|
 On Feb. 17, 2009, President Obama signed the comprehensive American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, referred to informally as the Economic Stimulus Program.
The Act provides $787 billion nationwide for a wide range of federal programs, and increases or extends certain benefits payable under the Medicaid, unemployment compensation and nutrition assistance programs over the next two years. The Act also reduces individual and corporate income tax collections and makes a variety of other changes to tax laws.
The Act follows these general guidelines:
- Provides that funding is temporary, intended to preserve and create jobs and to make investments in infrastructure, energy and science, unemployment assistance and state and local stabilization.
- Dedicates additional funding to improved oversight, including the Inspector General and Government Accountability Office.
- Establishes a new Executive Branch-level board to oversee funding.
- Requires additional reporting documentation to ensure greater accountability.
- Requires certification by state and local officials that the spending is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds.
Funds will be disbursed within the next two years. In most cases, the funds must be spent within a two-year period. Over the next two years, the Act is expected to create or save three to four million jobs, 90 percent of them in the private sector. In the state of Florida, approximately 206,000 jobs will be saved or created.
In Pinellas County, the number of jobs that are projected to be created or saved are broken down by Congressional districts:
- District 9 - 8,200
(covers portions of Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough counties)
- District 10 - 7,100
(covers all of Pinellas County)
- District 11 - 8,200
(includes portions of Pinellas, Hillsborough and Manatee counties)
The Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners is committed to its participation in receiving the funding for which the county is eligible. The navigational links on this webpage will continue to provide the public with updated information on funding applied for and awarded to the Pinellas County Government.
|
|