Reevaluate and Redirect the Stimulus

This excerpt was part of a newsletter I received from my own US Senator from Maine, Olympia Snowe (R). While I think that this legislation is a great step towards sweeping up the waste that was created from the Stimulus last year, what really should happen is to give the wasted money back to the American people and businesses. That is what will really stimulate job growth and economic development.

SNOWE, THUNE ANNOUNCE BILL TO REPROGRAM UNOBLIGATED STIMULUS FUNDS TOWARDS JOB CREATION
"This week I teamed up with U.S. Senator John Thune (R-SD) to introduce the Reevaluate and Redirect the Stimulus Act of 2010, legislation to require the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to create recommendations to redirect unobligated stimulus funds approved in last year’s $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act within 15 days.

Given that the federal budget deficit for Fiscal Year 2009 was a staggering $1.4 trillion and that CBO is now projecting a baseline deficit of $6.047 trillion over the next 10 years, we simply cannot afford to be poor fiscal stewards and engage in wasteful spending that will rob future generations of prosperity. This legislation will ensure the Administration and Congress both remain accountable to guarantee that each dollar we spend on stimulus either creates jobs at a greater rate or protects displaced individuals at a lower cost than competing policies on the table.

The Reevaluate and Redirect the Stimulus Act of 2010 would require OMB, within 15 days, to provide Congress with a list of provisions from the stimulus for which there remain funds that have not yet been obligated. In addition, OMB would be required to provide Congress with a list of programs included in the stimulus with remaining unobligated funds that it recommends be redirected toward more effective programs to either assist the displaced, or spur job creation."