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NMI moves forward with stimulus applications
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Posted on Mar 26 2009
Applications for competitive stimulus grants that will go toward infrastructure projects should be completed today.
The applications will then proceed to the Office of Management and Budget will they will undergo the local vetting process, said Mike Ada, Department of Commerce Secretary. Ada is in charge of coordinating the local effort for stimulus money.
The CNMI also recently submitted the necessary materials to receive an $18.7 million grant for renewable energy and a weatherization grant worth $700,000. Both grants are formula grants, so they are based on formulas in the law, not on grant applications.
The renewable energy money will focus on energy efficiency, such as solar lighting. The weatherization money will go to families to make their homes more energy efficient by upgrading old air-conditioners and water heaters, insulating walls and roofs, installing thermal windows, and sealing cracks around doors and windows that waste energy.
Other areas involving the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. include power distribution projects. Most of the projects have gone through the local vetting process and will be certified by Gov. Benigno Fitial next week, Ada said.
CUC is hoping to receive the largest share of competitive stimulus money for the CNMI. The agency’s projects within the three utilities—power, water and wastewater—totals $40 to $50 million, CUC executive director Antonio Muna said.
Ada said the stimulus application process, which began after President Obama signed The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act into law on Feb. 17, has developed overtime.
After it was reported that some errors occurred in CUC applications, it was decided the technical side would need to work closely with the grant writers to make sure everything was correct, Ada said.
“We’re going to have people write grants, but we’re going to have the technical people look over them. We’re having them review them before we send them out to the grant writers for conciseness and all that,” the commerce secretary added.
