Republicans pushed a bill through the House on Friday shining a campaign-season light on the most conspicuous failure of President Obama's economic stimulus package. The bill would phase out federal loan guarantees like those that went to the now-bankrupt solar power company Solyndra LLC and left taxpayers on the hook for more than $500 million.
The No More Solyndras Act, which passed on a mainly party-line vote, has no chance of advancing in the Democratic-led Senate and was assailed by House Democrats as an election-year stunt. The vote was 245-161.
The bill would curtail an Energy Department loan guarantee program that was the source of the more than $500 million investment in Solyndra. It was part of the $787 billion stimulus package enacted shortly after Obama took office in 2009.
The Fremont firm was the first renewable energy company to receive a federal loan guarantee under the stimulus, and its financial woes in the face of Chinese competition made it a target for Republican scrutiny. The company filed for bankruptcy protection in September 2011, and under its reorganization plan, taxpayers would lose almost all of their investment.
The bill would require the Treasury Department to review any future Energy Department loan guarantees made before the program expires and reaffirm that it is forbidden to "subordinate" loans so that private investors are repaid before the government.
Republicans pointed out that three of the first five companies that received loan guarantees under the stimulus, among them Solyndra, have gone bankrupt. Democrats said Republicans were ignoring the Energy Department successes, including saving nearly 300 million gallons of gasoline a year by supporting such projects as one of the world's largest wind farms in Oregon, a large solar generation project in California and a major photovoltaic solar power plant in Arizona.
The loan guarantee program falls under the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that was passed partly with the intention of promoting a revival of nuclear energy. The George W. Bush administration did not approve any loan guarantees and under Obama it shifted toward boosting development of innovative clean energy technology.
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/nation/article/House-bill-curtails-Solyndra-like-loans-3867284.php
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| Solyndra's failure cost taxpayers over $500 million. |
The No More Solyndras Act, which passed on a mainly party-line vote, has no chance of advancing in the Democratic-led Senate and was assailed by House Democrats as an election-year stunt. The vote was 245-161.
The bill would curtail an Energy Department loan guarantee program that was the source of the more than $500 million investment in Solyndra. It was part of the $787 billion stimulus package enacted shortly after Obama took office in 2009.
The Fremont firm was the first renewable energy company to receive a federal loan guarantee under the stimulus, and its financial woes in the face of Chinese competition made it a target for Republican scrutiny. The company filed for bankruptcy protection in September 2011, and under its reorganization plan, taxpayers would lose almost all of their investment.
The bill would require the Treasury Department to review any future Energy Department loan guarantees made before the program expires and reaffirm that it is forbidden to "subordinate" loans so that private investors are repaid before the government.
Republicans pointed out that three of the first five companies that received loan guarantees under the stimulus, among them Solyndra, have gone bankrupt. Democrats said Republicans were ignoring the Energy Department successes, including saving nearly 300 million gallons of gasoline a year by supporting such projects as one of the world's largest wind farms in Oregon, a large solar generation project in California and a major photovoltaic solar power plant in Arizona.
The loan guarantee program falls under the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that was passed partly with the intention of promoting a revival of nuclear energy. The George W. Bush administration did not approve any loan guarantees and under Obama it shifted toward boosting development of innovative clean energy technology.
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/nation/article/House-bill-curtails-Solyndra-like-loans-3867284.php
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