H.R. 1: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
“Jobs, jobs, jobs. That is job number one for this Congress.”
-- Rep. Xavier Becerra, 2/13/09
To learn more about the Economic Recovery Act and track how your money is being spent, visit: Recovery.Gov
On February 13, Congress passed the final conference version of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, H.R. 1, to save and create jobs, get our economy moving again, and transform it for long-term growth and stability. On February 17, President Obama signed the bill into law. This landmark legislation is the first dramatic new investment in the future since the creation of the interstate highway system a half century ago.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is an unprecedented effort to jumpstart our economy, create or save millions of jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st century. The Recovery and Reinvestment Act is an extraordinary response to a crisis unlike any since the Great Depression. With much at stake, the Act provides for unprecedented levels of transparency and accountability so that you will be able to know how, when, and where your tax dollars are being spent.
According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, this recovery package will be fast-acting, with 64 percent of the package invested by the end of FY 2010.
In summary, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will:
- Create or save more than 3.5 million jobs over the next two years;
- Take a big step toward computerizing Americans’ health records, reducing medical errors, and saving billions in health care costs;
- Revive the renewable energy industry and provide the capital over the next three years to eventually double domestic renewable energy capacity;
- Undertake the largest weatherization program in history by modernizing 75 percent of federal building space and more than one million homes;
- Increase college affordability for seven million students by funding the shortfall in Pell Grants, increasing the maximum award level by $500, and providing a new higher education tax cut to nearly four million students;
- As part of the $150 billion investment in new infrastructure, enact the largest increase in funding of our nation’s roads, bridges, and mass transit systems since the creation of the national highway system in the 1950s;
- Provide an $800 Making Work Pay tax credit for 129 million working households, and cut taxes for the families of millions of children through an expansion of the Child Tax Credit;
- Require unprecedented levels of transparency, oversight, and accountability.
Want to learn more? Check out these links:
Click here to read the text of the Recovery Act.
Click here to read the Speaker's summary of the Recovery Act.
Click here to view answers to Frequently Asked Questions about the Recovery Act.