RECOVERY ACT CREATING JOBS AND DRIVING ECONOMIC GROWTH

The Recovery Act at One Year

One year in, the Recovery Act is at work across the country creating jobs and driving economic growth. From major highway projects to green retrofits of military facilities and manufacturing of advanced batteries, more than 55,000 projects across the country have now been funded through the Recovery Act. To get an up close look at some of those projects, click HERE. This is in addition to the nearly $120 billion in tax relief already provided to American families and businesses – with more to come this year - and the billions of dollars in relief provided to shore up state and local government programs like Medicaid and education facing severe budget shortfalls.

This is what it looks like, by the numbers:

Jobs

· CBO: According to the nonpartisan CBO, the Recovery Act is already responsible for as many as 2.4 million jobs through the end of 2009.
· CEA, Other Private Forecasters: Analysis by the Council of Economic Advisers also found that the Recovery Act is responsible for about 2 million jobs – a figure in line with estimates from private forecasters like IHS Global, Moody’s Economy and even the conservative American Enterprise Institute.

The Economy

· GDP/Economic Growth: In the fourth quarter of 2009, the economy grew 5.7 percent – – the largest gain in six years and something many economists say is largely due to the Recovery Act. Before the Recovery Act, the economy was shrinking by about 6 percent.
· Job Losses: Job losses for the fourth quarter of 2009 were one-seventh what they were in the first quarter of 2009 when the Recovery Act was passed.

Recovery Dollars

Spending: Nearly 70 percent of the $499 billion in Recovery Act spending has been obligated to specific programs and projects so far, putting those dollars to work in communities across the country.

Tax Relief: Nearly $120 billion in tax relief has been provided for working families and businesses through the Recovery Act this year.


This is what is looks like, by the numbers in New York:

Total Jobs & Spending

· JOBS CREATED AND SAVED – CEA estimates that 141,000 jobs were created or saved by the Recovery Act in New York in 2009

· TOTAL SPEND – More than $23.4 billion in Recovery funds has been made available to New York – and more than $12.6 billion has already been spent.

Investing in Infrastructure

· CONSTRUCTION – 493 transportation projects have been obligated in New York, totaling over $2.2 billion.

· SMALL BUSINESS – 2,774 Recovery Act-backed small business loans have been given to New York small businesses, supporting more than $920 million in lending.

Relief to Individuals

· TAX RELIEF – Because of the Making Work Pay tax credit, 7 million New York working families will collectively receive $3.4 billion in tax relief.

· UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS – More than 1,170,000 New York residents have expanded unemployment benefits because of the Recovery Act.

· STIMULUS PAYMENTS – More than 3.4 million New York seniors, veterans and other high-need residents have received one-time economic relief payments of $250, totaling over $87 million.

Helping States

· TEACHERS – Close to 30,000 education positions were reported as funded by the Recovery Act in Q4 2009 in New York – which has received more than $2.2 billion in State Fiscal Stabilization Funds (SFSF).

· MEDICAID – The Recovery Act has already made over $7.1 billion available to help prevent additional Medicaid cuts in New York. The state of New York has spent more than $6 billion of the available funds.