Wednesday, August 17, 2011

$20 million for a green jobs program, but only 14 new jobs

Last year, Seattle won a $20 million federal grant to invest in weatherizing homes in poorer neighborhoods. The goal was to create 2000 jobs in Seattle and shrink carbon footprint.

More than a year later, only 14 jobs have been created--and worse, they are almost all administrative jobs. (That's $1.4 million per job, by the way). Community organizers are making various excuses and calling for more money. Perhaps if they get another $5 million, they can create three more jobs.

Could it be any clearer that job creation needs to be led by the private sector, and that the government--particularly the federal government--is just NOT GOOD at directly creating jobs?

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