The Governor Wants Hurricane Katrina Recovery Money Spent Now

In these tough economic times Governor Barbour is giving the Gulf Coast an ultimatum, start spending recovery money now. MPB’s Phoebe Judge reports.

The Governor addressed a packed crowd of local political and business leaders with a simple message, it’s time to step up the recovery process on the Gulf Coast.

“We’re going to start getting this money spent, and we’re going to start getting things that are clogged up cleared up.”

Mississippi is poised to receive 2.5 billion dollars from the federal stimulus package, while the Gulf Coast is still sitting only nearly 2.8 billion dollars in unused Katrina rebuilding funds. According to the Institute of Higher Learning, those projects could result in 18,000 new jobs. Governor Barbour,

“When the American taxpayers are paying through the nose for a 767 billion dollar stimulus package, we owe it to them to do our part. Our part is to start getting this money spent on construction projects which will result in 18,000 jobs.”

Brian Sanderson, is president of the Gulf Coast Business Council,

“In many respects we’ve had our own economic stimulus package for the past three years.”

Sanderson agrees with the Governor that there has to be a greater sense of urgency in taking advantage of the billions of dollars in rebuilding projects waiting to be used, and the Governor has a plan on how to accomplish that. He is giving the Gulf Coast a deadline,

“September the first, we need dirt turned by September the first.”

If those projects haven’t been started, Governor Barbour says he will take the money back. The Governor will also make a recommendation that all remaining FEMA funds by allocated by June. For MPB News, I’m Phoebe Judge in Gulfport.