Stimulus Package Debate Begins: Accountability or Speed? : Schwartz Renewablog

As the government begins to allocate billions in stimulus funds for shovel-ready projects in renewable energy, smart grid and energy management (along with Department of Energy investments in cleantech R&D), a debate is raging about accountability versus speed. The Obama administration is demanding accountability and transparency in terms of how the funds are distributed, while agencies are going to struggle with quickly doling out the funds they will direct as part of the bill.

Regardless of how the government balances speed and accountability, there are three undeniable points about the stimulus:

-The amount going into green and cleantech is enormous

-The quicker those funds are invested, the better it will be for job creation

-The money needs to be invested transparently and not just go to the same government contractors and companies that have milked Uncle Sam for the past three decades

So how quickly can the funds get invested in a responsible manor? The NY Times had an example last week where $25 billion for electric cars had yet to be invested by the DOE. With GM on the doorstep of bankruptcy protection, you may hear new calls from Silicon Valley for those funds to be invested in ground-up electric car and battery manufacturers like Tesla Motors and A123.

CNET also has a story today discussing how many start-ups will need to figure out Public Affairs pretty quickly or else they may not get the funding they need to survive. The Federal Government, with the stimulus package, has become the largest cleantech investor and project financier. This creates a trremendous Public Affairs oppprtunity for companies in wind, solar, biofuels, smart grid and energy management, and grant proposal writing is not enough.

Bottom line: Cleantech start-ups need to quickly learn how to tap into stimulus funds to grow their companies and win government projects.