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Monday, February 1, 2010

Show us the Stimulus

Government is under pressure to show where stimulus dollars are being spent. A new report rates state websites on how well they show the distribution of funds within their borders. Maps play a critical part in this.

Good Jobs First, a non-profit research center based in Washington, DC, has just published Show Us the Stimulus (Again), an update of a similar report last July. It shows great improvements in the states’ ability to document where the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) dollars are being spent. Some $200 billion dollars are flowing through the states.

The report ranks the states on their ability to show where the money is going. Scores range from 5-87 on a 100 point scale. GIS and mapping contribute greatly to the ability of states to score well in this review. Maryland is rated #1. Three of the seven rating criteria are based on geography:
  • Map the distribution of funding at the county level or equivalent.
  • Compare that distribution with patterns of economic distress.
  • Map individual projects
The Good Jobs First website includes the report, appendices rating the individual state efforts, and links to the state websites. See Show Us the Stimulus: An Evaluation of State Government Recovery Act Websites

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