American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan
Thursday, January 15th, 2009 by KarinaIn the next two weeks, the House will consider the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan, which makes long-term investments that are worthy, needed, fully-screened, and based on merit, not politics. Developed with priorities shared by President-elect Obama, the plan will create or save 3 to 4 million American jobs, with an estimated 90 percent of the jobs created in the private sector—getting the American economy moving in the short term and making investments for a stronger economy in the long term. The Chairman’s mark (draft legislation) will be circulated and posted online later today and next week the Ways and Means Committee, Energy and Commerce Committee, and Appropriations Committee will mark-up the legislation.
Read a summary from the Appropriations Committee>>
Read a summary of the tax provisions from the Ways and Means Committee>>
Read a summary in the Current Legislation section of Speaker.gov>>
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan includes a historic level of transparency, oversight and accountability will help guarantee taxpayer dollars are spent wisely and ensure that Americans can see the results of their investment:
No Earmarks or Pet Projects
The plan will not contain any earmarks or pet projects that Americans could perceive as chosen for political reasons, instead of merit.
The measure prohibits recovery investments in community projects that do not the jumpstart the economy or strengthen long-term growth, such as casinos or gambling establishments, aquariums, zoos, golf courses, and swimming pools.
Fully Transparent Investments/Special Website
The measure creates a user-friendly, public website that will include extensive information on recovery investments made under the plan. The website will contain:
Federal plans for recovery investments and all announcements for grant competitions, allocations of formula grants, and awards of competitive grants;
All specific government agencies’ (federal, state, or local) infrastructure projects, with a description of the activity or investment funded, the purpose, the cost, and the economic justification – along with the name of a person to contact at each level of government if there are concerns.
Certified by the Governor or Mayor
For state or local recovery infrastructure investments to be awarded, the mayor, governor or chief executive must certify that the investment has received the full review and vetting required by law and that they take responsibility that this investment is an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars.
Inspector General Review
Public concerns about specific investments will be reviewed by the federal Inspectors General of each department and any findings will be immediately relayed to the head of each department and executive agency.
Monthly Reporting
Reports will be required each month to each state and Congressional district, and will be posted on the website.
Oversight and Monitoring
A Recovery Act Accountability and Transparency Board will be created, along with an independent advisory panel to the Board, and will meet no less than monthly in open session. The Board is to provide early warning of potential management and funding problems to Congress.
The Government Accountability Office is charged with bi-monthly review and reporting on selected state’s and locality’s use of the recovery investment funds, and all Inspector General and GAO audits of recovery investments to be posted on the internet immediately.
A special Surveys and Investigation Recovery task force will analyze the progress and performance of recovery investments for Congress.
Effectiveness Estimated
The Administration must submit quarterly reports to Congress detailing the estimated impact of recovery investments on employment, economic growth, and other key economic indicators.
Competitive Contracts
The Administration is directed to utilize competitively awarded contracts to the maximum extent possible. All non-competitive contracts awarded with recovery dollars must be posted in a special section of the recovery website and cannot last more than one year.
Whistleblower Protections
The Plan protects federal and state whistleblowers, who report waste, fraud or abuse of recovery investments.
UPDATE - The draft legislation is now online: