Where the Recovery Dollars Are Going

The following is a partial list of funding from the federal stimulus package, the “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act,” including agencies to help you become aware of what is available to you or how your business may become involved.

compiled by Johnnie Grant

Department of Commerce
The Department of Commerce will receive $7.9 billion to create and save jobs for American workers as part of the historic economic stimulus bill recently signed by President Barack Obama. ARRA investments in Commerce agencies include funding for business development, innovative research, construction projects, expanding broadband services, and other programs designed to create or save jobs.

Housing and Urban Development
The Recovery Act includes $13.61 billion for projects and programs administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, nearly 75 percent of which was allocated to state and local recipients on February 25, only eight days after President Obama signed the Act into law. Recovery Act investments in HUD programs will modernize homes to make them energy efficient helping families and communities hardest hit by the economic crisis.

Promoting Energy Efficiency and Creating Green Jobs
These investments are powerful vehicles for economic recovery because
they work quickly, are labor-intensive, create jobs where they are
needed most, and lead to lasting neighborhood benefits. Money will be
used to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and retrofit housing to make it
more energy efficient.
•    $4 billion invested in energy-efficient modernization and renovation of public housing
•    $510 million for energy-efficient modernization and renovation of housing maintained by Native American housing programs
•    $250 million invested in energy-efficient modernization programs for housing for low-income, elderly, and disabled persons
•    $100 million for lead-based-paint hazard reduction and abatement activities
Additional HUD funds will go to support these shovel-ready programs and activities:
•    $2.25 billion to the Tax Credit Assistance Program to produce and preserve tens of thousands of units of affordable housing
•    $1 billion in Community Development Block Grant funds for
approximately 1,200 state and local governments to invest in their own
community development priorities
•    $2 billion for Section 8 project-based Rental Assistance contracts
that enable owner to maintain and improve the quality of this critical
affordable housing

Department of Education
 – $77 Billion
Within the education sector, the Act will provide funds to save or
create hundreds of thousands of early childhood, K-12, and higher
education jobs in states across America that are at risk of state and
local budget cuts. It will also create thousands of additional
construction jobs related to school modernization projects. In the
long-term, “the Act” will strengthen the economy by raising Pell grants
and tuition tax credits to help more young people attend college.
•    40 billion in state stabilization funds to help avert education
cuts, given to states in exchange for a commitment to begin advancing
education reforms. School systems may use some of this money for school
modernization.
•    $13 billion for Title I, including $3 billion for Title I school improvement programs.
•    $12 billion for IDEA
•    $5 billion in competitive incentive grants to states that most
aggressively pursue higher standards, quality assessments, robust data
systems, and teacher quality initiatives, including $650 million to
school systems and non-profits with strong track records of improving
student achievement
•    $5 billion for Early Childhood, including Head Start, early Head
Start, childcare block grants, and programs for infants with
disabilities (including HHS programs)
•    $2 billion for other education investments, including pay for
performance, data systems, teacher quality investments, technology
grants, vocational rehab, work study, and Impact Aid
•    $30.8 billion for college affordability
•    $17 billion to close the shortfall in the Pell Grant program and
boost grant amounts by $500 to $5,350 in the first year and more in the
second year, serving an estimated 7 million low and moderate-income
young people and adults.
•    $13.8 billion to boost the tuition tax credit from $1,800 to $2,500 for families earning up to $180,000
•    An additional $8.8 billion available for other state services including education such as school modernization programs
•    $24.8 billion in bonds for renovation, repairs, and school
construction that will be retired through a combination of local, state
and federal dollars

Promoting Stable Communities and Helping Families Hardest Hit by the Economic Crisis
These investments will help communities and families that have
experienced the brunt of the economic downturn. Resources will be used
to stabilize and revive local neighborhoods and housing markets with
heavy concentrations of foreclosed properties. Funds will also assist
the vulnerable families and individuals who are on the brink of
homelessness or have recently become homeless.
•    Neighborhood Stabilization Program: $2 billion to mitigate the
impact of foreclosures through the purchase and rehabilitation of
foreclosed, vacant properties in order to create more affordable
housing and renew neighborhoods devastated by the economic crisis
•    $1.5 billion invested in preventing homelessness and enabling the
rapid re-housing of homeless families and individuals, helping them
reenter the labor market more quickly and preventing the further
destabilization of neighborhoods

Veteran Affairs
Veterans with conventional home loans now have new options for
refinancing using a VA-guaranteed home loan. Veterans who wish to
refinance their subprime or conventional mortgage may now do so for up
to 100 percent of the value of the property. Additionally, Congress
raised VA’s maximum loan amount for these types of refinancing loans.
Previously, these refinancing loans were capped at $144,000; the new
cap is $729,750.

For more information, or to obtain help from a VA Loan
Specialist, veterans may call VA at 1-877-827-3702 or visit
www.homeloans.va.gov.

General Service Administration
The Recovery Act will stimulate the economy by, in part, getting
money flowing to the building industries – to construction workers,
electricians, plumbers, air conditioning mechanics, carpenters,
architects, and engineers.
Financing includes $5.55 billion for building projects, $300 million for fuel-efficient vehicles, $750 million

to
renovate and construct federal buildings and courthouses, and $4.5
billion to convert federal buildings to high-performance green
buildings. GSA has more details at: www.gsa.gov; www.gsa.gov/gogreen;
www.recovery.gov.

Department of Labor
The following DOL programs will be funded by the Recovery Act.
Workforce Investment Act (WIA): $3,950,000,000 for WIA programs:
•    Adult Employment and Training Activities: $500,000,000 – www.doleta.gov/programs/general_info.cfm
•    Youth Activities, including summer jobs for youth: $1,200,000,000 – www.doleta.gov/youth_services
•    Dislocated Worker Employment and Training Activities: $1,250,000,000 -www.doleta.gov/programs/ETA_default.cfm.
•    Competitive Grants for Worker Training and Placement in High Growth and Emerging Industry Sectors: $750,000,000
•    YouthBuild Activities: $50,000,000 – www.doleta.gov/youth_services
•    Community Service Employment for Older Americans: $120,000,000 for
part-time employment opportunities for low income seniors –
www.doleta.gov/seniors.
•    Employment Service Grants to States: $400,000,000 –
www.doleta.gov/programs/Wagner_Peyser.cfm, including $250,000,000 for
reemployment services to connect unemployment insurance claimants to
employment and training opportunities
•    Unemployment Insurance Extension: The Emergency Unemployment
Compensation Act (EUC) program is described at
www.workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/unemploy/supp_act.asp.
•    Benefit payments are increased by $25 per week through December
31, 2009 for individuals receiving Trade Readjustment Allowances,
Disaster Unemployment Benefits, regular Unemployment Compensation,
Extended Benefits, or EUC, described through links at
www.workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/unemploy
•    Special Transfers for Unemployment Compensation Modernization: Up
to $7 billion is transferred from the Federal Unemployment Account to
the state accounts as “incentive payments” to encourage states to enact
specific reforms, such as coverage of part-time workers. Incentive
payments expire October 1, 2011.
•    $500,000,000 to states to administer their UI programs
•    Federal income tax on the first $2,400 of unemployment benefits is suspended for 2009
•    Full Federal Funding of Unemploy-ment Compensation through January
1, 2010, described at
www.workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/unemploy/extenben.asp
•    Interest payments and accrual of interest on loans received by
State unemployment trust funds are waived through December 31, 2010.
•    Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC), which provides a tax credit to
employers who hire members of targeted groups, adds unemployed veterans
and disconnected youth who begin work in 2009 and 2010. WOTC –
www.doleta.gov/business/incentives/opptax
•    COBRA Continuation Coverage: Provides funding for a 65% reduction in COBRA premiums for eligible individuals.