President Obama authorized $511 million of infrastructure stimulus spending today under “We Can’t Wait,” the executive authority initiative that he launched to implement as much as possible the proposals he advocated in the American Jobs Act, which failed in Congress.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood “[took] action to get these grants out the door quickly,” as the Department of Transportation (DOT) “accelerated the [grant] application review process,” such that DOT announced the grants several months ahead of schedule. LaHood said that “the overwhelming demand for these grants clearly shows that communities across the country can’t afford to wait any longer for Congress to put Americans to work building the transportation projects that are critical to our economic future.”
