Subcommittee Receives an Update on the Recovery Act
(Washington, DC) – Today, the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology’s Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight held a hearing entitled, “Stimulus Oversight: An Update on Accountability, Transparency, and Performance.” The purpose of the hearing was to receive testimony on the accountability, transparency, and performance issues associated with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), commonly referred to as the Recovery Act.
On Feb. 13, 2009, Congress passed ARRA to stop the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs per month and begin to rebuild the economy, which President Obama signed into law four days later. A direct response to the economic crisis, the Recovery Act had three immediate goals: to create new jobs and save existing ones; to spur economic activity and invest in long-term growth; and to foster unprecedented levels of accountability and transparency in government spending.
The Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight held two hearings on Recovery Act oversight issues in the previous Congress, on March 19, 2009 and on May 5, 2009.
At today’s hearing, Ranking Member Paul Tonko (D-NY) said in his opening statement, “Public investment in innovative technologies and infrastructure not only creates jobs, it lays the foundation for private sector job creation. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act made a significant difference in stopping the precipitous loss of nearly 800,000 jobs per month that occurred prior to its enactment. Without the Recovery Act, millions more Americans would be facing unemployment and we would be months further behind in the admittedly sluggish economic recovery.”
He continued, “According to the Congressional Budget Office's August 2011 report, the Recovery Act increased real GDP by between 0.8 percent and 2.5 percent and it increased the number of full-time-equivalent jobs by between 1.4 million and 4.0 million compared to no Recovery Act effort for the 2nd quarter of Calendar Year 2011. That is positive news, but the American economy is not out of danger yet. Economic growth is still weak and job creation is still far below what is required to provide employment for all who need a job. Recovery Act funding was significant, but it is not realistic to expect $840 billion to compensate for the loss of over $10 trillion in wealth we experienced at the end of 2008. Because of the huge disparity in these figures, it is imperative that Recovery Act dollars be spent efficiently and effectively. That is why we are here today.”
The panel consisted of six witnesses, including the Inspector General’s from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), National Science Foundation (NSF), and Deputy Inspector General from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Democratic Members asked them how to apply the increased transparency and accountability that has been achieved with the creation of the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board beyond the life of the Board, which expires in September 2013. They specifically asked how to do so without overly burdening small scale government contractors or grant recipients at universities or small businesses.
Witnesses, including Gregory Friedman, the DOE Inspector General, suggested that changing the dollar threshold of the current reporting requirement could be one way to alleviate the burden on small companies and academic grant recipients while ensuring that the overall reporting requirements established for ARRA funded contractors and grantees is maintained. In fact, several proposals have sought to maintain a Recovery Board-like entity after the Board is dismantled. This is an idea that was supported by Mr. Tonko and Subcommittee Member Mr. Jerry McNerney during the hearing.
Mr. Tonko thanked the witnesses for their efforts in overseeing the Recovery Act funds,“I want to congratulate all of you for the work you have done to enhance the public's ability to see where their money goes,” said Mr. Tonko.
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