Mayors talk to Obama - asking for assistance

Mayors Press for Piece of the Infrastructure Pie
Mayors around the country are rallying to the incoming Obama administration to circumvent state governments and directly invest in local municipalities with infrastructure funds. While the President-elect and new Congress consider new ways to rebuild a crumbling infrastructure system, cities might do well to make the case in Sacramento as well as D.C. that local infrastructure investment makes the most sense - especially as it relates to jobs and local needs.

Besides, by avoiding Sacramento we might also avoid the likelihood that those transportation funds might be used for other purposes. As Mayor Bloomberg in New York warned, money given to states could end up simply plugging the large gaps in many of their budgets, instead of going to capital improvement. Complete story in Reuters Read more in more in CNN.