Stimulus regs slow flow of cash for Maryland

Strict requirements on how stimulus money must be spent have prevented the Maryland Energy Administration from doling out half of the $52 million it has received in grants for solar panel installations and energy efficiency upgrades in homes and businesses.

The issues could even mean some of the money will be left on the table. MEA Director Malcolm Woolf said most of the problems have been resolved, making that unlikely, but he didn’t rule out the possibility that more snags could be lurking.

The money is a key part of national efforts to spur investment in renewable energy and energy efficiency, which in many cases aren’t profitable on their own without the help of government incentives. The budding green energy industry could suffer if programs to help it along are slowed or eliminated.

Woolf said there have been a handful of hurdles that have kept projects from being approved and money being spent.

Read the full story in the Baltimore Business Journal.