Stimulus funds allocated by project merit, not politics, study concludes
A new study concludes spending from the 2009 stimulus
was not allocated along partisan lines.
The study, published by the
Brookings Institution, says this:
“Contrary to both evidence from previous fiscal stimulus and standard theories of legislative politics, we do not find evidence of substantial political targeting (of stimulus grants and disbursements).“Party leaders did not receive more funds than rank-and file legislators. Democrats in swing districts did not receive more than Republicans in such districts. Ideological moderates and pivotal members of Congress received slightly less than average …“Overall, most of the variation in spending across congressional districts remains unexplained. The results are consistent with the discretionary component of ARRA being allocated based on project characteristics other than countercyclical efficacy or political expediency.”A handy map from the Washington Post
shows the per-capita awards by district.
And it turns out KS-02, Rep.
Lynn Jenkins Emanuel Cleaver’s(D-Mo.) MO-05 ($869), even with the Green Impact Zone award.
Remember, half of the $50 million TIGER award went to Kansas projects.
Overall, though, Kansas got less per-person funding than almost every other state, the study found.
This story was originally published March 20, 2014 at 1:00 PM with the headline "Stimulus funds allocated by project merit, not politics, study concludes."