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In Ohio, stimulus funds1,138 highway jobs in July

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By MATT LEINGANG, The Associated Press Updated 5:06 PM Thursday, August 27, 2009

COLUMBUS, Ohio — President Barack Obama's $787 billion economic stimulus package for the nation meant 1,138 highway construction jobs created or continued in Ohio in July, the first full month that figures were available to the state.

Early data also shows about 300 young people were hired with stimulus money this summer to clear trails, paint buildings and do other maintenance work at state parks.

The numbers offer a glimpse of how the stimulus plan is filtering down to Ohio residents. A core tenet of Obama's program, signed in February, was to spend the money quickly to jolt the economy and put millions of people back to work.

But because Ohio state agencies have different reporting cycles, the overall picture of jobs created is incomplete and tempered by the state's unemployment rate, which climbed to 11.2 percent in July, a 26-year high.

Construction companies that receive stimulus contracts are required to keep a monthly record of employees who work on a project, along with all subcontractors. July was the first full month of figures reported to the state by contractors on projects funded by federal stimulus money. The Ohio Department of Transportation doesn't otherwise keep job totals on its highway projects and could not provide comparison figures.

Ohio expects to get $774 million in stimulus funds for highway projects, and recently awarded $138 million in contracts for its largest stimulus investment — a highway bypass around Nelsonville in southeast Ohio.

"I think we're on the cusp of starting to see construction employment numbers turn around," said Chris Runyan, president of the Ohio Contractors Association, a trade association.

So far, money has been awarded for 110 projects. This month, work began on additional highway projects and will continue into the fall, said Scott Varner, a spokesman for the transportation department.

Job reports for August are due in mid-September.

Ohio officials estimate that 21,257 jobs will be created or retainedthrough stimulus-funded highway construction projects, but are not sure the estimate will match reality. The figure is based on a standard Federal Highway Administration formula that estimates that for every $1 billion in transportation spending, 27,800 jobs are created.

Cliff O'Connor, who was laid off last year from a high-paying technology job, was hired this summer to a $2 million program to repair picnic tables and improve landscaping at state parks.

"I've heard a lot of criticism that the stimulus money is being thrown away, but this was real work, and the kids got a great experience," said O'Connor, 42, who supervised teens and young adults working at Alum Creek State Park and Delaware State Park north of Columbus.

Similar programs were created in California, Indiana, Oregon, and Tennessee.

Ohio's parks system has a maintenance backlog of nearly $500 million, and the stimulus program won't make a big dent in it. But visitors will notice the difference, said Sean Logan, director of the state Department of Natural Resources.

"Those first impressions are important," he added.

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August 27, 2009 09:03 PM EDT

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