Last week was one of those very busy weeks

							                                NEWS RELEASE
for more information contact:                                       for immediate release
Gerald Lewy                                                         December 19, 2008
Communications Director
House District 9 – Amerson
471 Cloudland Road
Dahlonega, Georgia 30533
phone/fax: 706/864-4613
e-mail: lewy@alltel.net

            Are there any Christmas presents in this recession?
    I am a child of the “Great Depression.” My family lost their farm in Middle Georgia, causing
all kinds of challenges and disruptions in my early life. There weren’t many Christmas presents
during some of those years. I have not forgotten those hard lessons learned in my youth. Last
week I had two opportunities to revisit the problems of the 1930s and get expert advice on how
today’s recession was caused and how it can be handled.

   The Governor and his staff held a pre-Legislative Conference in Athens to tell us how the
current economy is affecting Georgia. Then I attended the National Conference of State
Legislatures (NCSL) in Atlanta listening to, and discussing, the economy from other states'
perspectives.

   One of the most interesting sessions of NCSL featured David Wyss, Senior Economist for
Standard & Poor's, who discussed the current recession in terms of the housing and mortgage
markets. These are two separate, yet connected, economic problems. First, housing was over
built, and second, it was over priced.

   The usual price a family pays for a home is 2.5 times their annual income. During the past
five years, interest rates were so low that consumers looked more at monthly payments than at
the prices, thinking that the value would always go up and the house could be sold for more than
they paid. People ended up buying more house than they could afford, particularly if one family
member lost their job. The average price for houses got up to 3.6 times the annual salary.

    Lending institutions were creating mortgages based on as little as two percent down. With
home values falling as much as 10 percent in the Atlanta area and over 30 percent in other large
cities, many mortgages are more than the houses are worth. Many home buyers are not waiting
for foreclosure. They simply move out and mail the keys to the lender.

   Dr. Wyss believes the housing and mortgage market recession will bottom out in the summer
of 2009; however, he also believes that the climb out will take years. Don't expect a recovery to
the pre-recession economy any time soon. It will take longer to recover than it did to slide.
                                              -more-
   A very interesting Athens session featured Gena Evans, Commissioner of the Georgia
Department of Transportation. After telling us about straightening out DOT and how little
money was left for projects, she told us that President-elect Obama was asking for a list of
transportation projects that could put people to work within 30 days and another list that would
take 180 days to initiate.

   He wants a “road map” for allocating funds for building and repairing the nation’s highways
and bridges which could serve as an economic stimulus to put millions of Americans to work.
The District of Columbia and all 50 state Departments of Transportation responded to the survey.
More than five thousand “ready-to-go” projects worth $64 billion were identified. These
transportation infrastructure projects are considered “ready to go” because they could be under
contract within 180 days, supporting an estimated 1.8 million American jobs, if the funding is
made available. These jobs need to go to American companies employing American citizens.

   The Georgia Department of Transportation looked at all of the safety, bridges, intersections,
new capacity, and maintenance projects that are backlogged. The biggest driving force in
identifying the projects for the DOT list was the 180 day criteria. They identified projects that
were considered ready to go. That means that environmental approval, Right of Way
acquisition, designs and plans all could be complete and the project ready to let within 180 days.
Some $3 billion worth of projects were identified and submitted.

   Gena explained that this is merely a preliminary list and that DOT is still reviewing projects
and looking at other considerations before making a final decision. Not since President
Eisenhower initiated the Interstate Highway System in the 1950s have I seen this much
excitement. This truly is an opportunity for an investment into improving Georgia’s
infrastructure as well as putting many Georgians back to work.

   But you know me. I always ask the tough question, and that question is: how will all of these
projects be funded? Gena admitted that initially the Obama team was talking about an 80 -20
split between the federal government and the states. A survey of the states revealed that none
could fund the 20 percent needed; so as a group, the states have asked that the federal
government fund 100 percent of the projects chosen. I am cautious, but tomorrow is Christmas
and miracles do occur.

   Speaking of Christmas, I pray that your holidays will be filled with the spirit that He brings
and that your dinner plate will be full. May your New Year be one of hope and cheer, and may
God always bless you. Let me know what your legislative needs are before the Session starts on
January 12. That will give me time to do my homework on your behalf. I can be reached at 689
N. Chestatee Street, Dahlonega, Georgia 30533, 706/864-6589, e-mail
hamerson@windstream.net. Or contact Gerald Lewy, my Communications Director, at 706/344-
7788. He’ll know how to get your message to me. Remember, the secret of good government is
a well-informed electorate.

                                               -end-