The Final State of the Union
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While the President was in London yesterday working on finding an international solution to the economic crisis, your government back in DC was busy getting a domestic solution implemented. The "Making Work Pay" tax cut kicked in yesterday, check your paycheck for a little something extra to pump into the economy.
Rob Hotakainen, Sacramento Bee - April 2, 2009
Your paychecks are about to get fatter, and that's no April Fool's Day joke. The income tax cuts included in the economic stimulus plan passed by Congress in February kick in today. The White House said today it should put $6.4 billion new dollars in the hands of California workers. Overall, 12.6 million families in California should cash in, the White House said. The typical American family is expected to receive about $800 in extra cash, an attempt to jolt the economy.
The Vice President was in North Carolina with Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack yesterday talking about the Recovery Act and rural communities, telling them amongst other things, "All told, we're going to deliver more than $20 billion -- $20 billion -- even in Washington, that's a lot of money -- $20 billion in loans and grants to improve economic opportunity and the quality of life in rural America; $20 billion set aside for rural America. And the money is going to go to improving things which are not high on a lot of people's lists, but will make a big difference -- like improving broadband access so the farmer can sit there and get online and know exactly what his product is being sold for not just the next county over, but across the country. And so your kids can be brought into the same kind of opportunity that kids all over the world are being brought into."
(Vice President Joe Biden speaks at an event with Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack about economic stimulus spending during a visit to the volunteer fire department in Pikeville, North Carolina, Wednesday, April 1, 2009. The Vice President announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has begun disbursing the first wave of the $10 billion in guaranteed housing loans provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)And finally, Education Secretary Arne Duncan unleashed a massive infusion of $44 billion in education funds from the Recovery Act yesterday, read the press release or check out the Ed Recovery page.
Kimberly S. Wetzel, Contra Costa Times – April 1, 2009
Good news for cash-strapped school districts: $44 billion worth of education stimulus funds is now available, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan announced Wednesday. While $11 billion will be distributed immediately for special education purposes and low-income Title I schools, $32.6 billion in stabilization funds comes with strings attached. States and districts first must commit to a four-pronged reform approach that shows teacher effectiveness and develops a comprehensive data system, among other things. "Given our economic circumstances, it's critical that money go out quickly, but it's even more important that it be spent wisely," Duncan said via teleconference from Maryland. "We must be much more open and honest about what works in the classroom and what doesn't."
