Villaraigosa lobbies Washington with jobs plan

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-local-jobs-20110831,0,7132005.story

Reporting from Washington—
In an effort to bring down the stubbornly high unemployment rate, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is lobbying Washington officials to give local workers an advantage in winning some of the more than 166,000 jobs expected from transportation projects planned for the region.

Federal rules prohibit local hiring preferences on federally funded transportation projects, under the premise that all U.S. taxpayers help to pay for the work and should have an equal shot at getting the jobs. The rule also stems from concern that making local hiring a factor in awarding contracts will increase the cost of projects.

But with Washington jittery about unemployment heading into an election year, the mayor has received a positive signal from the administration. Hovering at 12%, California's unemployment rate is the second highest in the nation, behind Nevada's.

A U.S. Department of Transportation spokesman said the department was working with Congress to develop rules that "could encourage local hiring on large projects as long as quality demands and schedule constraints are met."