Congress            Member of Congress

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Tags: jobs, Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Transportation and Infrastructure