Larson’s Stimulus Bill Report Card

ON a scale of 1-5 with 5 being high (good) Total Score 203 Grade 4.06
(I’m being generous to the administration here)

Spending $506 Billion (total points 154) Grade 3.5 C+

Health Care $141.3B - Grade 2.6
Assist States with Medicare $86.6B - Grade 3
Subsidize heath care of unemployed under cobra $24.7B - Grade 4
Modernize health information technology $19.0 - Grade 3
Construction of National Institutes of Health facilities and research $10.0B - Grade 1
Prevention wellness programs $1.0B - Grade 2

Infracture $91.7 – Grade 4.75
Transportation including highway and bridge repair $48.0B – Grade 5
High-speed rail construction/Amtrak $9.3B - Grade 5
Mass Transit – 8.4B – Grade 5
Expand broadband internet service $7.2 – Grade 5
Clean and drinking water projects $6.0B – Grade 5
Army Corps of Engineers - Grade 5
Repair defense facilities $4.2B – Grade 4
Public housing improvements $4.0B – Grade 4

Education $87.3B – Grade 4.25
Aid to school districts to prevent cuts - $44.5B – Grade 4
Special Ed and NO Children Left Behind - $25.2B – Grade 4
Increase Maximum Pell Grant buy $500 - $15.6B – Grade 5
Head Start - $2.0B – Grade 4

Aid to poor and unemployed $67.0B – Grade 3.75
Extend Unemployment benefits - $40.0B – Grade 5
Increase food stamp payments - $20.0 – Grade 4
Job Training - $4.0B – Grade 1
Temporary welfare payments - $3.0B – Grade 5

Energy $41.2 Grade 4.875
Smart Grid - $11.0B – Grade 5
Clean up nuclear weapons production sites $6.4B – Grade 4
Energy efficiency and clan energy grants - $6.3B – Grade 5
Subsidize loans for renewable energy - $6.0B – Grade 5
Weatherize modest income homes - $5.0B – Grade 5
Improve efficiency in federal buildings - $4.5B – Grade 5
Electric vehicle advanced battery grants - $2.0B – Grade 5

Direct cash payments $14.2B Grade 5
One time $250 payments to SS recipients. Poor and people on supplemental security income and veterans receiving disablility and pensions - $14.2B – Grade 5

Housing $9.5B Grade 3.75
Repair public housing projects - $4.0B – Grade 5
Redevelopment foreclosed abandoned homes - $2.0B – Grade 5
Pay shortfalls in public housing accounts - $2.0B – Grade 3
Shelters for homeless - $1.5B Grade 2

State Block Grants - $8.8B Grade 1
Help states defray budget cuts - $8.8B – Grade 1

Science $5.6B – Grade 5
National science foundation research - $3.0 – Grade 5
Research on climate, biofules and physics $1.6B – Grade 5
NASA - $1.0B – Grade 5

Law Enforcement $4.0B – Grade 1
Grants to states and local departments to hire officers and buy equipment - $4.0B – Grade 1

Homeland Security $2.8B – Grade 2
Including airport screening equipment $2.8B – Grade 2

Other Spending $32.6B – Grade -2
Other Spending $32.6B – Grade - 2


Taxes $281B – Score 49 Grade 4.45

New Tax Credit - $116B – Grade 5
New Tax Credit $400 per person, $800 per couple, for 2009 & 2010 - $116B – Grade 5

Alternative minimum Tax - $70B – Grade 5
Alternative minimum Tax Protects about 24 million tax payers from higher taxes in 2009 & 2010 - $70B – Grade 5

Renewable energy incentivizes - $20M – Grade 5
Renewable energy incentivizes – Tax incentives for 10 years including for energy produced by wind, geothermal, hydropower and landfill gas - $20M – Grade 5

Child tax Credit - $15.00 – Grade - 4
Child tax Credit provides the $1000 per child credit to more families who don’t make enough to pay income taxes - $15B – Grade 4

Expand College Tax Credit - $14.0B – Grade 5
Expand College Tax Credit Increases tax credit for college tuition and expenses for 2009 and 2010 - $14.0B – Grade 5

Home buyer credit $6.6B – Grade 3
Home buyer credit Ends the requirement that an $8,000 first time home buyer credit be paid back over time for homes bought between January 1 and November 30 - $6.6B – Grade 3

Bonus depreciation - $5.0B – Grade 5
Extends a provision allowing businesses buying equipment such as computers to speed up depreciation though 2009 - $5.0B – Grade 5

Earned income tax credit - $4.7B – Grade 4
Earned income tax credit expands the tax credit for low income families with three or more children - $4.7B – Grade 4

Auto sales - $1.7B – Grade 5
Auto sales tax on new care purchases can be deducted on tax returns - $1.7B – Grade 5

Repeal Bank Credit -7B – Grade 5
Repeal Bank Credit Ends credit allowing firms that buy money losing banks to sue more of the losses as credits to offset the profits of the merged banks for tax purposes, Will increase taxes on merged banks by $7B over 10 years -7B – Grade 5
Other Tax Provisions $35.0B Grade 3


Larson note: It rates higher than what it really deserves but is a 3.5 out of 5 good enough? Way too much pork in this package. ON the tax incentive side much better but the whole package does not really have enough on the incentive side to make me do handstands. Such a pity.

If I had my way I would boost the Infracture and tax incentatives to individuals by 100% but what do I know?

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

P.P.S. We are offering 2 free ½ hour consultations per week to talk about marketing for businesses. Call or email to get your spot to pick my brain for 30 minutes today.

*Source: Chicago Tribune, Daily Herald, Wall Street Journal