text: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 , abbreviated ARRA and commonly referred to as the Stimulus or The Recovery Act , is an economic stimulus package enacted by the 111th United States Congress in February 2009 .
simplified: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 , most commonly referred to as the stimulus bill or stimulus package , was a spending bill passed by the U.S. Congress in 2009 .