Chu says that DOE has released only $2.1 billion out of $37 billion in Recovery Act funds

BiofuelsDigest.com
February 09, 2010 Jim Lane

In Washington, Energy Secretary Steven Chu said, in Senate testimony regarding the FY 2011 budget, that only $2.1 billion of the $37 billion in Recovery Act funding given to Energy to disperse had been spent. Chu said that the complex review process required for projects had slowed the disbursement, and blamed state and local governments were having trouble absorbing the bureaucratic requirements associated with the dispersal of funds.

However, a report in the Wall Street Journal said that “Massachusetts officials say Dr. Chu’s agency took nearly seven months to determine whether the state’s proposal to spend $55 million on insulation, window replacement and other projects required a review under the National Environmental Policy Act, a federal law that requires agencies to make sure federally funded projects won’t harm the environment.” An internal review by the Department’s inspector general found in december over staffing shortages and the risk of fraud.

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