|
What the Stimulus Means for Colorado |
 Last Tuesday, President Barack Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, better known as the stimulus package, into law at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. The White House wanted to have the bill signed away from the politics of Washington and chose Colorado because of our recent leadership on energy issues.
But when it comes down to it, what will our share of the nearly $787 billion actually be? Although the vast majority of spending will most likely be on the federal level, we’re expected to see at least a reasonable amount of funding pass through our state. An initial estimate for the House version of the bill put Colorado at just under $3 billion. However, experts agree that the actual amount will be significantly less with the final version; somewhere around $1.97 billion. By formula, that would include $400 million in highway funding, $100 million in mass transit, $50 million in state energy programs, $30 million in childcare, development and Head Start, and $125 million in Title I education programs for the disadvantaged. We’ll also likely see at least $600 million in stabilization funds to help balance the budget, something that is sorely needed. More information on specific funding predictions can be seen here.
According to Gov. Ritter, we can also hopefully expect tax cuts for almost 2 million Colorado workers, college tax credits for tens of thousands of families, and extensions to state unemployment programs. Overall, the enormous scale and forward thinking priorities of this bill hold an opportunity for Colorado and the rest of the country to not only recover from this economic crisis, but to finance important and essential programs such as health care reforms and renewable energy.
However, we have to remember that this stimulus bill is a one-time only program. We only get one shot at this, and have to be careful not to be reliant on unsustainable deficit spending to keep our government functioning. The very worst thing that could come out of this bill would be for future budgets to be even more unbalanced, and our financial situation to become even more dire. No matter how you feel about this first stimulus bill, we all have to agree that it can never be repeated, we simply can’t afford to let this happen again. Yes, this short term funding will be a benefit to our state, but we have to remember it won't be here next year. |
