I love to read. I hope you do too and my links to articles isn't annoying. The Wall Street Journal has a story that answers each of the questions about stipulations in the 2009 Stimulus Package. And yes, some states like Texas and Indiana turned down parts of the money.

How can it not make you dependent on the federal government? Combined deficits for the states for the 2010-2011 fiscal years is expected to total more than $260 billion. BILLION

According to the article, "stimulus dollars came with strings attached that are now causing enormous budget headaches. Many environmental grants have matching requirements, so to get a federal dollar, states and cities had to spend a dollar even when they were facing huge deficits. The new construction projects built with federal funds also have federal Davis-Bacon wage requirements that raise state building costs to pay inflated union salaries.

"Worst of all, at the behest of the public employee unions, Congress imposed "maintenance of effort" spending requirements on states. These federal laws prohibit state legislatures from cutting spending on 15 programs, from road building to welfare, if the state took even a dollar of stimulus cash for these purposes.

"One provision prohibits states from cutting Medicaid benefits or eligibility below levels in effect on July 1, 2008. That date, not coincidentally, was the peak of the last economic cycle when states were awash in revenue. State spending soared at a nearly 8% annual rate from 2004-2008, far faster than inflation and population growth, and liberals want to keep funding at that level."

To me it's sorta like taking a payday loan. You know the kind where they charge you astronomical fees and interest against a loan based on your upcoming paycheck. If you can't pay it back, the payday loan people will keep extending the loan and interest until you spiral into such a mess you may never recover.

I say, try every thing possible to survive and wait until you get your paycheck.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...460370644.html