Congress Clears $26B Stimulus Package for States

Washington, Aug. 12 – It was a long, raucous struggle that required members of the House to break from their summer recess and return to Washington, but in the end, Congress cleared a much sought-after $26 billion emergency aid package for states that will ensure that upwards of 100,000 teachers will remain on the job this fall and alleviate some of the financial strain states have been feeling from the increased demand for Medicaid services.

The bill, which cleared Congress on Aug. 9 after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D- Calif., quickly reconvened her chamber for a rare August vote, will award $10 billion to local educational agencies to mitigate budget-related teacher layoffs, as well as an additional $16 billion to states to extend the heightened Federal Medicaid Assistance Percentages enacted by last year’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Within hours of clearing the House, President Obama signed the measure.