Insider Report: Washington D.C. Its hard to believe that the Energy Department isnt creating a lesson in how to waste a lot of money in a hurry" said Texas Congressman Joe Barton (R-Ennis-Arlington). This is yet more evidence that the private sector is far more capable than the federal government at creating long-term jobs for a sustainable economic recovery" said Cong. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) member of the Oversight & Investigations Subcommittee.
A Government Accountability Office report released Thursday shows that the Department of Energy spent more than $1.9 billion in so-called stimulus funds to create 10018 jobs through May 2010 an average of $194213 spent per full-time job created.
As a small business owner for nearly 22 years Im shocked these jobs cost taxpayers nearly $195000 each" Walden said.
This report says that DOE managed its timetables well enough but that so far the jobs that DOE created cost $194213 each" said U.S. Rep. Joe Barton R-Ennis/Arlington ranking member of the House Energy &
Commerce Committee.
It looks like the Department of Energy got in over its head when it was handed $6 billion in stimulus money to create jobs by accelerating environmental cleanup work" said Barton.
Americans need dramatically better thinking from their leaders so the rest of the stimulus funding is more effectively used too" said Barton.
DOE also reports it created 10018 jobs through May of this year. However the department has also used a more unorthodox methodology to inflate job creation in some of its reports a methodology the GAO says may mislead the public.
For example using the method GAO was critical of the agency reports roughly 20000 jobs created through May of this year counting the number of lives touched" in some documents.
Barton and U.S. Rep. Greg Walden R-Ore. then-ranking member of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee asked the GAO in March
2009 to examine the Department of Energys management of the stimulus funding for environmental cleanup.
The lawmakers were concerned about the departments ability to manage the extra $6 billion in funding DOE was provided in the stimulus effort given the agencys difficulty in managing environmental cleanup spending in a cost-effective manner.
U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess R-Lewisville later joined the request when he became the subcommittees ranking member.
It seems our concerns about DOEs ability to effectively and efficiently used the funds given to them have become reality. This is yet another example of how despite the White Houses assertions the almost $1 trillion
of stimulus funding has failed to stimulate anything other than government bureaucracy" Burgess said.
Even the White House itself in its latest Council of Economic Advisors release on the stimulus said any job creation was speculative and uncertain. Using different methodologies for every jobs report underscores what Republicans have been saying since January 2009 not only do the Democrats not know how to create jobs they dont even know how to count them" said Burgess.
The funds were supposed to create jobs and promote economic recovery by expanding and accelerating the environmental cleanup of hazardous and radiological waste at the nations nuclear weapons complex.
The report shows DOE has taken some positive steps to manage the spending and meet project timetables but also finds that DOE does not clearly show how the funding has impacted job creation or will reduce environmental risks and future cleanup costs.
