The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was signed into law on February 17, 2009, less than a month into President Obama's first term. The Council of Economic Advisers recently presented its final quarterly report on ARRA's impacts.
Jason Furman writes for WhiteHouse.gov about the accumulated impacts for the 2009 federal stimulus package on the occasion of its five-year anniversary. Here are some of the key findings of the Council of Economic Adviors' final report on the impacts of the $787 billion spending bill:
- “The Recovery Act, by itself, saved or created about 6 million job-years, where a job-year is defined as one full-time job for one year.”
- “[The] Recovery Act improved more than 40,000 miles of road and over 2,700 bridges, brought 693 drinking water systems serving over 48 million Americans into compliance with the Clean Water Act, made high-speed internet available to about 20,000 community institutions, and launched the Race to the Top program, which incentivized 34 states to improve their education policies.”
Furman also includes assessments of the impacts of the additional fiscal and economic measures approved by President Obama, like “a temporary payroll tax cut for 160 million working Americans.”
FULL STORY: The Fifth Anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
Historic 'Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act' Passes Final Hurdle in Congress, Heads to Biden for Signature
Months after the Senate voted to approve the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in a historic moment of bipartisan legislation, the House of Representatives put the finishing touches on a $1.2 trillion bill with $550 million in new spending.
Biden Learning From the Unrealistic Expectations of Past Economic Stimulus Efforts
Taking lessons from his time working in the Obama administration, President Biden is tempering promises of quick job creation with long-term reinvestment.
LaHood Announces New HSR Winners & Losers
The loser list is short and no surprise: The governor-elects of OH and WI had campaigned against HSR projects in their states-they got their wish. The recipients of the redirected $1.2 billion were the surprise,with CA, FL, and WA being the happiest.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association