By Ellen Sussman

Green Valley News, January 13, 2009

To keep state, county and municipal elected and appointed officials informed about President-elect Barack Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan, which will soon come before Congress and how it will affect Arizona, U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords hosted a roundtable meeting on Saturday at the east side City Hall in Tucson.

Welcomed by City Council member Rodney Glassman, 41 representatives at the three levels of government attended and included Green Valley Community Coordinating Council Executive Director Sandi Richey, Member-at-Large Sandra Stone, town of Sahuarita Mayor Lynne Skelton and Town Manager Jim Stahle.

Pointing out foreclosures as one of the economic indicators in Arizona, Giffords said the state ranks third in the nation for foreclosures, after Nevada and Florida.

One in every 198 homes in Arizona received a foreclosure notice in November 2008. In Pima County, foreclosures increased 289 percent from 2006 to 2008; in 2008, there were 8,961 foreclosures in Pima County.

Referring to the Recovery and Reinvestment Plan, Giffords said, “We need to work across party lines and create shovel-ready jobs in Southern Arizona.”

The plan includes saving at least three million jobs, creating “green” jobs, investing at least $750 billion into energy, education, health care, state budget relief and infrastructure plus tax cuts and unemployment relief.

Of “Green” Energy and Efficiency Investments, President-elect Obama’s plan calls for doubling alternative energy production in the next three years, supporting new energy technologies and jobs, modernizing 75 percent of federal buildings and improving the energy efficiency of two million American homes.

From the state level

Doug Cole, deputy director of Secretary of State Jan Brewer’s transition team, said, “This is not a Democratic issue or a Republican issue, it’s not an Arizona issue, but a national issue.”

Brewer will soon replace and complete Gov. Janet Napolitano’s term when the governor becomes Homeland Security Secretary.

Director of the Arizona Department of Transportation Victor Mendez said all levels of government are under stress. Speaking of the proposed nationwide investments of $30.25 billion for highways and bridges, $12 billion for transit and $5 billion for rail, Mendez said, “This is an investment for the future of the infrastructure of the country.”

He emphasized the need to create “ready-to-go” jobs within the next three to six months and said, “If we’re not ready, the money will go somewhere else.”

Mendez is proposing $1.3 billion in statewide, ready-to-go projects with $317 million for Pima County and said every $1 billion generates 35,000 jobs.

Of the proposed $800,000 billion stimulus bill and the $30.25 billion allocated for highways and bridges, Mendez said, “Arizona’s portion is not a whole lot.”

He called for sustainable jobs; not jobs that will be over in a year or two and said he doesn’t have a solution but it’s something that needs to be worked on.

Deputy Director of the Arizona Department of Commerce Kent Ennis spoke about energy conservation block grants to improve state buildings plus grants to improve energy efficiency in commercial buildings and said, “We need to take full advantage of what’s coming down the pike.”

Q and A

Reiterating what was mentioned earlier, Giffords said, “It’s important to have things right and to have projects ready-to-go. We want this to be as bipartisan as possible,” adding that all funding, including ADOT, will go through the governor’s office.

Responding to an attendee who challenged ADOT to make transportation projects “green,” Giffords said, “Most green projects are not ready-to-go. That’s why we’re here today. We need to get a green list ready.

Arizona Senator-elect Linda Lopez said there will be a need for funds for childcare if mothers and fathers will be going back to work. Giffords said she would advocate for this.

Closing the two-hour meeting, Giffords again emphasized the need for ready-to-go projects that will create jobs and adding “green” projects down the line.

In a one-question inquiry with Deputy Director Cole of Secretary of State Brewer’s transition team, when asked who will be the director of the governor’s Southern Arizona office, Cole told the Green Valley News, “We’ll announce it this week.”

For up-to-date information on the economic stimulus legislation, go to www.giffords.house.gov.