Stimulus Checks

House Democrats have recently presented what can be termed as the “Obama stimulus plan,” an $825 billion tax cut and spending proposal, part of which is a huge taxpayer bailout that addresses the ongoing recession’s effects on countless Americans.

The bill focuses on five major points:

- Taxpayer bailout for the middle class

- Job creation through infrastructure projects

- Unemployment benefits and expansion of health insurance coverage

- Modernization and reform in the economic and financial system

- State and local spending for education and health care initiatives

This new stimulus package is so far a balance between Democrat and Republican plans for taxpayer bailouts, tax cuts and infrastructure. If the bill pushes through, it will allocate $550 billion for programs in education, energy, infrastructure and science. $30 billion will be spent on road and bridge construction, which will open up job opportunities across the country. The bill will include $318 billion for non-profit organizations, state and local government units to use in education and health care.

It will also include $275 billion in tax cuts that will apply to both businesses and individuals. $850 million will be for wildfire prevention and $600 million for new cars for the federal government, a reflection of a more expansive, Democrat-backed view of how to create jobs.

The target date for the Obama stimulus plan is January 28, so that it can be sent to the Senate.

This bill will effectively strengthen economic recovery plans, together with the second stimulus package from TARP. Democrats won in a 52-42 vote for how TARP funds were to be handled, preventing a bid to block the release of the allocated money. Obama has committed to using up to $100 billion of the TARP funds to help homeowners who are facing foreclosure.

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