Federal Stimulus Funding

BACKGROUND

Nationwide [From Recovery.gov]

On Feb. 13, 2009, Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 at the urging of President Obama, who signed it into law four days later.

A direct response to the economic crisis, the Recovery Act has three immediate goals:

  • Create new jobs as well as save existing ones
  • Spur economic activity and invest in long-term economic growth
  • Foster unprecedented levels of accountability and transparency in government spending

The Recovery Act intends to achieve those goals by:

  • Providing $288 billion in tax cuts and benefits for millions of working families and businesses
  • Increasing federal funds for education and health care as well as entitlement programs (such as extending unemployment benefits) by $224 billion
  • Making $275 billion available for federal contracts, grants and loans
  • Requiring recipients of Recovery funds to report quarterly on the amount of monies spent, the status of the project, the number of jobs created and/or saved, and other details, all of which are posted on Recovery.gov so that the public can track where the total $787 billion Recovery funds are going and how they are being spent.

Massachusetts [From Mass.gov/Recovery]

Mission: "The Massachusetts Recovery Plan will deliver immediate relief by putting people to work today, invest in opportunities to position the Commonwealth for a better tomorrow, and reform the way government does business."

Project Delivery Task Forces: To meet the state's goals and best utilize available federal stimulus funds, Governor Patrick established the following task forces:

  • Energy
  • Education Facilities
  • Transportation
  • Information Technology (including electronic medical records)
  • Private Development (including broadband expansion)
  • State Facilities and Courts
  • Municipal Facilities

MORE RESOURCES

STIMULUS NEWS

  • Natick budget starts with $2.8 million gap
    Cities and towns are now beginning their FY 2013 budget planning and estimation processes.  There's no more federal stimulus dollars, and the economy hasn't bounced back as everyone hoped it...
    Oct 20, 2011
  • Anxiety rises as stimulus dries up
    It should not have been a surprise to anyone that the federal stimulus dollars provided to MA were going to be fully spent during the fiscal year 2012 budget cycle, if  not already spent in...
    Aug 22, 2011
  • AN UPDATE ON STATE BUDGET CUTS
    This report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities outlines the economic and financial challenges of the US and how the states have dealt with these fiscal realities and consequences. Cuts...
    Feb 9, 2011
  • Governor Patrick, Congressman Tierney mark one-year anniversary of Recovery Act with visit to reveal imaging technologies
    Marking today's one-year anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Governor Deval Patrick and Congressman John Tierney today toured Reveal Imaging Technologies, a national...
    Feb 17, 2010
  • Jobs Take Center Stage
    President Barack Obama challenged a group of 130 business leaders, union heads, economists and others to figure out ways to create jobs during a Jobs and Economic Growth Forum at the White House on...
    Dec 7, 2009
more