It’s Your Money Too! Some Ways Connecticut Families Can Benefit from the Federal Stimulus Bill

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), enacted in February 2009, provides billions of dollars of federal help to businesses and state and local governments to help stimulate the economy and pull our state and nation out of the current recession. It also provides billions of dollars of help for Connecticut residents. This brief summarizes these key ARRA provisions. It reviews tax provisions including a first-time homebuyer tax credit, recovery rebate tax credit, Making Work Pay tax credit, child tax credit, federal earned income tax credit, and many others. It also explains other provisions that could help families, including increased Pell grants for higher education, funds for job training, expansion of unemployment insurance, COBRA health insurance subsidies, early care and education assistance, and others.