Commentary | Budget, Taxes, and Public Investment

“Not back at boom times yet”

“I come from the kitchen sink approach – you have to throw everything at the problem,” EPI’s Research and Policy Director John Irons said during an Aug. 12 WUNC public radio discussion about the weak U.S. economy and the ways investments made under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) were starting to help. Irons cautioned that the overall economy remained “exceptionally weak,” but said that thanks to ARRA, “the pace of the slowdown is decelerating.” Irons also outlined how ARRA funds were being allocated to multiple areas, from aid to states to renewable energy initiatives and extended unemployment benefits. The full interview can be heard here.