Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1922-01-11
use $75,OOO,OOO
ON 1922 ROADS
What Will Winneshiek County Do
With Her Share of
Highway Fund?
GREATLY EXTEND BUILDING
OF PERMANENT ROADS
Money is Available Soon After Jan.
1-Some Change in Allet-
ment Plans.

A federal fund of 5000, 900 will
be available for the highway i'm
|provement of 1922, as federal aid for
road construction in the various
states, the money to be spent under
the supervision of the Bureau of
Public Roads, Department of Agri-
culture, under the Federal Highway
act, signed November 2Sth by the
president. In addition, $15,000,000 is
appropriated for national forest
roads. The $75,000,000 represents
the Federal governments appropria-
ton to the work of building high
ways in the various states and must
be matched, dollar for dollar, by
funds from the state treasures ex-
cept in states where more than 5
per cent of the area is unappropri-
ated public land. The $75,000,00 ap-
propriated is for the fiscal year end
ing June 80, 1922, and is available
January 1, 1922.
The Federal Highway act in gen.
eral way resembles the Federal Aid
act of 1916, but contains several new
features. Administration of the act
by the Secretary of Agriculture, and
under him the Bureau of Public
pnoI- ..as,,,t,, ,rl,a or<.1
Apportionment of the fund to the
states is almost the same as in the
previous act, the fund being divided
into three parts, one part apportion-
ed according to population, one ac-
cording to area, and one part ac-
cording to mileage of rural and star
mail routes A new feature is the
ssiruiatian that no ..ata shall re
ceive less than one-half 6r one pei
cent of the total fund which, in this
case, amounts to $366,625. This
stipulation will increase the amount
received by four of the smaller
states, i. e., Delaware, New Hamp-
shire, Rhode Island and Vermont
There is considerable change, how
ever, in the manner in which state
may use its allotment. Each state
must select connected road system,
rot exceeding Z per cent of its road
mileage for improvement with fed
eral 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 highways must not
exceed three-sevenths Of the system
selected; on them not more than go
per cent of the states allotment
can be spent without the joint ap-
proval of the Secretary of Agricul-
ture and the state highway depart
ment. The intercounty highways,
which consist of the remainder of
the system selected, will receive the
remainder of the states allotment.
Except in states where more than
5 per cent of the area is unappropri-
ated public land, the amount of fed
eral aid received on any project must
not exceed so per cent of the esti-
mated cost. In states where more
than 5 per cent of the area is unap-
propriated public land the so per cent
allotment is increased by an amount
equal to one half the percentage of
unappropriated land in the state. Be-
fore any funds can be paid to state
the state must appropriate money,
under the direct control of the state
highway department, to match the
federal allotment, and for the main,
tenance of federal aid highways.
All highways in the interstate sys-
TEN must have surfaced width of
at least Is feet, unless a narrower
width is deemed permissible by the
Secretary Of Agriculture. In case a
federal-aid highway is not properly
maintained by state, the state will
be given 90 days notice by the de-
partment At the end of that time if
the highway is not in good condition
of maintenance, the Secretary of Ag-
riculture will maintain it out of the
states allotment and refuse to ap-
prove any new projects until reim-
bursement is made by the state.
1t is estimated by engineers of the
United States Department of Agri-
culture that the Federal aid roads
under construction on October 81
were giving employment to about
25O,OO0 men, either directly on the
actual road construction, or indi-