This page reports an original EPE Research Center analysis of the data contained in detailed quarterly reports submitted to the federal government by some 222,000 prime and subrecipients of funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The data were obtained through the recovery.gov website and are cumulative through Sept. 30, 2010, the end point of the most recent reporting period. Recipient-reported data may not be consistent with other public sources because of differences in reporting periods, the types of funding tracked, and other causes.
An Engine of Job Recovery
Strengthening American education has been touted as a key ingredient for sustained economic renewal. The unprecedented infusion of federal funding through the stimulus also aims to counteract job losses resulting from the worsened economic environment. Recipients of ARRA aid report that those dollars have helped create or save about 650,000 jobs, more than half of which were linked to funds distributed by the U.S. Department of Education. To gauge the rate of return for stimulus spending against the key objective of job creation, the EPE Research Center calculated the number of jobs created or saved for every $1 million of ARRA funding awarded. With a score of 4.2 on this jobs-creation index, the U.S. Department of Education ranks first among the 10 agencies accounting for the largest numbers of jobs. Across all federal agencies, an average of 2.7 jobs have been created for every $1 million in stimulus spending.
Download a detailed chart that shows education jobs created or saved (PDF)
Stimulus Spending By Agency
To date, ARRA recipients have received a total of $242.6 billion in funding, with those dollars flowing at an average rate of about $12.4 billion per month since the stimulus was enacted in February 2009. The U.S. Department of Education leads all federal agencies with awards of $80.6 billion, about one-third of total recovery spending.
View a detailed chart that shows stimulus spending by agency:
Percent of Jobs Created or Saved by Agency
Download a chart that shows the percent of jobs created or saved by agency (PDF):
Jobs-Creation Index
Number of jobs created or saved for every $1 million in funding awarded.
Education: 4.2
Labor: 3.8
Justice: 3.6
Interior: 3.3
HHS: 3.2
HUD: 2.4
EPA: 2.2
Transportation: 1.7
Energy: 1.3
GSA: 1.0
