By Doug Finke
GateHouse News Service
Posted Aug 12, 2009 @ 09:29 PM

SPRINGFIELD — .The Illinois Policy Institute had what it thought was a reasonable request for the Illinois Department of Transportation.

It filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act asking how much money is being spent on signs touting road projects funded with federal stimulus money.

The request was denied, but not, IDOT says, because it is trying to hide anything. It doesn't know because they are not IDOT signs.

"IDOT does not provide or fabricate the signs," said IDOT spokeswoman Paris Ervin. "The signs are provided by the contractors. The signs are included in all stimulus contracts."

Ervin initially said the federal transportation department requires that the signs be posted on stimulus projects. In fact, the federal agency's Web site specifically says the signs are not required. However, the site says recipients of federal stimulus funds are "strongly encouraged" to display logos connected with the funds on projects paid with stimulus money.

One logo is circular and represents the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The other is presented in tiger striping and spells TIGER, for Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery.

"FTA (Federal Transit Administration) strongly encourages grantees to prominently display both logos described above on all projects funded by the ARRA," the site says. It also provides guidelines for sign size and display.

"The signs give the public a chance to see how federal stimulus dollars are affecting their communities," Ervin said. "With President Obama being from Illinois, we wanted to make sure we are in compliance with the rules suggested by the federal government to ensure Illinois is doing what is expected."

Illinois' signs do not contain the names of any Illinois politicians, including Gov. Pat Quinn. IDOT has received a "very small number of inquiries" about the signs, Ervin said.

Ervin said smaller road projects will have two of those signs posted on them. Larger projects will have four. The cost of the signs is built into the cost of road projects and likely will vary from project to project, Ervin said. However, she said a rough estimate provided by IDOT staff was $300 to fabricate each sign and $200 to install it.

Contractors are allowed to remove the signs after a project is completed and move them to another project if it is funded with stimulus money. The state has 193 stimulus projects under way, Ervin said, and 40 others have been completed.

Kristina Rasmussen of the Illinois Policy Institute in Springfield referred to the signs as "political propaganda" that divert money from projects.

"What sidewalk is not being repaired? What bridge is not being replaced?" Rasmussen said.

Rasmussen said it doesn't matter even if the signs are adding only $1,000 to the cost of a project.

"That's $1,000 in asphalt that can't be bought," she said.

Read the FOIA response here