The Department of Energy's Use of the Weatherization Assistance Program Formula for Allocating Funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
June 11, 2010
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June 11, 2010
The Department of Energy's Use of the Weatherization Assistance Program Formula for Allocating Funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) was enacted in February 2009, to strengthen the U.S. economy, create jobs and spur investments in the Nation's energy future. Under the Recovery Act, the Department of Energy's Weatherization Assistance Program (Weatherization Program) received about $5 billion, a ten-fold increase over the Fiscal Year 2009 funding, to weatherize over 590,000 homes owned or occupied by low-income persons. The Department's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) manages the Weatherization Program with support from field offices at the National Energy Technology Laboratory and the Golden Field Office. Through these offices, and based on an allocation formula published in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), the Department awarded Weatherization funding to all 50 states, the District of Columbia and 5 U.S. territories. The formula considers a variety of factors and includes a calculation designed to compensate for climate conditions. Given the risk associated with significant program changes, dramatic increases in funding and demands related to weatherizing hundreds of thousands of homes, we have initiated a series of audits to assess the Weatherization Program's ability to effectively allocate, award and monitor Weatherization funds. This report, one in the series, discusses the Department’s use of the formula to allocate Recovery Act funds.
Topic: Financial Assistance