Ohio to get $96 million for green jobs

By JOHN FUNK

Ohio”s plan to jump-start green manufacturing got a $96 million boost Friday.

The U.S. Department of Energy awarded the Ohio Department of Development’s energy program that much in federal stimulus funds — nearly half of which is already on its way.

The remainder will flow to Ohio government bank accounts over the next 18 months, if the state spending meets federal guidelines.

“We are sending the checks today,” Department of Energy senior adviser Matt Rogers said in a joint news conference with Mark Shanahan, energy adviser to Gov. Ted Strickland.

Shanahan said the state has already received “thousands of projects that could be eligible, representing more than $1 billion in requests.”

The administration will contact companies that have already registered proposals to explain the application process, he said. The state intends to focus on manufacturers who want to make parts for or assemble wind turbines, solar arrays and other renewable-energy technologies.

Secondly, the state wants to help manufacturers use less energy. Even homeowners and small businesses can apply.

“There is no question that these dollars will help lay the foundation for an energy-based economy that Ohio needs in order to come out of the current recession,” Shanahan said.

The department received $38.7 billion altogether in stimulus money, of which $11.3 billion is being awarded in formula grants to the states, Rogers said.

An additional $5 billion is going to states for weatherization and $3.2 billion directly to cities and counties under energy-efficiency block grants.

The department must award 100 percent of the funding by Sept. 30, 2010, and the states must have spent 70 percent of that, Rogers said.