Bread for the World Calls on Congress to Finalize Economic Recovery Package

Bread for the World Calls on Congress to Finalize Economic Recovery Package

Washington, DC, February 10, 2009 – Bread for the World President Rev. David Beckmann issued the following statement regarding the passage of the $838 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act by the U.S. Senate today. It now goes to a committee to reconcile it with the House version passed recently:

“Congress has spoken loudly and clearly with the passage of the Senate and House versions of the economic recovery package, and we urge the conference committee to follow suit before the upcoming President’s Day recess. After all, helping struggling families is not an alternative to preserving and creating jobs, it is in fact one of the most effective ways to preserve and create jobs.

“Dollar for dollar, investments in programs that put money in the hands of low-income people – like SNAP (food stamps) and unemployment benefits -- generate more in economic stimulus than they cost. Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody’s Economy.com and a former adviser to John McCain during his presidential run, has determined that for every dollar of federal investment, the SNAP program produces $1.73 in economic stimulus, and extended unemployment benefits produce $1.64.

“Speed is of the essence. Since December 2007, the economy has shed 3.6 million jobs, about half of them in the last three months. The unemployment rate released recently, of 7.6 percent or 600,000 jobs, is the highest since 1992.”