Idaho Falls projects biggest stimulus winners

Idaho Falls area is state's biggest recipient of federal stimulus funding

• On 6:31 pm EDT, Friday October 30, 2009

BOISE, Idaho (AP) -- The region surrounding Idaho Falls, with its energy laboratory and hazardous waste clean-up project, has been the biggest recipient of federal stimulus money.

According to the latest reporting figures, the ZIP code that includes the Idaho National Laboratory received more than $427 million, accounting for about a third of the state's total $1.2 billion share of the funding package meant to help dislodge the nation from deep recession.

Engineering companies CH2M Hill and URS Corp., partners in a venture that's removing waste from the laboratory site, received just over $412 million.

Friday's federal report indicates 2,103 Idaho jobs were created or saved by the spending, so far.

The report wasn't free of errors, however. For instance, it indicates Idaho's fourth, fifth and eighth congressional districts received nearly $3 million in funding, combined. But the state has just two congressional districts.