The U.S. public is bubbling over with ideas on how to spend the billions of dollars set to flow to states from the federal stimulus program — including six-packs of beer, airboats and bathtubs.
Thousands of suggestions have poured into websites states have set up to give residents updated information on the money and where it might be spent, and in some cases asking them to submit their own ideas. Ohio, for example, had received a whopping 11,373 proposals.
Some of the ideas for tapping into the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act posted to the sites go beyond typical bricks-and-mortar infrastructure projects like roads and bridges.
One Virginia resident proposed a “shovel-ready” idea to lift small business development by giving a six-pack of locally brewed beer to every adult in the state. The cost would be $48.6 million with the assumption that the beer’s price would average $7.99.
Another Commonwealth citizen suggested giving seniors and the disabled $2,500 apiece toward renovating bathing facilities in their homes, pointing out that the move would also help small contractors in the state.
Wisconsin, which is sifting through more than 1,700 proposals submitted to its website, is planning to hook up worthy ideas with the appropriate state department.
“It’s not really off-the-wall stuff, it’s just people who are just trying to make their part of the world a little better,” said Gary Wolter, director of Wisconsin’s office of recovery and reinvestment.
Photo by vivekchugh.