NEA awards more than 60 orchestras stimulus money to preserve jobs

September 30th, 2009 Obama to announce $5 billion from stimulus for NIHWASHINGTON — The National Institutes of Health is getting $5 billion in economic stimulus funds to support research into cures for cancer and other diseases, and to create jobs. President Barack Obama was making the announcement Wednesday at the NIH campus in Bethesda, Md., with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius (seh-BEEL'-yuhs).

September 10th, 2009 White House reports 1 million jobs saved, createdWASHINGTON — White House economists said Thursday that the Obama administration's recovery efforts have saved or created more than one million jobs so far, an optimistic report that economists cautioned was preliminary and uncertain. President Barack Obama has promised that his $787 billion stimulus plan will create or save 3.5 million jobs by the end of next year.

July 31st, 2009 GOP: Give 'kick in pants' to stimulus bridge workWASHINGTON — A top Republican congressman says the government needs a "kick in the pants" to get federal stimulus money focused on repairing dilapidated bridges. Rep. John Mica, the senior Republican on the transportation committee, said he's frustrated that states are spending so much on routine paving and not focusing on shoring up tens of thousands of bad bridges.

July 14th, 2009 Road officials trying to put stimulus cash to workSEATTLE — State transportation officials on Tuesday defended their handling of federal stimulus money for road projects against criticism they haven't moved quickly enough to turn the money into jobs and pavement. Washington state Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond acknowledged at a news conference there's been criticism of how fast states are meeting goals set by President Barack Obama and Congress when the stimulus package was approved in February.

July 8th, 2009 Audit: States using stimulus just to stay afloatWASHINGTON — Projects in some of the nation's poorest areas don't appear to be getting a fair shake in the spending of $787 billion in stimulus funds, the chairman of the House oversight committee said Wednesday. Rep. Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y., chairman of the panel, said he was particularly concerned that transportation projects in economically distressed areas were being left out — even though they are supposed to be a priority.

July 1st, 2009 Stimulus dollars released for schoolsWASHINGTON — Education Secretary Arne Duncan is releasing $2.7 billion in stimulus dollars earlier than planned to help states confront increasingly tighter budgets. Duncan said Wednesday he is distributing $2.7 billion to states that he had planned to distribute in October or November.

June 30th, 2009 Kennedy Center offers help to strapped arts groupsWASHINGTON — The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced plans Tuesday to expand its crisis consulting for arts organizations that are struggling to survive the recession, an effort championed by first lady Michelle Obama and congressional leaders.

June 25th, 2009 Biden: $19B in highway stimulus already set asideWASHINGTON — Federal money to spur economic recovery is being shoveled out of Washington at a fast clip, the White House said Thursday, but states aren't steering the cash to counties that need jobs the most. All 50 states easily beat a June 29 deadline to have half of their stimulus projects for roads and bridges approved.

June 12th, 2009 $50M in stimulus will help fish farmers buy feedOSAGE BEACH, Mo. — The United States is about to spend $50 million in stimulus money on fish food to help fish farmers who have been struggling since feed prices jumped 50 percent last year.

June 8th, 2009 White House defends optimistic stimulus modelWASHINGTON — The White House is defending the overly optimistic economic models it used to justify the historic stimulus plan. Four months after the stimulus was passed, unemployment is far higher than expected and continuing to rise.

June 8th, 2009 Obama promises more than 600,000 stimulus jobsWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says the United States remains in a deep recession that will take considerable time to escape. Obama met at the White House with his top administration officials on Monday to hear an update on his $787 billion spending plan.

June 7th, 2009 STIMULUS WATCH: In jobs, what's stability worth?WASHINGTON — Washington is paying hundreds of millions of dollars to build new, cleaner-burning buses, but don't scour the want ads looking for a burst of job openings soon at major manufacturers or suppliers. The bus money, like many other programs in the $787 billion stimulus plan, is having the less glamorous and harder-to-quantify effect of keeping workers employed, providing a slight buffer from the recession to some in the auto industry.

May 11th, 2009 US defends stimulus despite inequity for neediestWASHINGTON — The Obama administration is defending its transportation stimulus plan, saying it is solid even though the neediest communities are least likely to benefit. An Associated Press analysis of more than 5,500 transportation projects revealed that the jobs are being steered toward counties with lower unemployment.

April 22nd, 2009 Interior announces $750M to restore national parksWASHINGTON — Interior Secretary Ken Salazar says $750 million in economic stimulus money will go to restore and repair national parks, including $30 million to fix the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall. Other projects announced Wednesday include $26 million to repair buildings and a seawall at New York's Ellis Island, where millions of immigrants first entered the country; $5 million to refurbish Philadelphia's Independence Hall; and $54.7 million for dam removal and others projects at Olympic National Park in Washington state.

February 11th, 2009 WASHINGTON - US lawmakers reached a compromise deal Wednesday on a record economic recovery package, which could allow the plan to pass both houses of Congress before the end of the week. The Senate and House of Representatives ironed out differences in separate versions of the stimulus bill and knocked the total price tag down to $789 billion, including a mixture of tax cuts and government spending projects to pull the US out of its worst recession in decades.