The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

The recent ARRA provides fiscal relief to states and local governments through funds for Medicaid, education and other basic services, including public safety and law enforcement. ARRA also provides funding for investments in transportation, community development, energy and environmental areas to create long-term economic growth opportunities.

State and local government leaders must understand their options for taking advantage of $275 billion in ARRA funds over the next seven years. Below are areas the funds will cover, with related project ideas:

• Health - Health improvement and wellness initiatives in the general population, through Medicaid or through the public school system. Improved care management for Medicaid recipients to ensure that they are using the system to promote their own health and the fiscal health of the state.
• Education and Training - Teacher recruitment and training initiatives, including programs to encourage people to become teachers, assess the best teacher candidates, and educate teachers on retirement options to discourage malingering.
• Transportation and Infrastructure - Workforce development, including job profiling, employee assessment, training and development, compensation structures, and placement to attract new businesses to states and localities. Providing affordable, basic employee benefit packages to new employees of start-up and other employers engaged in infrastructure projects to help lower the cost of doing business.

Leaders in the public sector should not wait to enact these or other ideas, as 90 percent of the money coming to states and local governments will arrive in the next three years. Now is the time to plan projects, ensure that they qualify for ARRA funds and satisfy the grant or other requirements to use ARRA funds for those projects.