Counting Stimulus Jobs WASHINGTON, DC (Associated Press) -

It's become impossible to track just how many jobs were saved or created with the $787 billion stimulus program.

That's because the White House has abandoned its controversial method of counting those jobs.

Officials had earlier defended their count of more than 640,000 jobs created or saved, even after numerous errors were identified in that count.

But now, the administration is changing the rules. Instead of counting a job as saved or created, the count simply includes jobs funded by the stimulus.

So, any stimulus money used for payroll will be included in the jobs credited to the program. That includes pay raises for existing employees, and pay for people who never were in any danger of losing their jobs.

A spokesman for the White House Office of Management and Budget says the new rules are aimed at streamlining the process.

But the top Republican on a House oversight panel, Darrell Issa, says the administration is "masking" what he says is the failure of the stimulus to create jobs or sustainable economic growth.
© Copyright 2012, Associated Press