Pelosi pumps stimulus at Houston port

Pelosi pumps stimulus at Houston port

Pelosi

   House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the Port of Houston on Monday where local officials explained how they used $98 million in funds from last year's economic stimulus bill to dredge the Houston Ship Channel.
   Also meeting with port commissioners and executives were Texas representatives Gene Green, Sheila Jackson and Al Green.
   Pelosi said the Port of Houston's dredging work created an estimated 2,640 direct and indirect construction jobs, and will help spur economic growth that leads to more jobs, according to a news release from the Port of Houston Authority.
   The agency also received $2.8 million in funds through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's Diesel Emissions Reduction Act. The stimulus helped close a five-year funding shortfall of the Houston Ship Channel. The PHA said it hopes to secure the remaining $41 million needed through increased appropriations in fiscal year 2011.
   Pelosi's visit closely coincided with the one-year anniversary of the Recovery Act and is part of a sustained campaign by Democrats to show that the massive spending bill has put people back to work.