Number
081119
Version
ORIGINAL
Reference
Sponsor
ALD. BOHL, MURPHY, HAMILTON, DAVIS, KOVAC, BAUMAN, WADE, DONOVAN, PUENTE, DUDZIK, WITKOWIAK, WITKOWSKI. ZIELINSKI AND HINES
Title
Resolution urging Wisconsin’s U.S. Congressional delegation to petition the Treasury Department to allocate a portion of the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program to cities for infrastructure investment and further advocate for the inclusion of federal funding of municipal public works projects in any future economic stimulus package.
Analysis
This resolution urges Wisconsin’s U.S. Congressional delegation to petition the Treasury Department to allocate a portion of the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program to cities for infrastructure investment and further advocates for the inclusion of federal funding of municipal public works projects in any future economic stimulus package.
Body
Whereas, Cities play a vital role in this nation’s economy, serving as centers of housing, employment, education, health care, transportation and culture; and
Whereas, America will not experience a first-class economy without a first-class infrastructure, and the critical role that cities play in the national economy suggests that local infrastructure needs should be an issue of national priority; and
Whereas, Federal investment in this nation’s infrastructure has declined from 10% of non-defense spending 50 years ago to just 3.5% of non-defense spending today, placing onerous responsibility on local governments to finance the upkeep of their facilities; and
Whereas, Faced with balanced budget requirements and limited or declining sources of revenue, America’s cities find themselves unable to finance critically important infrastructure projects that are otherwise ready-to-go; and
Whereas, The nation is currently faced with an economic crisis that includes a fragile banking system, frozen credit markets, a deflated stock market, the biggest one month drop in consumer prices on record and bleak Federal Reserve economic forecasts for the coming year; and
Whereas, This national economic contraction and associated conditions have severely eroded consumer confidence, resulting in reduced spending and decreased production, and deepening employment losses in cities across the country; and
Whereas, An infusion of federal infrastructure funding would serve as a straightforward demand-side approach to job creation, as the U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that for every $1 million invested in infrastructure, approximately 47.5 jobs are directly and indirectly created; and
Whereas, Public infrastructure investment not only creates jobs but generates a healthy multiplier effect throughout the economy, creating demand for materials and services; and
Whereas, Cities across the country have more than 3,000 ready-to-go infrastructure projects that can be under contract within 90 days, refuting the belief that infrastructure investments have an extended roll-out period and delayed positive economic benefits; and
Whereas, As the largest city in the state of Wisconsin and the 23rd largest municipality in the nation, the infrastructure funding and gainful employment challenges faced by the City of Milwaukee are also experienced to varying degrees by other major cities across America; and
Whereas, Infrastructure funding decisions in Milwaukee have been driven more by budget considerations than by need for nearly two decades, resulting in a “worst-first” approach to street, alley and bridge reconstruction or major rehabilitation; and
Whereas, Underfunding Milwaukee’s public infrastructure has resulted in average replacement cycles of nearly 160 years for local streets, 232 years for city alleys, and 92 years for city bridges, all far exceeding the expected useful life of these public assets; and
Whereas, For the 13th consecutive month, Milwaukee has lost employment compared to the same month a year earlier, losing almost 2,500 jobs between August 2007 and August 2008; and
Whereas, Milwaukee, with an overall unemployment rate higher than the national average and limited employment opportunities for low-to-moderate skilled workers, could benefit immensely from an infusion of infrastructure investment, which plays a critical role in boosting local demand for this type of labor; and
Whereas, The City of Milwaukee has approximately $15 million of ready-to-go paving and street maintenance projects which can be out to contract within 60 to 90 days, along with an additional $27 million in sanitary sewer-related projects; and
Whereas, It is time for the nation to once again commit to improving cities’ infrastructure, thereby building lasting, productive assets that will provide economic dividends for generations to come; and
Whereas, Federal public infrastructure investment is truly a “big bang” stimulus, meeting the pressing needs of an aging infrastructure while also playing a critical role in boosting demand for workers; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, By the Common Council of the City of Milwaukee, that the Common Council urges all members of Wisconsin’s U.S. Congressional delegation to petition the Treasury Department to allocate a portion of the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program to cities for infrastructure investment and further advocate for the inclusion of federal funding of municipal public works projects in any future economic stimulus package; and, be it
Further Resolved, That every effort is made to route infrastructure stimulus funds to local units of government in the most direct way possible, thereby ensuring that ready-to-go infrastructure projects are not held up by needless hurdles; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the City Clerk send a copy of this resolution to each member of Wisconsin’s U.S. Congressional delegation.
Requestor
Drafter
LRB08525-1
MST
11/21/08