Washington, D.C. – New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today released the following statement in support of the agreement between Congressional leaders on an economic recovery package that will create jobs, invest in our children’s future, and provide tax relief to New York families and businesses.
“There is no question that the economic crisis demands immediate action. Over the past several weeks, I have worked to ensure that Washington provides leadership to rebuild this economy by creating good-paying jobs, providing affordable health care and investing in education.
“My number one priority in the Senate is job creation. While we continue to learn all of the details of the final package, we know that the new agreement between the Senate and House will create or save 3.5 million new jobs across the country, including more than 200,000 in New York State.
“The recovery package is a good deal for New York.
“Certainly I would have liked to see greater investments for education, health care, and infrastructure, and I fought hard both in the House and Senate to make it happen. However, this package strikes the right overall balance: providing immediate dollars for economic recovery and investing in long-term economic growth strategy that will create millions more jobs for future generations.
“This package makes critical investments in renewable energy, traditional and new infrastructure — including health information technologies, rural broadband, and high speed rail — and targeted tax cuts for education and middle class families. These are the economic engines that will create the good-paying jobs of tomorrow. This is the kind of leadership we need to repair the fundamentals of our economy.
“This agreement is only the beginning. We must take further steps to rebuild this economy and stabilize our financial markets. I will continue to work with local community leaders, Senator Schumer and my other colleagues in Congress and the Administration to address this crisis and restore the foundations of our economy.”