Recovery Act Funding: Coming to a State Near You?

Remodelers in Indiana might be forgiven for not knowing that their state received nearly $53 million in Recovery Act funds on July 21 for weatherizing more than 19,700 homes across the state over the next three years.

Likewise, one can understand if remodelers in Nevada had no idea that their state received nearly $14 million on July 27 ”for a series of clean energy initiatives, including the creation of a new revolving loan fund, building retrofits, and transportation upgrades.” Or that the state will eventually receive close to $35 million in Recovery Act funding in all, $16 million of which will go to the installation of LED lighting, lighting control, window performance technologies, and renewable energy technologies to reduce energy costs and consumption in state buildings and K-12 schools.

Since President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act into law on February 17, federal stimulus funds have begun flowing to states at a rate that is fast and furious, if not also difficult to track -- let alone figure out how to tap into -- for most residential remodeling companies, whose primary focus has been educating homeowners about tax credits for energy-efficient home improvements.

Several online sources of information can help remodelers understand the bigger picture of Recovery Act funding. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, for instance, e-mails “Progress Alerts” several times a week to announce funding opportunities and other developments associated with the stimulus, including building retrofit opportunities. Click here for links to all alerts thus far, as well as to subscribe to the e-mail alerts.

In addition, Recovery.gov provides vast information about stimulus funding, including nearly real-time tracking of program announcements and awards. This page shows a state-by-state overview of federal funding pledges and actual grants, as well as funding recipients and the projects that have resulted.

By the way, Recovery Act funding is still in its nascent stage, suggesting that the greater impact lies ahead. Of the total program cost of $787 billion, just $67.4 billion had been awarded as of July 17. Click here for the latest.

Click here for REMODELING’s full coverage of the stimulus package, including our special June issue dedicated to homeowner tax credits. --Leah Thayer, senior editor, REMODELING.