Tax Relief in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

On February 17, 2009, less than thirty days after his inauguration, President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). This new law was one of many measures from the new administration designed to quickly stimulate the ailing American economy. The $789 billion package was divided between direct government spending, tax reductions and financial relief to states and individuals. The bill contains $285.6 billion in tax reductions, which is about 36.3% of the legislation. In this article, I will analyze some of the tax provisions that were written into ARRA, and attempt to assess their effectiveness in stimulating the economy. Will these tax provisions aid in stimulating the economy or will another stimulus package have to be passed next year? The size, scope and timing of the tax provisions of ARRA may actually limit their potential value to an economic recovery