California officials say jobs riding on transportation bill

State and local leaders this week used the approaching Labor Day holiday as a platform to call for federal investment in transportation projects, warning that failure to do so would further damage the nation’s infrastructure and cost millions of jobs.

In a letter to congressional leaders, at news conferences and in “A Common-Sense Jobs Agenda” issued Friday, elected officials urged federal leaders to extend the nation’s surface transportation law and take other steps to boost the economy and create jobs.

“The clock is ticking,” said a letter issued Wednesday by the U.S. Conference of Mayors to congressional leaders. “If such an extension is not signed by the President before September 30, the entire program will be suspended.”

U.S. Sens. Barbara Boxer of California and Tim Johnson of South Dakota, both Democrats, released a joint statement Thursday saying nearly 2 million jobs would be lost if Congress failed to pass the transportation bill.

“The $52 billion in Federal funding provided through these programs, when matched by State and local investments, supports over 1.8 million jobs nationwide through all sectors of the economy,” the statement read.