CONTRACTORS PITCHING PROJECTS AS WAY REAP LASTING BENEFIT FROM STIMULUS BILL
Business First of Columbus
by Brian R. Ball
1/2/2009

Government plans to inject up to $850 billion into the economy in 2009 have the construction industry hoping a big chunk of the federal cash gets spent on highways, bridges and other public infrastructure projects.

The Associated General Contractors of America has begun lobbying congressional leaders for support of construction projects within a larger stimulus package being developed to jolt the economy, said Steve Sandherr, the trade group’s CEO.

“You’re going to be looking at a whole host of projects that can get started quickly, put people to work quickly, have a long-term economic development impact and can be completed in 12 to 18 months,” he said.

Brian Burgett, president of Kokosing Construction Co. in Columbus, thinks the new Congress and President-elect Barack Obama should sharpen stimulus spending beyond just sending checks to taxpayers as a way out of the deepening recession.

“The economic stimulus package needs to get people back to work,” Burgett said. “It’s better to spend money on infrastructure and get something out of it than just hand out money.”


Avoiding pork

Beyond roads and transportation-related projects, the stimulus initiative under development is likely to include measures to renovate public schools and improve the energy efficiency of government buildings. State and local government officials also have forwarded requests for federal money to fill widening gaps in state budgets.

Burgett said the amount Congress would set aside for infrastructure projects is up in the air.

“It’s supposed to be a substantial infrastructure program,” said Burgett, who heads the state’s largest construction company and testified this fall in Washington before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Sandherr said a national group representing state highway department officials has identified $64 billion in projects ready to go, while state agencies overseeing clean water initiatives have suggested $10 billion of projects. Whatever is chosen for funding, he said, should meet basic criteria of quickly improving transportation and stimulating the economy.

"If people look at this as an opportunity to get greedy, then I think it will create a political and public relations problem,” Sandherr said. “That’s where there needs to be discipline.”

Franklin County identified $116 million of what it calls “shovel-ready” projects to submit to the Obama administration for funding, including $50 million to pay for bridges and $21 million for roads.

Columbus has a wish list of about $100 million in public works under review for consideration. Dan Williamson, a spokesman for Mayor Mike Coleman, said the city likely will seek $8 million to help pay for a bridge over the Scioto River connecting Town and Rich streets and $26 million to renovate the former Division of Police headquarters for city offices.

Both projects, Williamson said, are scheduled for city funding in 2009 but are in danger of being delayed if municipal tax collections fall short of what is needed to support bonds for the projects.

“(The mayor) wants things that not only create jobs, but also serve as an economic development tool in the long-term,” he said.

The state Department of Transportation and the Ohio EPA have yet to finalize their lists of projects that have gone through the necessary design, environmental and regulatory processes.


Longer-term thinking

Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher said state officials recognize the value of federal funding.

Reconstruction and expansion of the state’s infrastructure network could influence Ohio’s economy for decades, he said.

“It puts together a ... stronger infrastructure that lasts for generations,” said Fisher, who also is director of the Ohio Department of Development. “It’s an effective use of tax dollars because it has short-term and long-term benefits.”

The Department of Development will consolidate the state’s wish list before sending it to Ohio’s congressional delegation.

Despite the importance of the stimulus bill, Burgett hopes Congress also puts more effort into the federal government’s next six-year transportation spending bill.

The last effort was finalized two years after the previous blueprint had expired.

Several projects, such as a crumbling Interstate 71 bridge in Cleveland and the I-70/71 split through downtown Columbus, need to be addressed to keep goods flowing through Ohio, he said. That means the next transportation bill may need an increase in fuel taxes to assure those and other critical projects get fully funded.

“My problem with the (initial stimulus plan) is people will think they’ve taken care of the problem by putting some money into the stimulus package for highways,” Burgett said. “The problem is bigger than what they’d put into that.”
http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/01/05/story4.html

COMPANIES EAGER FOR U.S. CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS
Bloomberg News Service
12/19/2009

Caterpillar Inc. wants the U.S. government to finance billions in highway projects. Daimler AG awaits federal funds so transit companies can buy new buses. General Electric Co. is pushing an electric "smart grid."

With President-elect Barack Obama promising the biggest government investment in public works since the interstate highway system began in 1956, transportation officials and the companies that design and build the projects are pressing hard to get their priorities into the package.

They're carrying out a lobbying blitz as Mr. Obama and Congress decide on an economic-stimulus plan that may reach roughly $850 billion, according to an adviser to the president-elect.

"We're putting on a full-court press," said Matt Jeanneret, a spokesman for the American Road & Transportation Builders Association in Washington, whose members include Caterpillar, the world's largest maker of excavators; Mexico's Cemex SAB, the biggest cement maker in the Americas; and 3M Co.

Peter Ruane, president of the road builders' group, has met with members of Mr. Obama's transition team. Members of the Associated General Contractors of America sent 2,000 e-mails to members of Congress. A state highway group even asked travelers to post video messages about the importance of modern roadways.

The effort has an added urgency: Some construction companies say they'll be forced to fire workers or go out of business without federal spending.

"We've got members out there who are laying people off, don't have any work and don't have any prospects of future work," said Stephen Sandherr, chief executive officer of the Arlington, Va.-based contractors' group.

The groups argue that public works spending creates immediate jobs and fosters future growth. Modern ports, airports and highways will help the U.S. attract businesses in an era when companies can put down roots anywhere, they say.

"America can't compete in the 21st century with infrastructure that was developed at the beginning of the last century," said David Raymond, president of the Washington-based American Council of Engineering Companies, whose members include Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., the second-largest publicly traded U.S. engineering company.

"There's a growing concern that this is a big part of our competitive advantage, and we're slowly letting it slip away," added Lynch, senior vice president of the Arlington, Va.-based American Trucking Associations, whose members include YRC Worldwide Inc., the nation's biggest trucking company.

Such work could start quickly, the groups said. The Washington-based American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials said states could break ground on more than 5,000 projects that would cost $64 billion and employ 1.8 million Americans within six months of federal funding.

AS GAS PRICES CLIMB, AMERICANS DRIVE LESS
The Associated Press
Joelle Tessler
6/19/08

WASHINGTON With gas prices holding at record levels above $4 a gallon, Americans are driving less and abandoning gas-guzzling vehicles, according to new government data.

Americans drove 1.4 billion fewer highway miles in April compared with the same month last year, and 400 million fewer miles than they did in March, according to the Transportation Department.

Sales of midsize sport utility vehicles were down 38 percent year-over-year in May, while cars represented 57 percent of sales last month, compared with less than half of all vehicle purchases last year, the department said.

With Americans driving less and opting for more fuel-efficient vehicles, gasoline demand will likely decline in 2008 for the first time in 17 years, energy consulting firm Cambridge Energy Research Associates said Thursday.

At the pump, gas prices slipped less than a penny overnight to just over $4.07 a gallon today after setting a record-high national average of $4.08 on Monday, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. The year-ago average was $3 a gallon.

The CERA report said gas prices already have reached an all-time high, even in inflation-adjusted terms, and are rapidly approaching levels that will cause Americans real economic pain.

The Transportation Department data, released late Wednesday, are part of an effort to find alternatives to the current gas tax for highway construction and maintenance funding.

Gasoline is now taxed at 18.4 cents per gallon, while diesel fuel is taxed at 24.4 cents per gallon. But with Americans driving less, the country needs to find a "more sustainable and effective way" to fund the nation's highways, said Transportation Secretary Mary Peters.
http://www.cantonrep.com/index.php?Category=23&ID=417174&subCategoryID=0

DEMOCRATS DIVIDED OVER GAS TAX BREAK
The New York Times
John M. Broder
4/29/08

WASHINGTON — As angry truckers encircled the Capitol in a horn-blaring caravan and consumers across the country agonized over $60 fill-ups, the issue of high fuel prices flared on the campaign trail on Monday, sharply dividing the two Democratic candidates. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton lined up with Senator John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, in endorsing a plan to suspend the federal excise tax on gasoline, 18.4 cents a gallon, for the summer travel season. But Senator Barack Obama, Mrs. Clinton’s Democratic rival, spoke out firmly against the proposal, saying it would save consumers little and do nothing to curtail oil consumption and imports.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/29/us/politics/29campaign.html?hp

STRICKLAND TALKS UP STIMULUS
Tribune-Chronicle
Darcie Loreno
4/23/08

YOUNGSTOWN — To show what could result from a $1.57 billion economic stimulus package meant to rejuvenate the state’s economy, Gov. Ted Strickland Tuesday made a stop at Accuform Manufacturing Tuesday. As presidential candidate Sen. John McCain stumped across town, Strickland highlighted parts of the package, which includes $400 million for the Clean Ohio Fund and preservation of farmland and green space.  While that $400 million chunk is set to appear on the fall ballot, the remaining money won’t face voters. Funding will come from a variety of sources, mainly general revenue, bonds backed by liquor profits, Ohio tobacco prevention foundation funds and ODOT highway bonds. It will result in more jobs, better infrastructure and preparation for future economic development, said Strickland. One portion that will directly affect small communities is $400 million in the Public Works Commission that will go to infrastructure like roads, bridges and sewer and water systems.
http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/page/content.detail/id/504425.html?nav=5021
Also, http://www.ohio.com/business/18034464.html

OHIO GAS PRICES RISE TO ANOTHER RECORD, AVERAGING $3.54
The Toledo Blade
4/24/08

COLUMBUS — Just since Monday, the average price for gasoline in Ohio has spiked 14 cents. AAA and the Oil Price Information Service report gas has reached another all-time high in the state, with regular averaging about $3.54 per gallon on Thursday. Diesel also is at a record level in Ohio, at an average $4.20 a gallon. AAA's Bevi Powell says the high fuel costs could benefit Ohio summer attractions if people choose to vacation close to home. But she says vacationers could choose to drive long distances, reasoning that it's cheaper than flying. http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080424/NEWS11/321304346/-1/NEWS

SENATOR SEEKS TEMPORARY REDUCTION IN DIESEL TAX
Land Line Magazine
4/23/08

Diesel users pay 6 cents more per gallon than gasoline users in federal taxes at the pump. That could all change if a bill introduced in the Senate is passed into law. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-ME, introduced the “Diesel Tax Parity Act,” on Monday, April 21. The bill seeks to drop the federal diesel tax to 18.3 cents per gallon through the end of 2008. Currently, 24.3 cents on the gallon are collected in federal fuel taxes on diesel. Diesel prices have reached record after record and are now averaging nearly $1.30 a gallon more than this time last year. http://www.landlinemag.com/Special_Reports/2008/Apr08/042308_Senator_seeks_reduction.htm.

SUSPENDING GAS TAX ISN'T THE SOLUTION
Dayton Daily News
Greg Lawson
4/21/08

Re "McCain calls for summer suspension of gas tax," April 16: Suspending the gas tax is a bad idea. Republican presidential candidate John McCain has proposed a "gas tax holiday" from Memorial Day to Labor Day as part of a broader package of economic reforms. While there is no doubt as to the pain that is currently being felt at the pump every time an Ohioan fills up, and McCain's desire to offer relief is noble, the practical impact would be deeply problematic.Extras The gas tax is not a general tax that can be used for just anything, but is explicitly set aside in a highway trust fund for the purposes of maintaining the nation's transportation infrastructure. The fiscal impact on that fund would be serious if such a proposal were to move forward. Estimates from the American Road and Transportation Builder's Association show that this "holiday" would eliminate almost $9 billion in investments in infrastructure at a time when, especially in light of last year's Minnesota bridge calamity, such investment is already below where it needs to be. http://www.daytondailynews.com/o/content/oh/story/opinions/editorial/2008/04/21/ddn042108letters.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=22

ODOT CREATES TRANSPORTATION-PLANNING TASK FORCE
Business First of Columbus
4/17/08

The Ohio Department of Transportation has assembled a task force of more than two dozen business and government officials to map out the state's transportation future, on and above the ground. The group's goal, ODOT Director James Beasley said, is to prioritize how the state balances the movement of people and freight, boosts safety while cutting congestion and encourages growth. Efforts will include examining financing options for the state's transportation system, digging up new funding sources for state and local governments, and boosting private-sector involvement.
http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/04/14/daily29.html?f=et58&ana=e_du

MCCAIN CALLS FOR SUMMER-LONG SUSPENSION OF GAS TAX
Associated Press
Liz Sidoti
4/15/08

PITTSBURGH (AP) - Republican Sen. John McCain on Tuesday called for a summer-long suspension of the federal gasoline tax and several tax cuts as the likely presidential nominee sought to stem the public's pain from a troubled economy. Timed for the day millions of Americans filed their tax returns, McCain offered some immediate steps as well as long-term proposals in a broad economic speech. The nation's financial woes have replaced the Iraq war as the top concern for voters, and McCain, who has said economics is not his strongest suit, felt compelled to address the problems as he looks ahead to the November general election. http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D902EAP01&show_article=1

OBAMA CALLS FOR A "NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE REINVESTMENT BANK"
Logistics Management
Jeff Berman
2/15/08

JAMESVILLE, Wis.—Earlier this week, Presidential candidate Barack Obama may have helped transportation infrastructure become a critical issue leading up to this November’s election, when he called for the establishment of a National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank that would invest $60 billion over a ten year period for highways, technology, and other projects. Obama proposed this concept as a component of his $210 billion economic stimulus package, when he made an economic policy address at a GE Assembly Plant on Wednesday. Funding for this endeavor, said Obama, will be made available by ending the war in Iraq. Obama’s concept comes at a time when transporation infrastructure has received a fair amount of attention in recent weeks, following the January roll-out of a report released by the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission. This report focused on the current state of surface transportation in the U.S., and it addressed the myraid needs to improved transportation infrastructure improvements needed to meet the expected demand in domestic freight transportation growth in the coming years.
http://www.logisticsmgmt.com/article/CA6532896.html