Minnesota improves significantly in latest stimulus information rankings

A national group that once gave Minnesota low marks for its stimulus reporting efforts now considers the state among the best in the country.

The Washington, D.C.,-based watchdog group Good Jobs First updated its report from last July when it ranked Minnesota 34^th in its efforts to disseminate information about federal stimulus spending.

In the new report issued Tuesday, Minnesota skipped 30 places to land in fourth place among states for its stimulus reporting website.

Minnesota now shares fourth place with Colorado and Wisconsin. Maryland ranks first, followed by Kentucky and Connecticut.

DFL lawmakers and public policy groups like Common Cause Minnesota this summer watched the progress made by officials at the Minnesota Department of Management and Budget on the state’s stimulus website. Among the features at www.recovery.mn that have quelled the initial criticism is an online tool that allows people to map the locations and dollar amounts of stimulus projects.

Twenty-seven states provide geographic information on their websites, according to Good Jobs First.

North Dakota finishes in last place in Good Jobs First’s rankings.

President Obama last February signed the $787 billion stimulus legislation into law.