President Barack Obama's latest proposal, The American Jobs Act, if passed by the U.S. Congress, will provide billions of dollars to Florida and reduce unemployment by over 500,000 jobs, according to a White House release.

The proposal, which the president rolled out last week's estimated to cost $447 billion and appears to be what was long needed to spur economic growth and employment.

The plan offers tax-credit incentives to businesses to expand employment. The proposal to cut payroll taxes further is an additional incentive to businesses as it puts more cash into workers' hands allowing them to spend more and provide additional revenue to businesses – another incentive to expand employment. A proposal to extend unemployment benefits will also sustain consumers' ability to support businesses and improve employment potential.

For some time, economists have been calling for an expansive, structured, efficiently managed national infrastructural program to improve the nation's crumbling roads, buildings, etc. This is not only included in the president's proposal but, significantly, it includes a proposed National Infrastructural Bank. Managed effectively, a national infrastructural program will spur employment, plus drive the manufacturing sector into providing tools and supplies to repair the national infrastructure.

Also of significance is the inclusion of a proposal to assist homeowners to refinance their mortgages at the current (4.5 percent) interest rate. This would be a boon to the struggling home market, and save homeowners additional cash that would further boost retail sales.

This Act must be approved in its entirety, or in part, by the U.S. Congress which received the president's proposals on Monday. However, in the current political environment it could be delayed by controversy. Politics aside, the plan does have merit to improve the economy.

Aspects of the American Jobs Act (proposed to cost $447B and paid through the national budget deficit plan) include:

• Cutting payroll tax in half for 98 percent of businesses. The plan will cut in half taxes paid by businesses on their first $5 million in payroll, targeting the benefit to the 98 percent of firms that have payroll below this threshold.

Florida's benefit: 410,000 firms will benefit from the payroll tax cut.

• A complete payroll tax holiday for employing additional workers or increasing wages.

• Reforms and regulatory reductions to help entrepreneurs and small businesses access capital.

• Tax credit to businesses that employs war veterans ("Returning Heroes")

• Preventing up to 280,000 teacher layoffs, while keeping police and firefighters employed.

Florida's benefit: $1,669,500,000, supporting some 25,900 educator and first responder jobs.

• Modernizing at least 35,000 public schools nationally, supporting new science labs, Internet-ready classrooms and renovations at schools in rural and urban areas.

Florida's benefit: $1,280,300,000 in funding to support some 16,600 jobs.

• Creation of a National Infrastructure Bank (capitalized at $10B) to provide funding for infrastructural development including modernizing roads, rail, airports and waterways, while putting thousands of unemployed workers to work.

Florida's benefit: $1,578,600,000 that could support a minimum of approximately 20,500 local jobs.

• A new "Project Rebuild" employing workers to rehabilitate homes, businesses and communities, leveraging private capital and public-private collaborations.

Florida's benefit: $2,988,800,000.

• Extension of the unemployment insurance (UI) program to prevent five million unemployed Americans (including 148,500 unemployed Floridians) from losing their benefits.

• A $4,000 tax credit to employers for hiring long-term unemployed workers.

• Prohibiting employers from discriminating against unemployed workers when hiring.

• Expanding job opportunities for low-income youth and adults through a fund for subsidized employment, innovative training programs and summer/year-round jobs for youth.

• Tax Relief for American workers by cutting payroll taxes in half for 160 million workers next year. This plan expands the payroll tax cut passed last year to cut workers payroll taxes in half in 2012. It provides a $1,500 relief to the typical family ($1,430 for a Florida family), without negatively impacting the Social Security Trust Fund.

• Allow more Americans to refinance their mortgages at today's near four percent interest rates, putting an estimated $2,000 annually in a family's pocket. (The President has instructed his economic team to work with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, their regulator the FHFA, major lenders and industry leaders to remove the barriers that exist in the current Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) to help more borrowers benefit from current low interest rates).