Hannity falsely suggests Oregon's "inventive" job counting methods are Obama's

Hannity suggested AP report on OR state stimulus jobs reflects Obama policies

From the July 28 edition of Fox News' Hannity:

HANNITY: White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel recently said the Obama administration, quote, "rescued the economy," but there is news out of Oregon today that may have Congressman "Dead Fish" revisiting his assessment. Now, the AP reports that in Oregon, the 3,000 jobs Democrats claim were created by the stimulus lasted an average of only 35 hours. So after less than a week, those people were unemployed again. Unbelievable. More Hannity in 90 seconds.

AP report actually describes how OR state lawmakers count jobs created by OR state -- not federal -- stimulus

AP reported on "inventive" accounting methods of Oregon state lawmakers. The July 28 AP article reported that Oregon state Democratic lawmakers are touting the creation of "3,236 new jobs," including jobs lasting "on average only 35 hours" and that "[b]y the state's accounting, a job is a job, whether it lasts three hours, three days, three months, or a lifetime." The AP later noted, "Oregon's inventive math underscores the urgency for politicians across the country to show that spending programs designed to stimulate the economy are working -- even if that means stretching the facts."

Report said the methods are being used to assess Oregon's state stimulus, not federal recovery act. The AP report stated that Oregon's figure of 3,236 jobs created is said to reflect the impact of the state's $176 million stimulus package, which was designed to supplement the federal stimulus. A June 17 Progress Report by Oregon's Department of Administrative Services stated that as of May 31, the $175 million "Go Oregon! Economic Stimulus Recovery Package" had "[c]reated or [r]etained" 3,236 jobs.

White House job counting rules for federal stimulus prohibit Oregon's "inventive" practices

Obama administration requires recipients of federal stimulus funds to report jobs in "full-time equivalents." A June 22 memo by the Office of Management and Budget provides the calculation that stimulus recipients must use when reporting jobs created or retained. According to the memo, the formula "converts part-time or temporary jobs into 'full-time equivalent' " in order to "avoid overstating the number of other than full-time, permanent jobs." The AP reported: "The White House requires states to report numbers in terms of full-time, yearlong jobs. That means a part-time mechanic counts as half a job. A full-time construction worker who has a three-month paving contract counts as one-fourth of a job."

AP report stated that "Oregon's accounting practices would not be allowed as part of the $787 billion federal stimulus." The article said that the Obama administration has created "rules intended to guard against exactly what Oregon is doing" and that when using the White House's method of job counting, Oregon's state stimulus package "has created the equivalent of 215 full-time jobs that will last three months."

From the July 28 AP article:

How much are politicians straining to convince people that the government is stimulating the economy? In Oregon, where lawmakers are spending $176 million to supplement the federal stimulus, Democrats are taking credit for a remarkable feat: creating 3,236 new jobs in the program's first three months.

But those jobs lasted on average only 35 hours, or about one work week. After that, those workers were effectively back unemployed, according to an Associated Press analysis of state spending and hiring data. By the state's accounting, a job is a job, whether it lasts three hours, three days, three months, or a lifetime.

"Sometimes some work for an individual is better than no work," said Oregon's Senate president, Peter Courtney.

With the economy in tatters and unemployment rising, Oregon's inventive math underscores the urgency for politicians across the country to show that spending programs designed to stimulate the economy are working -- even if that means stretching the facts.

[...]

Oregon's accounting practices would not be allowed as part of the $787 billion federal stimulus. While the White House has made the unverifiable promise that 3.5 million jobs will be saved or created by the end of next year, when accountants actually begin taking head counts this fall, there are rules intended to guard against exactly what Oregon is doing.

The White House requires states to report numbers in terms of full-time, yearlong jobs. That means a part-time mechanic counts as half a job. A full-time construction worker who has a three-month paving contract counts as one-fourth of a job.

Using that method, the AP's analysis of figures in Oregon shows the program so far has created the equivalent of 215 full-time jobs that will last three months. Oregon's House speaker, Dave Hunt, called that measurement unfair, though nearly every other state that has passed a stimulus package already uses or plans to use it.