Illinois Contractor Tells Congressional Committee
Stimulus is Working

An Illinois asphalt contractor whose company was awarded contracts for eight
new transportation improvement projects that helped save 260 jobs and create
30 new ones told Congress that the economic stimulus law is working as
intended.
 
Charles Gallagher, president of the family-owned Gallagher Asphalt
Corporation in Thorton, Ill., testified on behalf of the American Road and
Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) at an Oct. 1 House
Transportation & Infrastructure (T&I) Committee hearing on implementation of
the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
 
"Without a doubt, the stimulus has helped keep my company afloat during one
of the most difficult economic periods our industry has ever experienced,"
Gallagher said. "For that, I would like to thank the members of the
committee for your efforts to secure as much transportation investment as
possible in the recovery act."
 
Citing Federal Highway Administration data, Gallagher told the committee the
states are meeting the law's timelines for obligating their transportation
funds, and that nearly 4,000 ARRA-financed projects valued at $11 billion
are now under construction all across America.
 
The impact of the ARRA is even more evident when looking at new highway
contract awards, Gallagher said.  During the first four months of 2009,
state and local transportation departments awarded $2.1 billion fewer
contracts for highway and bridge construction projects than during the same
months of 2008, reflecting recession-driven cuts to state and local highway
funding.  Since that time, however, in the period between May and August,
the value of new contracts for highways and bridges has exceeded 2008 by
almost $4 billion, with the ARRA more than offsetting state and local
budgetary difficulties.  The additional work has allowed transportation
contractors to sustain and add to their workforce, he testified.

Gallagher cautioned the stimulus will only provide a short-term economic
"shot in the arm."  The benefits of the law will phase down quickly after
2010 and the jobs it supported this year and next will begin to disappear.
 
To build on the momentum of the ARRA and reenergize the long-term growth
potential of the United States, Gallagher called on Congress to take action
soon on a six-year, $500-billion surface transportation investment bill as
proposed by the T&I Committee.

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