A first glimpse at the federal stimulus bill package

Over the next couple of weeks, Congress will debate the American Recovery and Reinvestment Bill of 2009, otherwise known to all of us as the federal stimulus plan billed as a way to help the nation’s tottering economy.

And out with an outline of priorities is the House Appropriations Committee, which released a 13-page report of priorities Thursday, giving the public a glimpse into what our federal lawmakers are thinking.

It appears local school districts nationwide could be a big winner, with Congress thinking of pumping close to $41 billion into public education through various federal programs and dedicating a portion of another $40 billion, which is meant to be divvied up between public school districts and colleges and universities.

There’s also $87 billion meant to bolster the federal government’s share of paying for Medicaid, a federal-state joint low-income health insurance program. That could be huge here in New Mexico, where the federal government already pays 71 percent of the cost for Medicaid. With the economic tailspin, it is expected that more New Mexicans will apply for Medicaid. New Mexico is one of the poorest states in the nation.

There’s also $6 billion proposed to expand broadband Internet access.

It’s unclear how much of the money proposed for the stimulus package will make its way to New Mexico because Congress is early in the process and, frankly, there isn’t that type of details in the report.

Here’s a quick run-down of priorities, and proposed dollar amounts, taken directly from the appropriations committee report.

$6 billion to expand broadband internet access so businesses in rural and other underserved areas can link up to the global economy

$30 billion for highway construction

$31 billion to modernize federal and other public infrastructure with investments that lead to long-term energy cost savings

$19 billion for clean water, flood control and environmental restoration investments

$10 billion for transit and rail to reduce traffic congestion and gas consumption

$41 billion to local school districts through Title I ($13 billion), IDEA ($13 billion), a new School Modernization and Repair Program ($14 billion), and the Education Technology program ($1 billion)

$79 billion in state fiscal relief to prevent cutbacks to key services, including: $39 billion to local school districts and public colleges and universities distributed through existing state and federal formulas, $15 billion to states as bonus grants as a reward for meeting key performance measures and $25 billion to states for other high priority needs such as public safety and other critical services, which may include education

$15.6 billion to increase the higher-education Pell grant by $500

$6 billion for higher education modernization

Direct tax relief to 95 percent of American workers, and to spur investment and job growth for American businesses. [marked up by the Ways and Means Committee]

$20 billion for health information technology to prevent medical mistakes, provide better care to patients and introduce cost-saving efficiencies

$4.1 billion to provide for preventative care and to evaluate the most effective health care treatments

$43 billion for increased unemployment benefits and job training

$39 billion to support those who lose their jobs by helping them to pay the cost of keeping their employer-provided health care under COBRA and providing short-term options to be covered by Medicaid

$20 billion to increase the food-stamp benefit by over 13 percent in order to help defray rising food costs

$87 billion for a temporary increase in the Medicaid matching rate

$4 billion for state and local law enforcement funding

$11 billion for research and development, pilot projects and federal matching funds for the Smart Grid Investment Program to modernize the electricity grid, making it more efficient, secure and reliable and to build new power lines to transmit clean, renewable energy from sources throughout the nation

$8 billion for loans for renewable-energy power generation and transmission projects

$6.7 billion for renovations and repairs to federal buildings, including at least $6 billion focused on increasing energy-efficiency and conservation. Projects are selected based on GSA’s ready-to-go priority list.

$6.9 billion to help state and local governments make investments that make them more energy-efficient and reduce carbon emissions.

$2.5 billion for a new program to upgrade low-income housing sponsored by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to increase energy-efficiency, including new insulation, windows and furnaces. Funds will be competitively awarded.

$2 billion for energy-efficiency and renewable energy research, development, demonstration and deployment activities to foster energy independence, reduce carbon emissions and cut utility bills. Funds are awarded on a competitive basis to universities, companies and national laboratories.

$2 billion for the Advanced Battery Loan Guarantee and Grants Program to support U.S. manufacturers of advanced vehicle batteries and battery systems. America should lead the world in transforming the way automobiles are powered.

$1.5 billion for energy sustainability and efficiency grants and loans to help school districts, institutes of higher education, local governments and municipal utilities implement projects that will make them more energy-efficient.

$6.2 billion to help low-income families reduce their energy costs by weatherizing their homes and make our country more energy-efficient.

$300 million to provide consumers with rebates for buying energy efficient Energy Star products to replace old appliances, which will lower energy bills.

$600 million to replace older vehicles owned by the federal government with alternative fuel automobiles that will save on fuel costs and reduce carbon emissions.

$200 million for a new grant program to encourage electric vehicle technologies.

$2.4 billion for carbon capture and sequestration technology demonstration projects. This funding will provide valuable information necessary to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere from industrial facilities and fossil-fuel power plants.

$350 million for research into using renewable energy to power weapons systems and military bases.

$400 million to help state and local governments purchase efficient alternative-fuel vehicles to reduce fuel costs and carbon emissions.

$500 million for energy-efficient manufacturing demonstration projects.