Back in April, I blogged about the silly “jobs now” signs that North Carolina will be placing by government-funded construction sites. The signs are merely there to reinforce the easily seen “benefits” of government stimulus spending.
But as everyone knows, government can not spend money without first taking that money out of the economic system. This WRAL.com story reveals how much those signs are costing taxpayers.
The state Department of Transportation has spent $135,000 in taxpayer funds to install signs touting road projects paid for with more than $800 million in federal stimulus money.
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The federal money the DOT is using to erect 54 signs across the state – each costs about $2,500 – doesn’t come from the economic stimulus package. It’s discretionary money the state could have used on road construction or maintenance.
“It irritates me,” said Wes Lewis, who drives by one of the signs almost daily. “I think the money could be better spent somewhere else. They could use it on the road. If they want to let everybody know, they could put it in the paper what they’re using the money for instead of spending so much on signs.”
Perhaps some industrious individual will make signs to post outside businesses laying off workers or shuttering their doors completely – the signs can read: “Putting Americans Out of Work: These jobs lost because the federal government is consuming massive amounts of scarce capital, putting it out of reach of private entrepreneurs.”
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