By the end of 2009, 27 federal agencies had obligated $194 billion – 63 percent – of about $309 billion appropriated under the Recovery Act for projects and activities, GAO has said.
It said agencies reported they had spent 20 percent – $61 billion – of their appropriated funds, although some agencies noted that more work than that might be completed because invoices have not come in on finished or partly finished projects.
A number of hurdles remain to actually spending the money. For example, Davis-Bacon wage-setting requirements have affected the ability to select and start some projects.
Seven out of 16 states that GAO has been reviewing said that they had waited to begin weatherizing homes until the Department of Labor had determined county-by-county prevailing wage rates for their state under Davis-Bacon.
States used only a small percentage of their available funds in 2009, mostly because state and local agencies needed time to develop the infrastructures required for managing the significant increase in weatherization funding and for ensuring compliance with Recovery Act requirements, including the Davis-Bacon requirements, according to GAO-10-383.
Five agencies said "buy American" provisions had affected their ability, or their grantees’ ability, to select or start some Recovery Act projects, and two agencies said requirements under the National Historic Preservation Act have affected the selection and start of projects.
Further, agencies are faced with having to start entirely new programs and contend with state budgeting issues, something also slowing down projects under the Recovery Act, GAO said.
