Keeping an Eye on Recovery

There is a new web site available for us to monitor the economic recovery. Here is the link to the main page:

http://www.recovery.gov/

At this point in time, there is a bar graph, showing where our money is going. Please note the asterisks preceding "Tax Relief" and "State and Local Fiscal Relief", which are annotated with the link labeled "Learn More". If you click on that link and scroll down to the small print, you will see:

"* Tax Relief - includes $15 B for Infrastructure and Science, $61 B for Protecting the Vulnerable, $25 B for Education and Training and $22 B for Energy, so total funds are $126 B for Infrastructure and Science, $142 B for Protecting the Vulnerable, $78 B for Education and Training, and $65 B for Energy.

State and Local Fiscal Relief - Prevents state and local cuts to health and education programs and state and local tax increases."

If you subtract the $15B for Infrastructure and Science, the $61B for Protecting the Vulnerable, $25B for Education and Training, and $22B for Energy, we are left with $165B in Tax Relief, am I right?

So why did they include these amounts under "Tax Relief", other than to make the illustration look like tax relief is the lion's share of the stimulus plan?

Actually, by this illustration, tax relief is only 37% of the plan, while spending is 43% of the plan, if you add up all the other categories. Yet the bar graph makes it look like tax relief is by far the greatest benefit. If you consider the items in the footnote, then tax relief is only 21% of the stimulus plan.

The pretty bubble break-down...with footnotes.