Stimulus Money Used To Build "Eco-Tunnel"

Eyewitness News learned that $3.4 million of federal stimulus money is being used to build a tunnel to help turtles cross a Florida road.

That's just one of the projects in Florida that federal stimulus money will fund. Republican Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma says he has scoured the stimulus list and found 100 questionable projects like Florida's Eco-Tunnel project.

The tunnel will be built to keep turtles and gators off US-27 in Leon County and supporters say it will also protect drivers.

"When you got 30 and 40 pound turtles as large as a manhole cover and 12-foot alligators crossing a highway it is a public safety issue," said Cliff Thaell, Commisioner-at-large of Leon County.

The White House issued a point-by-point rebuttal to Coburn's report and the White House proved tracking all of the spending is not easy.

It defended spending $2.2 million on a project in Montana, but that project is not being funded with stimulus money.