Press Release - Efforts to Help ARRA Recipients to Report Jobs
OFFICE OF GOV. BILL RITTER, JR.
WWW.COLORADO.GOV/GOVERNOR
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MONDAY, NOV. 9, 2009
CONTACT
Myung Oak Kim, 303-947-5708, Myung.kim@state.co.us
GOV. RITTER ANNOUNCES PUSH TO HELP RECOVERY RECIPIENTS REPORT JOBS
The Governor's Economic Recovery Team has launched an initiative to help Colorado recipients of funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act follow federal reporting requirements. Last month, more than 1,000 public and private organizations and businesses across Colorado submitted spending and job data to the federal government as part of an unprecedented effort to show how taxpayer dollars are being spent. Recipients are required to report data every three months for at least the next year.
"The Recovery Act is sending billions of dollars to Colorado to help struggling families and businesses, preserve critical services, reduce taxes and create jobs," Gov. Ritter said. "It is important that Coloradans understand how the money is spent. We have worked hard to track and account for Recovery Act funds flowing through state agencies. Now, we are offering assistance to organizations outside of state government who need help understanding the complex federal requirements about calculating job creation/retention and spending. Our goal is to help Coloradans get a complete and accurate picture of how the Recovery Act is impacting their communities."
The initiative includes:
- A new resource page on the state Recovery Act website , which explains information that must be collected and reported to the federal government. The page also provides links to guidance from a variety of federal agencies that oversee Recovery Act programs, as well as contact information for the team's Director of Reporting and Transparency.
- Analysis of the more than 1,700 reports submitted to the federal government by Colorado entities. The Governor's Economic Recovery Team is reviewing the data and following up with recipients. The team will issue a report about its review in coming weeks.
- Outreach about how to report job impact and spending information. The Governor's Economic Recovery Team will offer assistance during outreach trips across the state.
The Recovery Act was signed in Denver in February by President Obama. Colorado expects to receive at least $5.7 billion through more than 140 programs. Last month, the state submitted its first set of spending and job reports to the federal government, which shows that more than 4,600 full-time equivalent positions have been saved or created so far across Colorado with funds that flowed through state agencies. Scores of organizations outside of state government also submitted reports. The next reporting deadline is in January 2010.
The reporting process will be discussed at the next meeting of the Colorado Economic Recovery Accountability Board -- scheduled for 1 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 13 at the Governor's Office of Information Technology, 601 East 18th Avenue, Confluence Park conference room, Denver. Gov. Ritter created the accountability board in February to provide oversight of Recovery Act funds coming to Colorado.