On the one-year anniversary of the federal stimulus law, Minnesota counted its blessings and racked up money for another big project Wednesday. The languishing Union Depot in St. Paul became the latest beneficiary of federal largesse, receiving $35 million.

The $787 billion program to get the nation back on its feet has injected at least $2.5 billion into Minnesota's economy.

The biggest chunks of cash have gone toward people in need, with $967 million for Medicaid and $844 million for unemployment checks, according to state data through Dec. 31. Another $2.5 billion is yet to be spent in the state.

Figuring out how to count the jobs created by the stimulus hasn't been easy, but Michelle Weber, statewide stimulus coordinator, said that more than 10,000 jobs in the fourth quarter of 2009 were paid for with federal recovery dollars. (That figure was determined by adding up the working hours funded by stimulus money during the quarter.)

State economist Tom Stinson said the stimulus program was designed for short-term and long-term gains.

"The hole that we were in was so deep that it's going to take years to get employment back to the level that we were at in 2007, even with this program," he said. "Without the program, it probably would've taken a couple more years." Instead of reaching the 2007 levels in 2012, he said, it might otherwise have taken until 2014 or 2015.

Minnesota's unemployment rate a year ago was 8.7 percent; in December, it was 7.3 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The most recent national figure was 10.6 percent in January.

Chugging to the Depot

While roads, bridges and transportation projects have been the most visible piece of stimulus in Minnesota, the dollars amount to only a small fraction of the total.