U.S. Department of Energy’s Recovery Act Investments

June 2011 By Sam Wurzelmann Download the full white paper (pdf)

Overview:

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Pub.L. 111-5, Recovery Act, ARRA) is the economic stimulus package passed by Congress on February 13, 2009 and signed by President Obama four days later. As of February 2011, the package was expected to total $821 billion in costs through 2019 delivered through a combination of federal tax cuts, temporary expansion of economic assistance provisions including unemployment benefits, and domestic investments to advance economic recovery and create new jobs, as well as save existing ones (Rusco, 2011). More than $90 billion from the Recovery Act targets government investment and tax incentives to create the foundation for a clean energy economy (CEA, 2010). This funding provides an unprecedented investment in clean energy in the United States and many of these projects are expected to create new jobs and contribute to economic growth in the future (U.S. Congress, 2009).

Recovery Act money for climate and energy programs is distributed among a handful of federal agencies with jurisdiction over key areas, such as the U.S. Department of Transportation, but most of the energy-related investment is through the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) (CEA, 2010). The DOE received $41.7 billion in ARRA funds, with approximately $35.2 billion for direct grants and the remaining $6.5 billion in loan authority (Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Staff, March 15, 2011).

The Center released its first white paper on ARRA in December of 2009. As the majority of clean energy investments are made through grants and contracts that require reviewed proposals, much of the money could not be spent quickly (CEA, 2010). This version of the white paper summarizes the DOE ARRA investments and the Recovery Act’s effects on employment by updating and adding to the original paper. Financial data for project awards are updated with current figures. A new section, Recovery Act Project Highlights, has been added to highlight a number of notable projects.

The following terms found throughout this brief are used by the federal government to describe the status of funds within the processes of disbursement and investment. Funds that are ‘authorized’ are made available by Congress for a specific purpose; funds that are ‘awarded’ are committed to a specific project or activity and will likely result in payment; funds that are ‘outlaid’ have been paid to the recipient (DOE, 2011).

As of April 22, 2011, 95 percent of DOE’s total authorized ARRA funds had been awarded and 39 percent of total funds had been outlaid (DOE, 2011).