Communications of the ACM
Nearly 1 Million Jobs Could Be Created By It Stimulus Package, Think Tank Says
A $30 billion investment in the U.S. IT industry would create or help retain nearly 1 million jobs, concludes "The Digital Road to Recovery: A Stimulus Plan to Create Jobs, Boost Productivity and Revitalize America," a new report from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF). The foundation is urging Congress to devote a portion of U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's proposed two-year, $775 billion economic stimulus package to IT. ITIF president and report co-author Robert Atkinson says investing in the U.S.'s information technology infrastructure will have a significant impact on jobs, productivity, and innovation. The ITIF report proposes dividing the $30 billion investment evenly across broadband networks, health IT, and a smart power grid. "Investments in IT infrastructure should not be minimized out of concern that the projects will take too long to begin to have an immediate impact on the U.S. economy," Atkinson writes. He believes that if the stimulus measures are properly designed they could quickly create a large number of investments, including deploying more and faster broadband networks, switching to electronic health records, and deploying smart energy meters.
From Network World
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