New "Auto Recovery Czar" Named

FLINT (WWJ) The mayor of Youngstown Ohio has been appointed by the President to jump start what some charge is a stalled effort to help communities hurt by the auto industry's problems.

Jay Williams will lead the Office of Recovery for Auto Communities and Workers, an office that was officially renewed today by Presidential order. It had been scheduled to expire late last month.

"I've spent a decade working in a community, Youngstown, Ohio, that has seen first hand the devastating effects of manufacturing and closures and downsizing," said Williams. "I can also tell you that over that past decade, we've learned that there's nothing more powerful than partnerships."

Williams will take over the new job on August 8th, about a year after the previous director, Ed Montgomery, left the position. He'll step down as Youngstown Mayor on August 1st.

The recovery office had been criticized for not doing enough to help communities recover. Labor Secretary Hilda Soliz, who was with Williams during the announcement in Flint, said they did what they could with a limited budget.

"We've made some major investments, well over $70 million in national emergency grants to help some of our communities help retrain, and get people who lost their jobs into new jobs" she said.

The Obama administration says the auto industry lost 400 thousand jobs in 2008 and 2009. Last year, the industry added 115 thousand jobs.

Williams says he's realistic about what he may be able to accomplish on a limited budget. He said he'd draw on his experience as mayor of a city that's been hit hard by the decline in manufacturing.

"We've had to figure out ways to be resourceful," he said. "We've had to figure out ways to leverage assets. We've had to figure out ways to create partnerships that, maybe before, were overlooked."