Summary of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

On Tuesday, February 17, President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a $787.2 billion economic stimulus package.

This summary (PDF) provides a listing of the law's major provisions.

Of particular interest to higher education, the final bill contains several items designed to make college more affordable, including increased student aid in the form of a $500 increase in the Pell Grant, a tax credit for $2500 of tuition expense, and an allowance to purchase computers with proceeds from 529 plans. In addition, higher education institutions may be able to use some state funding for campus modernization projects.

The law also includes a number of significant tax breaks for individuals. It establishes a $70 billion "patch" to the alternative minimum tax (AMT). And it includes a scaled-back version of President Obama's middle-class tax cut proposal, which provides credits of up to $400 for individuals and $800 for families within certain income limits.

The legislation, however, does not include government proposals relating to the economic crisis, such as efforts to overhaul the financial system, stabilize the banking industry, purchase and sell troubled assets using the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), or provide mortgage relief. Congress and the Obama Administration will consider these issues separately from the stimulus package in the coming weeks and months.

This summary (PDF) outlines several proposals the Obama administration is considering for revising and refining TARP.