Stimulus package could net NY $24.5 billion

Help – and a lot of it – is on the way.
That’s the message that a number of local elected officials are delivering to Queens residents after President Barack Obama signed the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Tuesday, February 17.
While there is still no local exact dollar amount attached to the stimulus package, estimates coming out of New York State Governor David Paterson’s office show that it could deliver upwards of $24.5 billion in federal aid to the state during the next two years.
The package, which Congress agreed to last week, is set to deliver billions in additional funding in key areas including Medicaid reimbursements, education aid, infrastructure funding, and perhaps most importantly, it could create or save more than 215,000 jobs in the state.
“This economic recovery package will be very good for New York State,” said U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer, who played a critical role in the framework of the package. “It creates jobs, jobs, jobs and is one of the first bills where New York gets more back from the federal government than we put in.”
Some of the highlights for New York include $12.6 billion more in Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) during the next two years; more than $2 billion in education aid, $1 billion in highway funding and $1.3 billion in additional help for mass transit funding.
“Economists, business leaders, and labor unions across the political spectrum know that decisive action is the only way to jolt our economy out of its intensifying tailspin,” said Queens Congressmember Carolyn Maloney, who chairs the Joint Economic Committee.
While the relief is certainly welcomed and appreciated in the state, Paterson cautioned that it would not close the state’s $14 billion projected budget gap for 2009 and a larger one for 2010.
“We’re spending more than we have in revenues,” Paterson told reporters shortly after the Congress came to an agreement on the package last week. “That’s our biggest problem. And if we address that, then the stimulus package becomes a plus. If we use it as replacement money … we put our [fiscal] problems off into the future and compound them.”
Meanwhile, the city is also expected to receive a sizeable portion of the $24 billion, and representatives for Mayor Michael Bloomberg are still reviewing the plan to see what exactly the city can expect to receive.
“Although it’s clear that this new federal support won’t solve all our budget problems, it certainly will help address the enormous fiscal challenges we face,” Bloomberg said.
One of the items that Queens Congressmember Anthony Weiner pushed hard for in the bill is an addition $1 billion that would go towards hiring approximately 5,750 officers nationwide, including an estimated 440 cops for New York City.
“When the national economy catches a cold, New York City catches the flu,” Weiner said. “This bill includes a major job creating boost at a time when New York City needs desperately needs it.”