# How much uncommitted stimulus funding is there?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-uncommitted-stimulus-funding-is-there/563273
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [December 7, 2010, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-uncommitted-stimulus-funding-is-there/563273 "2010-12-07T15:15:09Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)
#### Post date: [December 7, 2010, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-uncommitted-stimulus-funding-is-there/563273/1 "2010-12-07T15:15:09Z")
I think the title says it all.
I’m talking about federal (US) stimulus plans that have been enacted over the last 2-3 years. I think TARP qualifies but I’m willing to be corrected.
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### Author:  [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)
#### Post date: [December 7, 2010, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-uncommitted-stimulus-funding-is-there/563273/2 "2010-12-07T15:20:12Z")
[http://www.recovery.gov/](http://www.recovery.gov/)
Keep in mind that there were a lot of multi-year grants out there that won’t have more than 40% spent, but will have no problem at all spending their money when the time comes. (Many of these grants don’t report “committed” amounts, because they’re still somewhat fluid.)
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### Author:  [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)
#### Post date: [December 7, 2010, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-uncommitted-stimulus-funding-is-there/563273/3 "2010-12-07T17:31:36Z")
Thanks for the info. From the graph it appears that about $40 billion has not yet been “made available” and about $114 billion more has not yet been “paid out”.
Anybody know what the definition of “paid out” means? The cynic in me wants to think that it could mean “transferred to another government agency for them to make available and pay out”.
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### Author:  [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)
#### Post date: [December 7, 2010, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-uncommitted-stimulus-funding-is-there/563273/4 "2010-12-07T17:36:11Z")
TARP is completely different, since it was a loan and has mostly been paid back. It doesn’t make sense to say how much is unused or uncommitted.
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### Author:  [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)
#### Post date: [December 7, 2010, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-uncommitted-stimulus-funding-is-there/563273/5 "2010-12-07T18:03:32Z")
> [@What\_the](#):
>
> Anybody know what the definition of “paid out” means? The cynic in me wants to think that it could mean “transferred to another government agency for them to make available and pay out”.
Sort of. The [glossary](http://www.recovery.gov/FAQ/Pages/GlossaryHome.aspx) lists “paid out” at the bottom as a synonym for “Gross Outlay”. The way all federal grants I’ve worked with have worked is strictly on a reimbursement basis only. The feds have never sent money to the city for expenses that had not yet been incurred.