[Vision2020] Idaho Stimulus Funds

Wed Nov 18 15:04:25 PST 2009

Recovery.org - the link that Tom provided - isn't the government's site - it's actually a service of Onvia LLC (www.onvia.com), which is a government procurement consulting firm.  But their website links to articles in press and interviews with NPR as evidence that they are a respected  authority as a reliable source of federal contracting and stimulus information. See http://www.recovery.org/about_recoveryorg.aspx for more info.

Here's a more specific link to Onvia's info about Latah County stimulus projects funded to date:

http://www.recovery.org/For_Businesses.aspx?gloc=LATAH [ID]*CNT:16057&mloc=ID$057

Once there, you can pan over the map at the top of the page to review info from our other counties.

NOTE: there are around four entries in that list that indicate Golden, CO/Lakewood, CO as the location, but if you click to review projectc detail, you find that's apparently the location of the relevant federal agency field office - the project involves Emerald Creek in Latah County.  Moscow/Latah County currently has $18.5mil in projects approved - primarily highway & forest road maintenance and ecological restoration (also labor intensive) associated with daylighting Paradise Creek.

First thought: Moscow and Latah County leaders and their staff have done a great job of developing proposals and pursuing stimulus funds for our area.  Nez Perce county has apparently only gotten almost $1.8 mil so far - although it looks like they have several potential projects pending review.

Second thought: The funds being expended in Moscow/Latah County can and should legitimately be credited as jobs created/saved by the federal stimulus.  Most of the projects are labor intensive.  Given the current status of our state and local governments' budgets, chances are slim to none that ANY of these projects would have gone ahead anytime in the next few years.  So we're talking about 204 new jobs in Latah County.

Third thought: Federal stimulus dollars are going to have a remarkable impact on employment in northern and north central Idaho's more rural counties.  

Road resurfacing and Highway 95 improvement projects, repairing and reinforcing the Lawyer's Creek Bridge, long-coming toxic spill cleanup, and hatchery support in places like Grangeville, Ferdinand, Kooskia, Craigmont, and Riggins will make a big difference.  $24 million in infrastructure investment and more than 260 new/saved jobs will make a real difference in Idaho County (home to 15,000), where labor demand has dipped significantly over the past two years.

In tiny Lewis County (pop. 3,581 - disclaimer: I spent a large part of my childhood on the Lewis County side of Kamiah), $14.6mil is being spent on needed brownfield assessment and toxic spill cleanup in Craigmont, and Lawyer's Creek Bridge improvements.  160 new and/or saved jobs in Lewis County is a big deal.

Then go up to Bonner County, just north of Kootenia, pop. 41,050.  Receiving $59.49 mil in stimulus funds, much of which will replace the Hwy 2 bridge at Dover.  659 new/saved jobs in Bonner County.

Fourth thought: These numbers represent only CURRENT activity worth $124.55 billion nationwide - just a fraction of the money authorized under ARRA over the next few years.

A note on the source of the new/saved jobs estimates - the Council of Economic Advisors is one of the offices under the Executive Office of the President.  However, CEA staff tend to be economic wonks and academics who value and protect their academic integrity and accuracy - they're not as easily swayed by political winds/exigencies as some of the folks in more politically/PR-oriented EOP agencies.  The current head of the CEA is Dr. Christina Romer, an extremely well-respected economist (her husband David Romer is also an econ star, BTW) and former VP of the AEA - review her bio at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/cea/about/members/#Romer

- Selina

> Date: Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:31:35 -0800
> From: thansen at moscow.com
> To: vision2020 at moscow.com
> Subject: [Vision2020] Idaho Stimulus Funds
> 
> Dan (or anybody else "in the know") -
> 
> Does this reflect an accurate and complete depiction of Moscow's piece of
> the Stimulus pie?
> 
> http://www.recovery.org/for_businesses.aspx?gloc=Idaho*ID&mloc=ID
> 
> It's really neat-o, the stuff you can find jus' browsin' 'round Recovery.org.
> 
> But, perhaps I should stop now and (as "the voices" suggest) go clean my
> guns.
> 
> Tom Hansen
> Moscow, Idaho
> 
> "The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to change
> and the Realist adjusts his sails."
> 
> - Unknown
> 
> 
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