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Show FEDERAL HIGHWAY ACT PROVIDES WORK FOR QUARTER MILLION MEN public land In the state. Before any funds can be paid to a state, the state must appropriate money, under the direct control of the state highway department, de-partment, to match the federal allotment, allot-ment, and for the maintenance of federal-aid highways. All highways In the interstate system must have a surfaced width of at least 18 feet, unless o nariAiwer width Is deemed permissible by the secretary of agriculture. In case a federal-aid highway Is not properly maintained by a state, the state will be given 00 days' notice by the department ; at the end of that time If the highway is not in good condition of maintenance the secretary sec-retary of agriculture will maintain It out of the state's allotment and refuse to approve any new projects until reimbursement Is made by the state. What the new appropriation will mean to the country can be Judged by the use to which the $275,000,000 previously pre-viously appropriated has been put, according ac-cording to ofliclals of the United States Department of Agriculture. Practically $200,000,000 of that money has been put to work In projects which are either entirely completed or now under construction. con-struction. The exact amount was $199,-823,427 $199,-823,427 on October 31. To match this amount the states have appropriated $285,529,000, making a total of $405,-352,517. $405,-352,517. Mileage Sufficient to Encircle Earth. The roads to be paid for by this money, If placed end to end, would encircle en-circle the earth nnd extend from New York to San Francisco on the second lap, the total mileage of the roads under construction and completed being be-ing reported by the bureau of public roads as 27,000 miles on October 31. Of this mileage, 9,555 miles Is In projects proj-ects which are entirely completed and the contractors discharged. The balance bal-ance of 17,445 miles is in projects whick are still under construction, but which were 69 per cent complete on October 31. In these projects there is therefore the equivalent of 12,000 miles of completed road, ho that the completed road to date totals over 21,-000 21,-000 miles. The average cost per mile of the roads built with federal aid has been between $17,000 and $18,000. More than half the money has been spent for roads with the highest types of surface, such as concrete, brick, and bituminous concrete, but a very large mileage of roads of the cheaper type, such as gravel and sand-clay, has been built where such types would withstand the wear of the traffic Prior to five years ago the federal government took no active part In the road construction of the country. Trv day about one-half of all the roads that are being built are being aided by the government financially, and the construction is subject to the Inspection Inspec-tion and approval of federal engineers; Work for Quarter Million Men. It Is estimated by engineers of the United States Department of Agricul: ture that the federal-aid roads undei construction on October 31 were glv Ing employment to about 250,000 men. either directly on the actual road con-' structlon or Indirectly In the production produc-tion and transportation of the materials ma-terials which enter into the construe Hon. (Prepared by the United states Department of Agriculture.) Seventy-five million dollars becomes available as federal aid for road construction con-struction lu the various states, the money to be spent under the supervision super-vision of the bureau of public roads, Department of Agriculture, under the federal highway act, signed November 9, by the President. In addition, $15,- 000. 000 is appropriated for national forest roads. The $75,000,000 represents repre-sents the federal government's appropriation appro-priation to the work of building highways high-ways In the various states and must be matched, dollar for dollar, by funds from the state treasuries, except In states where more than 5 per cent of the area Is unappropriated public land. Part of Money Now Available. The $75,000,000 appropriated is for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1022. Here is how the money will be apportioned ap-portioned among the 48 states : Ala tl,C53.420.67 Neb J1,H1,1S9.50 Ariz 1,063,281.44 Nev 953,436.78 Ark 1,254.142.20 N. H 865,625.00 Calif. 2,462,098.63 N. J 942,870.95 Colo 1,341,175.69 N. M. ... 1.1SS.S23.34 Conn. 480,897.73 N. T 3,696,447.97 Del 366,625.00 N. C. ... 1,709,333.90 Florida ... SS6.S25.69 N. D. ... 1.164,714.42 Georgia ... 1,997,957.58 Ohio,-..... 2,823,004.05 Idaho 938.536.68 Okla. .... 1,752,339.44 Illinois .... 3,246,2SL07 Oregon .. 1,182,663.90 Indiana ... 1,958,855.41 Penno. .. 3,398,953.97 Iowa 2,102,872.74 R. 1 365,626.00 KanBaa .... 2,102,281.51 6. C 1,061,237.34 Ky 1,417,178.68 S. D 1,204,060.31 Louisiana . 996,980.64 Tenn. ... 1,647,692.24 Maine 695.160.25 Texas ... 4,426,172.41 Md 640,629.01 Utah .... 849,417.21 Mass. 1,096.176.04 Vermont 866,625.00 Mich. 2.249,532.43 Virginia . 1,456,828.47 Minn. 2,123,597.07 Wash. .. 1,103,709.77 Miss 1,294,906.22 W. Va. .. 802,359.77 Missouri .. 2,448,128.62 Wis. 1,894.815.86 Montana .. 1,646,8S5.82 Wyo. .... 934,617.63 Of the appropriation of $15,000,000 for the Improvement of national forest roads $5,000,000 is made available for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1022, and $10,000,000 for the following fiscal year. The federal highway act In a general way resembles the federal-aid act of 1016, but contains several new features. Administration of the act by the secretary secre-tary of agriculture, and under him the bureau of public roads, remains unchanged. un-changed. Apportionment of the fund to the states Is almo t the same as In the previous pre-vious act, the fund- being divided Into three parts, one part apportioned according ac-cording to population, one according to area, and one part according to mileage of rural and star mall routes. A new feature Is the stipulation that no state shall receive less than one-half of 1 per cent of the total fund which, In this case, amounts to $365,625. This stipulation will Increase the amount received by four of the smaller states, 1. e., Delaware, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. Change In Use of State Allotments. . There Is considerable change, however, how-ever, In the manner In which a state may use Its allotment. Each sate must select a connected road system iiot exceeding 7 per cent of Its road mileage for Improvement with federal aid. This system will be divided Into two classes, one of which will be known as Interstate highways and the other as intercounty highways. The Interstate Inter-state highways must not exceed three sevenths of the system selected ; on them pot more than 60 per cent of the state's allotment can be spent without with-out the Joint approval of the secretary of agriculture and the state highway department. The Intercounty highways, high-ways, which consist of the remainder of the system selected, will receive the remainder of the state's allotment. Except In 6tates where more than 5 per cent of the area Is unappropriated public lnnd, the amount of federal aid received on any project must not exceed ex-ceed 50 per cent of the estimated cost In states where more than 5 per cent of the area is unappropriated public laud the 50 per cent allotment is Increased In-creased by an amount equal to one-half one-half the percentage of unappropriated |
