Speeding up stimulus spending may not work

WASHINGTON, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Efforts to hasten stimulus spending may not work because it's tied to projects that are difficult to accelerate, a U.S. budget office said.

In a letter sent to Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad, D-N.D., the Congressional Budget Office noted much of the plan's spending is on infrastructure projects that take time to start up and complete, The Hill reported.

Conrad asked the office for an assessment of how the plan's spending provisions could be accelerated after Senate Republicans raised concerns the stimulus spending was too slow and deliberate.

In its response, a copy of which The Hill obtained, the CBO said current fiscal year would be half over by the time the stimulus package becomes law, meaning state and local government essentially were limited to stimulus project planning for the next fiscal year.

"Speeding up the rate of spending would not be easy," the CBO said. "Spending on infrastructure projects often takes longer to start up and some projects take several years to complete. … Throughout the federal government, spending for new programs has frequently been slower than expected and rarely been faster."

While noting the non-partisan office was wise to issue a cautionary note, Conrad downplayed its significance, saying state and local governments could speed up their processes if they want to.

Conrad also noted the assessment included specific, federal-level suggestions that could speed up stimulus spending, including waiving legal or environmental rules, shortening or eliminating competitive bidding processes and adding incentives or penalties to encourage quick project turnaround.