Inspector general critiques ARRA spending 
Critics of President Obama's stimulus spending, particularly in the energy sector, criticize the pace at which that money is being disbursed. EnergyBiz columnist Ken Silverstein argues that a deliberate pace avoids waste and fraud and provides sustainable spending that encourages job growth.
That's easy fodder for White House critics who say that such largess will not serve its intended purpose, which is to generate a 21st century economy centered on the growth of clean energy. Setting aside that political point, the allocation of nearly a $1 trillion dollars in total stimulus spending is meant to flood the economy with dollars and thereby help produce or sustain job levels.
Both arguments for and against the stimulus have pros and cons. And while the administration's own U.S. Department of Energy Inspector General's office is critical of the fact that funds remain unspent, others in the executive branch claim that the naming of projects has spawned an economic wave. That is, once projects are announced, contractors and subcontractors begin gearing up.
"We're planting the seeds of innovation, but private companies and the nation's top researchers are helping them grow, launching entire new industries, transforming our economy and creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs in the process," Vice President Joe Biden has said.
But the Energy Department's Inspector General Gregory Friedman wrote that only 8 % of the $3.2 billion that has been set aside for energy efficiency projects such as weatherization of homes has been spent. Not only do the state and local government officials in charge of spearheading the improvements lack the qualified staff to oversee that money but some cumbersome federal rules also stand in the way. For example, Friedman's report said that only a small fraction of the 600,000 homes that are to be weatherized have been completed, although the tempo is picking up. All of the money is supposed to be distributed by 2012.
