Over the past year construction employment in Kansas fell by over 3,400 jobs, reports The Hutchinson News. As a result, the Sunflower State has fallen to 49th in the nation in construction jobs. Meanwhile, the four states that border Kansas have all seen growth, adding a combined 20,000 construction jobs to their own economies.
Kansas has been reeling from a budget shortfall after Governor Sam Brownback’s administration repeatedly slashed tax income for the state. Diminished spending on bridge and road work was a factor in Kansas’s low ranking on construction employment. In April Brownback delayed authorization of 25 major highway construction projects. Those projects alone would have accounted for $550 million in construction contracts.
Hawaii is ranked number one in the US in construction growth, and Iowa is second.
