WASHINGTON, DC - Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) joined every member of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations in once again calling on the Secretary of Energy to turn over information on the financial condition of each loan guarantee funded with stimulus dollars in the program that granted the ill-fated Solyndra loan, known as section 1705 loan guarantees. Committee leaders had previously requested the financial information on Sept. 20, 2011, before the agency rushed out the remaining $9 billion before the program expired on September 30. DOE failed to respond to the request.
In the wake of the Solyndra failure and after watching billions of dollars in loans rushed out the door last week, the Members are concerned with the integrity of the overall program. President Obama’s comments yesterday affirmed those concerns when he was asked during a press conference about Solyndra and the loan guarantee program. The President replied, “The nature of these programs are going to be ones in which, you know, for every success there may be one that does not work out as well."
In the letter to Secretary Chu, the Committee Members wrote, “On Oct. 3, 2011, in regard to the Section 1705 program, President Obama stated: “˜if you look at the overall portfolioit is doing well.’ We sincerely hope that this is true and that no further taxpayer dollars are at risk. However, as Solyndra executives and numerous members of the Administration repeatedly told us the same thing about Solyndra during the last seven months, we have a responsibility to inquire further."
For each loan guarantee awarded under section 1705, the Members are seeking copies of the credit committee paper, all credit committee and credit review board minutes, all independent due diligence reports submitted, the most recent audited financial statements submitted to DOE, all monitoring reports submitted to DOE, and the annual loan reviews. The members are also seeking all documents containing communications among the officials, staff, administrators, and employees of the Department of Energy, the Department of the Treasury, and the Office of Management and Budget. The Committee Members set an Oct. 14, 2011 deadline for DOE to produce the documents.
View the full text of the letter to Secretary Chu HERE.
View the Committee leader’s Sept. 20, 2011, letter to Secretary Chu HERE.
