Federal stimulus revenue tops $1 billion in SC

COLUMBIA, SC – January 6, 2010 –  South Carolina state agencies have received more than $1 billion in federal stimulus revenue, Comptroller Richard Eckstrom reported today. Here’s a breakdown:

 ·         Dept. of Health and Human Services, $470,770,899

·         Employment Security Commission, $183,470,546

·         Dept. of Social Services, $109,586,677

·         Dept. of Transportation, $71,269,961

·         Dept. of Education, $38,618,358

·         Dept. of Public Safety, $38,154,268

·         Dept. of Commerce, $21,136,988

·         Governor’s Office, $16,785,401

·         State Treasurer’s Office, $14,626,849

·         Department of Corrections, $11,960,631

·         Budget and Control Board, $4,753,301

·         Judicial Department, $4,000,000

·         Dept. of Health and Environmental Control, $3,452,687

·         Dept. of Probation, Pardon and Parole, $2,000,000

·         State Library, $1,685,045

·         Board for Technical & Comprehensive Education, $1,550,756

·         State Law Enforcement Division, $1,066,927

·         Lt. Governor’s Office, $743,634

·         Forestry Commission, $574,329

·         Educational Television Commission, $540,000

·         Dept. of Natural Resources, $500,000

·         Wil Lou Gray Opportunity School, $500,000

·         School for the Deaf and the Blind, $500,000

·         Archives and History, $500,000

·         Arts Commission, $500,000

·         Vocational Rehabilitation, $480,781

·         Commission on Higher Education, $364,440

·         Dept. of Agriculture, $250,000

·         Law Enforcement Training Council, $120,000

·         Attorney General’s Office, $39,576

Total: $1,000,502,054

Eckstrom issued the following statement:

“Ten months ago, Washington embarked on a record-shattering spending spree, spending billions we don’t have – and burying future generations under mountains of IOUs – in the name of stimulating our economy and creating jobs. While we all want the stimulus to be successful, what’s clear is the promises from last February have largely gone unfulfilled, as the economy has remained sluggish, millions have lost jobs, and the unemployment rate has skyrocketed since the bill passed.

“There are various views on the stimulus, and I’ve expressed mine: Washington used the downturn as an excuse to spend borrowed money, much of it on things that have little to do with creating jobs. Furthermore, we’ll not be the ones repaying the debt from this deficit spending. That will fall on our children and grandchildren.

Americans deserve a genuine assessment of the stimulus’ impact. Rather than exaggerating the number of jobs saved or created, Washington must commit to measuring the actual economic benefit of this spending as honestly and accurately as possible. In addition, we owe it to future generations to ensure these stimulus funds are spent with absolute accountability and transparency. Government officials at all levels have an extra obligation to monitor stimulus spending carefully to guard against fraudulent or wasteful spending.”