Schakowsky Statement on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Conference Report

February 13, 2009
Press Release
For Immediate Release:
February 13, 2009 		Contact: Peter Karafotas
(202) 226-6898

SCHAKOWSKY STATEMENT ON THE AMERICAN RECOVERY AND REINVESTMENT CONFERENCE REPORT

Washington, D.C. —U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), a Democratic Chief Deputy Whip, released the following statement today in support of H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Conference Report. The bill, which passed the House today by a vote of 246 to 183, would create 3.5 million jobs, cut taxes for working families, rebuild our infrastructure, prevent state and local cuts to crucial services and programs, and invest in the long-term health of our economy. The bill now awaits consideration from the U.S. Senate.

"Madame Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Conference Report.
Two weeks ago, I stood on the House floor and listed the top ten reasons to support this bill. Here we are today and the only thing that has changed is that more Americans are losing their jobs, homes and healthcare. We have to stop the economy from continuing to spiral out of control before it is too late.

Our country is facing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression–we lost 2.6 million jobs last year–the largest job loss since 1945. In Illinois, the unemployment rate increased by forty percent in one year. We are seeing job losses at iconic American companies like Kodak and Ford, and at major Illinois companies like Caterpillar.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will help get our economy back on track and put America back to work. The bill will create 3.5 million jobs, cut taxes for working families, rebuild our infrastructure, prevent state and local cuts to crucial services and programs, and invest in the long-term health of our economy.

Under this bill, Illinois will receive billions of dollars and it is estimated that this bill would save or create over 148,000 jobs in Illinois. This bill isn't a hand out to Wall Street fat cats and corporate CEOs; this is a hand up for the American people. The bill helps working families in Illinois, and across the country, by providing income tax credits, making college and health insurance more affordable, giving first-time homebuyers a tax credit and providing assistance to low-income families to make their homes more energy efficient and lower their energy costs.

As President Obama has said, this bill is not perfect, but it provides immediate and targeted relief to American families and will help lead our country out of the greatest economic crisis we have faced since the Great Depression. American families are depending on us to act–not tomorrow, not next week–but today....