Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. calls it a "kick-start" for the state's economy, a multi-faceted plan to infuse billions into Utah's economy, that he says could preserve jobs and jolt the housing and construction sectors back to life.

It includes incentives to get people back to buying homes, borrowing money to keep road construction crews on the job, and pushing ahead with state buildings that have private donors.

"All told the stimulus package would save about 20,000 jobs, or at least preserve them, and it would… keep $600 million in wages annually in this state," Huntsman said, unveiling his budget on Thursday.

Pam Perlich, an economist at the University of Utah, said it makes perfect sense to try to pump money into the economy when it contracts and cutting spending would only aggravate the downward slide.

"I doubt that what they've proposed would be enough to stop the bleeding, but it will slow it down," said Perlich. "The worst thing you can do is, when people are pulling back on their spending and losing their jobs, is pulling back on spending and raising taxes."

Incoming House Speaker David Clark, R-Santa Clara, said he wants to see more details from the governor's plan, but is willing to consider anything that might translate into more jobs.

"With the way the economy has been reeling in the State of Utah, I think we ought to be looking everywhere to see what makes sense to bring some life back into the economy," Clark said.

The linchpin of Huntsman's proposed stimulus plan hinges on borrowing $2.5 billion through the issuance of bonds to keep most of the state's planned road projects on track. Even with that infusion though, John Njord, executive director of the Utah Department of Transportation, said some projects may have to be scaled back or delayed.

Two weeks ago, the state halted $3.9 billion in planned construction because of the budget uncertainty.

Putting those projects back in play would mean retaining thousands of jobs, mostly in the private sector.

To help pay off the bonds, Huntsman has proposed an increase in the vehicle registration fee of about $9 to $22, depending on the type of vehicle.

On another front, Huntsman's economic stimulus plan is trying to work with private interests to breathe life into the housing market. With lenders not lending and buyers unable to buy, about 4,000 homes sit vacant.

In Utah, new home construction has fallen drastically and the construction industry has lost 13,500 jobs in the past year.

"There's no easy fix, I can assure you," said William Erickson, president of the Utah Housing Corporation and the head of the Housing Action Coalition. The group is one Huntsman has pulled together that includes Realtors, lenders, home builders and others.

"What we're trying to do is figure out why it is that people are not buying today," Erickson said.

One problem, he said, was that lenders weren't lending, so the coalition is trying to find a way to issue $400 million in taxable bonds. That would allow the purchase of mortgages from banks or lending directly to buyers creating liquidity and allowing new mortgages to be issued.

Assuming an average mortgage of $200,000, the program could help 2,000 families buy a home, reviving markets and prompting home builders to put crews back to work on new residences.

Another proposal from the governor would use state money to help homebuyers with a second mortgage cover down payments or closing costs.

Add in a $7,500 tax federal tax credit for first-time buyers and "wrap it up and present it out there and hopefully it will get some fence-sitters" to take the plunge, Erickson said.

Finally, the governor proposes steering state building money to a dozen construction projects that have been promised $138 million in private donations -- basically moving them to the top of the project list. They are primarily college and university buildings. Every $100 million spent on state buildings generates about 4,000 local jobs, according to the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce.

But legislators are uneasy with the amount of debt the governor wants to take on for the road projects, and some say there are better ways to stimulate the economy.

Sen. Sheldon Killpack, R-Syracuse, the incoming majority leader, said that transportation projects are a good way to stimulate the economy, but borrowing so much money may not be wise in the long-term.

"I think one thing that we really have to look at is true economic development and job creation in the state. I think now's the time to do it," he said. "What can we do in terms of additional jobs that will be new to the market, that will be high-paying and long-term?"

Killpack suggests it might make more sense to put state funds into luring new businesses to the state by helping ease relocation costs. He said he has talked to several companies that could move here as soon as after the first of the year and with their jobs would come demands for real estate and services that would ripple through the market.