Recovery Act funding is helping stimulate job growth in our country. Of course, the massive recovery package is not without its naysayers; people questioning its efficacy every single day. Robert Gavin, a journalist with the Boston Globe, decided to examine one Recovery Act project and discovered far-reaching benefits. Although Recovery Act funding was awarded to one company in one state, it is lead to extra work for an additional 21 companies in 12 other states.

 

Reveal Imaging Technologies (RIT) received $77 million in Recovery act funding from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The company manufactures airport security equipment, a product that is in high demand today. Thanks to this funding, the company added 40 new jobs in the last year and has plans to hire more. RIT was also able to double their facility and increase their production capacity.

 

While RIT and residents in the Bedford, Massachusetts area have benefited directly from the Recovery Act funds, Gavin discovered that 21 companies in 12 other states have indirectly benefited from this $77 million through RIT subcontracts. One company was actually able to reduce the amount of workers it planned to layoff thanks to this subcontracting work.

 

Although the real, long-term effects of the Recovery Act won’t be known for some time, the legislation is having a positive affect on those that have benefitted from its grants and other funding opportunities. If you ask that worker that was able to avoid a layoff thanks to an RIT subcontract, they’ll likely be very thankful for the Recovery Act.