Missouri stimulus funds to impact Columbia

MU will receive most of Columbia's stimulus funding.

By Cecilia Evans

Published June 2, 2009

The League of Women Voters of Columbia and Boone County co-sponsored a panel discussion Thursday at the Columbia Public Library about how the federal economic stimulus will affect Missouri residents.

Katy Disinger, Sen. Claire McCaskill's, D-Mo., Constituent Services representative, said the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act would keep millions of jobs in the country.

"Sen. McCaskill realizes it's not a perfect bill how it is, and we all know that too," Disinger said. "Its goal is to create or preserve about 3 million jobs in the country, and about 59,000 of those will be in Missouri, and it also includes one of the largest tax cuts in all of American history."

She said most of the money in the recovery bill would go to existing projects and will be distributed to these different programs either by government contract or grants based on merit.

The recovery money is divided into three categories: stimulus, competitive grants and budget stabilization. Stimulus money is for special projects through the federal government, such as transportation and arts. Stabilization money is for the state to use for specific things such as education and Medicaid, preventing the state from having to make cuts that would further hurt the economy.

Boone County Presiding Commissioner Ken Pearson said the reason for splitting this money up was to make sure state services continue to be provided, even if state budgets might not be able to afford such programs.

"In terms of financial stress, Missouri has some, but not near as much as some other states, like California," Pearson said. "And so, the idea is to help states meet their budgets so that people can still receive the services that they might not otherwise receive money for."

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is specific in terms of what the money might be spent on and there is a three-year time span in which all money must be used.

Pearson said the stimulus requires all projects receiving funds to be shovel-ready so money can be spent quickly on them and people are immediately put to work.

City Manager Bill Watkins said Columbia has been aggressive in getting projects ready, and he used the city's plan to improve sewers and wastewater treatment as an example.

Rep. Mary Still, D-Columbia, said Columbia received at least a fifth of all funds allocated toward state projects and expenses in one of the appropriation bills passed in the House and she said most of the funding coming to Columbia would benefit MU.

"A lot of that is going to Ellis Fischel construction on the MU campus," Still said. "We've got some more for construction and maintenance at the university."

Elaine Blodgett, president of the Columbia-Boone County League of Women Voters chapter, said not enough people fully understand how the stimulus works.

"People don't know what it is, and I think they're removed from it," Blodgett said. "I don't think they realize that it's really going to help people in their community."