The incoming Trump administration is all but certain to roll back numerous Biden actions, but getting money disbursed makes at least some of Biden’s policies more permanent.
In a memo made public this week, White House chief of staff Jeff Zients called on employees to “sprint to the finish line and get as much done as possible for the American people.”
He said that while the administration has already awarded 98 percent of the funds it could legally spend through October under several of Biden’s signature laws, the president “has directed us to keep up this pace and obligate as much funding as possible before the end of the term.”
“Expect more action on high-speed internet funds to states, CHIPS incentives funding, IRA funding, and more,” he wrote, referring to the Inflation Reduction Act, which included historic investments to combat climate change.
One office that has made headlines recently for doling out climate money is the Energy Department’s Loans Program Office (LPO) — which has announced tentative loans worth billions of dollars to bolster production for electric vehicles and power transmission.
These loans, however, are not the only unfinished loan deals the agency still has yet to close. As of Monday, the agency had a total of 19 conditional loan commitments, worth $41.29 billion, still open.
Jigur Shah, director of the LPO, said at a roundtable last week with loan recipients that “I don’t think anything has changed based on what we were doing in the past” as far as disbursement.
But he indicated that industry may feel an urge to secure their loans in the wake of the election, adding, “I do think borrowers are more motivated to shorten timelines … which we’re happy to respond to.”
Read more when the story runs tomorrow at TheHill.com.
