The 4 Biggest Reasons for Delays in State Energy Efficiency ARRA Funding

Here at NASEO's Annual Meeting, these four issues have been consistently raised to US DOE representatives by state energy officials regarding impediments to the implementation of approved ARRA-funded energy programs:

1. NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) compliance
2. Historic preservation requirements
3. Davis-Bacon (prevailing wage) compliance
4. 'Buy American' compliance

State energy officials are expressing intense frustration over these four burdensome and confusing regulatory hurdles that are delaying energy efficiency and renewable energy projects, despite nearly daily pressure from state and federal officials for immediate job creation and energy savings. US DOE is struggling to address these issues with little promise of exactly when appropriated dollars will actually start to flow.