Reply #16: Yeah, that lazy SOB! He's just sitting there! [View All]

[MilesColtrane]

ahem

Some provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 suggested and lobbied to Congress and signed by the President:


More than 11% of the total bill is allocated to help states with Medicaid

Total: $147.7 billion
$86.6 billion for Medicaid
$24.7 billion to provide a 65 percent subsidy of health care insurance premiums for the unemployed under the COBRA program
$19 billion for health information technology
$10 billion for health research and construction of National Institutes of Health facilities
$1.3 billion for medical care for service members and their families (military)
$1 billion for prevention and wellness
$1 billion for the Veterans Health Administration
$2 billion for Community Health Centers
$1.1 billion to research the effectiveness of certain healthcare treatments
$500 million to train healthcare personnel
$500 million for healthcare services on Indian reservations

Education
Total: $90.9 billion

$44.5 billion in aid to local school districts to prevent layoffs and cutbacks, with flexibility to use the funds for school modernization and repair (State Equalization Fund)
$15.6 billion to increase Pell Grants from $4,731 to $5,350
$13 billion for low-income public schoolchildren
$12.2 billion for IDEA special education
$2.1 billion for Head Start
$2 billion for childcare services
$650 million for educational technology
$300 million for increased teacher salaries
$250 million for states to analyze student performance
$200 million to support working college students
$70 million for the education of homeless children

Aid to low income workers, unemployed and retirees (including job training)


Payments to Social Security recipients and people on Supplemental Security Income were parts of the final bill
Total: $82.5 billion
$40 billion to provide extended unemployment benefits through Dec. 31, and increase them by $25 a week
$19.9 billion for the Food Stamp Program
$14.2 billion to give one-time $250 payments to Social Security recipients, people on Supplemental Security Income, and veterans receiving disability and pensions.
$3.95 billion for job training
$3 billion in temporary welfare payments
$500 million for vocational training for the disabled
$400 million for employment services
$120 million for subsidized community service jobs for older Americans
$150 million to help refill food banks
$100 million for meals programs for seniors, such as Meals on Wheels
$100 million for free school lunch programs

Infrastructure Investment

Total: $80.9 billion

Core investments (roads, bridges, railways, sewers, other transportation)


Road and highway construction is the biggest single line infrastructure item in the final bill
Total: $51.2 billion
$27.5 billion for highway and bridge construction projects
$8 billion for intercity passenger rail projects and rail congestion grants, with priority for high-speed rail
$6.9 billion for new equipment for public transportation projects (Federal Transit Administration)
$6 billion for wastewater and drinking water infrastructure (Environmental Protection Agency)
$1.3 billion for Amtrak
$100 million to help public transit agencies
$750 million for the construction of new public rail transportation systems and other fixed guideway systems.
$750 million for the maintenance of existing public transportation systems
Investment into government facilities and vehicle fleets
Total: $29.5 billion
$4.6 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers for environmental restoration, flood protection, hydropower, and navigation infrastructure projects
$4.5 billion to the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) for energy efficiency and renewable energy.
$4.2 billion to repair and modernize Defense Department facilities.
$4 billion toward the establishment of an Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings within the GSA.
$4 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (wastewater treatment infrastructure improvements)
$4 billion for public housing improvements and energy efficiency (Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)).
$2 billion for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (drinking water infrastructure improvements)
$890 million to improve housing for service members
$300 million to acquire electric vehicles for the federal vehicle fleet
$250 million to improve Job Corps training facilities
$240 million for new child development centers
$150 million for the construction of state extended-care facilities
$100 million to improve facilities of the National Guard
$240 million for the maintenance of United States Coast Guard facilities

Supplemental investments

Total: $15 billion

$7.2 billion for complete broadband and wireless Internet access
$1.5 billion for competitive grants to state and local governments for transportation investments
$1.38 billion for rural drinking water and waste disposal projects
$1 billion to the Bureau of Reclamation for drinking water projects for rural or drought-likely areas
$750 million to the National Park Service
$650 million to the Forest Service
$515 million for wildfire prevention projects
$500 million for Bureau of Indian Affairs infrastructure projects
$340 million to the Natural Resources Conservation Service for watershed infrastructure projects
$320 million to the Bureau of Land Management
$280 million for National Wildlife Refuges
$280 million for the National Fish Hatchery System
$220 million to the International Boundary and Water Commission to repair flood control systems along the Rio Grande
$220 million for other public lands management agencies
$500 million to update the computer center at the Social Security Administration
$290 million to upgrade IT platforms at the State Department
$50 million for IT improvements at the Farm Service Agency

Energy

Loans and investments into green energy technology are a significant part of the final bill
Total: $61.3 billion

$11 billion funding for an electric smart grid
$6.3 billion for state and local governments to make investments in energy efficiency
$6 billion for renewable energy and electric transmission technologies loan guarantees
$6 billion for the cleanup of radioactive waste (mostly nuclear power plant sites)
$5 billion for weatherizing modest-income homes
$4.5 billion for the Office of Electricity and Energy Reliability to modernize the nation's electrical grid and smart grid.
$4.5 billion for state and local governments to increase energy efficiency in federal buildings
$3.4 billion for carbon capture experiments
$3.25 billion for the Western Area Power Administration for power transmission system upgrades.
$2.5 billion for energy efficiency research
$2 billion for manufacturing of advanced car battery (traction) systems and components.
$3.2 billion toward Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants. <42>
$500 million for training of green-collar workers (by the Department of Labor)
$400 million for electric vehicle technologies
$300 million for federal vehicle fleets, to cover the cost of acquiring electric vehicles, including plug-in hybrid vehicles.
$300 million to buy energy efficient appliances
$300 million for reducing diesel fuel emissions
$300 million for state and local governments to purchase energy efficient vehicles
$250 million to increase energy efficiency in low-income housing
$600 million to cleanup hazardous waste that threaten health and the environment
$200 million to cleanup petroleum leaks from underground storage tanks
$100 million to evaluate and cleanup brownfield land
$400 million for the Geothermal Technologies Program

Housin
Total: $12.7 billion

$4 billion to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for repairing and modernizing public housing, including increasing the energy efficiency of units.
$2.25 billion in tax credits for financing low-income housing construction
$2 billion for Section 8 housing rental assistance
$2 billion to help communities purchase and repair foreclosed housing
$1.5 billion for rental assistance and housing relocation
$510 million for the rehabilitation of Native American housing
$200 million for helping rural Americans buy homes
$130 million for rural community facilities
$100 million to help remove lead paint from public housing

]Scientific research


NASA is among the government agencies receiving additional funds under the Act
Total: $8.9 billion

$3 billion to the National Science Foundation
$2 billion to the United States Department of Energy
$1.3 billion for university research facilities
$1 billion to NASA
$600 million to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
$580 million to the National Institute of Standards and Technology
$230 million for NOAA operations, research and facilities
$140 million to the United States Geological Survey

Other
Total: $18.1 billion

$8.8 billion: State Block Grants: in aid to states to defray budget cuts.
$4 billion for state and local law enforcement agencies
$1.1 billion for improving airport security
$1 billion in preparation for the 2010 census
$720 million for improving security at the border and ports of entry
$750 million for DTV conversion coupons and DTV transition education
$210 million to build and upgrade fire stations
$150 million for the security of transit systems
$250 million for the security of ports
$26 million to improve security systems at the Department of Agriculture headquarters
$150 million for an increase of claims processing military staff
$150 million for VA general operating expenses
$50 million for the National Endowment for the Arts to support artists
$50 million for the National Cemetery Administration
$198 million for veterans affected by the Rescission Act of 1946