Government

Obama Seeks To Speed Plan’s Job Growth

President Obama wants to accelerate the pace of the economic- stimulus plan. The White House says it hopes to save or create as many as 600,000 jobs through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act during the summer.

The plans, outlined in a June 8 Cabinet meeting, include speeding up some of the construction projects funded in the ARRA measure. Among those projects are improvements at 90 veterans medical centers in 38 states, 200 new waste and drinking-water systems in rural states and new or accelerated work at 20 Superfund sites. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on June 5 that 59,000 construction jobs were lost in May. But Terry O’Sullivan, general president of the laborers’ union, says he sees the beginnings of a turnaround.

Pam Hunter McFarland was a Senior Editor of ENR and her expertise was: Sourcebooks, Environment, Labor

As ENR's former Washington Bureau Chief, Tom Ichniowski wrote about the federal government since the George H.W. Bush administration, and covered at least five major highway bills. A recognized expert on government policy on infrastructure and regulation, Tom is also a Baltimore native and Orioles fan who grew up rooting for Brooks and Frank Robinson. He is a graduate of Columbia College and Columbia’s graduate school of journalism, where he once used “unrelentless” in a headline.

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