Project Funded by American Taxpayers

by Kate Piercy One of the best moves taken by Gov. Quinn when he took over as Governor after Blagojevich involved taking down the tollway signs that read “Open Road Tolling—Rod R. Blagojevich, Governor.” Yet, Quinn’s decision didn’t compel other state officials to stop “using government funds for self-promotion.” The Chicago Tribune reports, “Lately, on highways being...

by Kate Piercy

One of the best moves taken by Gov. Quinn when he took over as Governor after Blagojevich involved taking down the tollway signs that read “Open Road Tolling—Rod R. Blagojevich, Governor.”

Yet, Quinn’s decision didn’t compel other state officials to stop “using government funds for self-promotion.”

The Chicago Tribune reports, “Lately, on highways being repaired with federal stimulus funds, you can see signs that say, “Putting America to Work. Project Funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.” There are nearly 1,000 of them in Illinois.”

How much do these signs cost? Estimates vary, and apparently, the The Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board has no idea, according to the Tribune, which asserts:

The rationale behind the stimulus spending is that it will pump up the economy by putting money into paychecks, which will then be spent on other goods and services, creating more jobs. There is plenty of doubt whether the alleged effect is offset by the harm done by soaring deficits. But even if you accept the theory, this [putting up, creating signs] is hardly a sensible item.

The best use of the money is for things that would be worth doing regardless—such as repairing and upgrading roads. That way, citizens get something valuable even if the stimulating effect never shows up.

Rep. Schock of Illinois introduced an “End the Stimulus Advertisement Act,” calling for the ban of such displays. The Tribune believes it deserves passage, and “If politicians insist on putting up signs giving credit, here’s what the signs should say: “Project Funded by the American Taxpayers.”