Recession and Recovery News feed http://www.cbpp.org/research/?fa=topic&id=28 en-us Copyright 2009 Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. All rights reserved. Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:00:04 GMT http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Summary States face a serious fiscal problem that could force them to institute additional deep budget cuts and tax increases, weakening the fragile economic recovery and harming vulnerable children, seniors, and people with disabilities, among others. The federal assistance that states received for their Medicaid programs under this year’s economic recovery legislation is scheduled to end with a “cliff” on December 31, 2010, and the assistance … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2988 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2988 Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:51:05 -0500 The jobs report for October is discussed by Chief Economist, Chad Stone. Duration: 2:35 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2986 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2986 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:21:05 -0500 Today’s jobs report shows that although the economy turned up in the third quarter, the labor market did not. The unemployment rate crossed into double digits in October, and payrolls shrank for the 22nd straight month. The economy is in a very deep hole and faces a long climb back to full employment. Policymakers can make that climb easier by extending or bolstering key provisions of the economic recovery legislation that the Administration and Congress enacted … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2985 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2985 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:21:02 -0500 Michael Leachman Discusses Stimulus and Job Creation on National Public Radio Duration: 1:17 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2974 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2974 Sat, 31 Oct 2009 15:31:49 -0400 The Obama Administration’s October 30 release of data on jobs created and saved by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which the Administration and Congress enacted early this year, will capture only a portion of the jobs created and saved due to ARRA’s limited reporting requirements. ARRA’s reporting system covers only about 16 percent of ARRA expenditures through September 30. Most of ARRA’s distributed dollars to date have gone … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2970 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2970 Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:47:14 -0400 Executive Summary Members of Congress are considering extending — and possibly substantially expanding — the $8,000 homebuyer tax credit enacted as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. The credit, which is available to first-time homebuyers with incomes up to $150,000 (up to $75,000 for individuals), expires on December 1 of this year. The evidence strongly indicates that Congress should show restraint, especially in considering … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2965 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2965 Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:38:52 -0400 Since late December, when the federal Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation program stopped providing additional aid to individuals exhausting their regular unemployment benefits, a record number of jobless workers have exhausted their regular benefits, gone without federal aid, and received neither a paycheck nor an unemployment check. Based on actual figures through August and the author’s estimates through mid-October: The three-million figure. From late … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=1306 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=1306 Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:49:22 -0400 Under current law, there will be no cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in Social Security in 2010 — the first time that has happened since automatic cost-of-living adjustments began in 1975. Several bills before Congress would grant a special increase in Social Security payments for 2010. The inflation data, however, do not support an increase: overall consumer prices have fallen significantly in the past year and are not expected to return to their earlier peak until … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2951 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2951 Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:54:45 -0400 Director of the Center’s Welfare Reform and Income Support Division, Dr. LaDonna Pavetti, testifies on the safety net's response to the recession before the U.S. House of Representative's Ways and Means Subcommittee on Income Security and Family. Duration: 10:55 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2946 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2946 Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:51:05 -0400 Thank you for the opportunity to testify today. My testimony will focus on four points: With recent Census data showing increases in poverty and declines in incomes even before Americans began experiencing the worst effects of the recession — and with further deterioration expected in both areas — policymakers face a serious challenge in helping low-income populations cope with the downturn. The recovery act passed in February has kept this serious recession from being … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2945 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2945 Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:56:00 -0400 The jobs report for September is discussed by Chief Economist, Chad Stone. http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2941 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2941 Fri, 02 Oct 2009 16:36:50 -0400 Today’s jobs report shows that employers will need stronger evidence of a reviving economy before they will start adding workers to their payrolls. Employers shed jobs for the 21st straight month in September (see graph) and the unemployment rate edged up to 9.8 percent. Forecasters expect the preliminary report on gross domestic product later this month to show that the economy began growing in the third quarter, indicating that, technically, the recession … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2939 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2939 Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:49:22 -0400 The bill the House will consider this week to provide additional weeks of unemployment insurance benefits in states with the highest unemployment rates [1] is an appropriate response to the continuing harsh conditions in the labor market. By the end of September, more than 400,000 workers will have exhausted both their regular, state-funded unemployment benefits and their federal extended benefits without being able to find a job, according to estimates from the National … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2928 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2928 Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Today’s report on second-quarter economic growth shows that the economy is no longer in free fall. It also provides evidence that the economic recovery legislation that the Administration and Congress enacted earlier this year is doing what it was reasonably expected to do. No mainstream economist believed that the recovery measures would produce an immediate turnaround in the economy, but they did expect them to slow the downward spiral and help generate a turnaround sooner than … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2882 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2882 Fri, 31 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Although meant chiefly to help the broad economy, the stimulus plan Congress enacted earlier this year (the American Recovery and Re-Investment Act of 2009, or ARRA) had the important secondary effect of significantly ameliorating the recession’s impact on poverty. This analysis, which comes one day before the Census Bureau will release updated poverty figures (for 2008), examines seven of the recovery act’s provisions — two improvements in unemployment insurance, three tax … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2910 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2910 Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400 The jobs report for August is discussed by chief economist Chad Stone. Duration: 2:54 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2906 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2906 Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Today’s employment report shows little evidence that the emerging economic recovery is reviving the job market. Although job losses continued to moderate in August, the percentage of Americans with a job reached its lowest level since 1984. Economic activity seems to be increasing, but employers remain reluctant to hire, and people who want to work remain discouraged about their prospects of finding a job. Improvements in the labor market typically lag behind a … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2904 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2904 Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Director of Federal Fiscal Policy, Jim Horney, and Director of the State Fiscal Project, Nick Johnson, discuss their paper “Correcting Five Myths About the Stimulus Bill.” They explain how the stimulus legislation is providing a much-needed boost to the economy. Duration: 4:44 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2893 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2893 Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Chief Economist Chad Stone discusses the jobs report for July and a troubling jump in long-term unemployment. http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2890 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2890 Mon, 10 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Today’s employment report shows that labor market conditions remain extremely harsh for job-seekers, generating a record level of long-term unemployment. One third of the unemployed (33.8 percent) have been looking for work for 27 weeks or more — the highest percentage ever recorded in data going back to 1948 and well above the peak reached in the severe 1981-82 recession (see Figure 1). The report also shows that the deterioration in labor market … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2886 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2886 Fri, 07 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Today’s report on second-quarter economic growth shows that the economy is no longer in free fall. It also provides evidence that the economic recovery legislation that the Administration and Congress enacted earlier this year is doing what it was reasonably expected to do. No mainstream economist believed that the recovery measures would produce an immediate turnaround in the economy, but they did expect them to slow the downward spiral and help generate a turnaround sooner … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2882 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2882 Fri, 31 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Some critics of the economic recovery law (or “stimulus” bill) that President Obama and Congress enacted early this year are mischaracterizing how it was supposed to work and what it was supposed to do. For instance, some critics complain that, because unemployment has risen in recent months, the law is not working. Others claim that states are improperly using the money to close budget shortfalls or finance short-term projects. These and a number of other … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2870 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2870 Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400 Two major misconceptions about how state governments are using funds from the economic recovery law that President Obama and Congress enacted early this year are contributing to a broader misunderstanding about whether the law is, in fact, helping the U.S. economy. Evidence that includes a major new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) shows that — contrary to these myths — states are using the funds as intended. These funds will help the … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2868 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2868 Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400 The 2010 fiscal year begins for most states July 1. It brings an austere continuation of recession-driven cuts in essential services and poor prospects for improvement through 2011, according to a series of updated reports on state budget conditions issued today by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The reports include new data on state budgets showing that: The total shortfall for fiscal year 2010 — including gaps that have been addressed … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2853 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2853 Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400 The 2010 fiscal year begins for most states July 1. It brings an austere continuation of recession-driven cuts in essential services and poor prospects for improvement through 2011, according to a series of updated reports on state budget conditions issued today by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The reports include new data on state budgets showing that: The total shortfall for fiscal year 2010 — including gaps that have been addressed … http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2853 http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=2853 Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400