The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives passed (245-161) a bill on Friday that would phase out a program for energy loans after a lengthy investigation into why a now-bankrupt California solar panel maker received a $535 million government loan, Reuters reported on Friday. The "No More Solyndras" bill comes after an 18-month investigation into the Solyndra loan by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. The committee concluded that the Energy Department rushed into the deal, then helped keep the company going despite a series of red flags. In total, the Energy Department has approved $34.7 billion in loans to 33 projects. Aside from Solyndra, two other companies with loans have gone bankrupt. The Energy Department has an additional $34 billion that it could spend on clean energy loan guarantees. The legislation would ban the Energy Department from considering applications received after Dec. 31, 2011. The Energy Department would need to have approval from the Treasury Department for any new loans, provide more information to Congress, and prohibit the Department from subordinating taxpayer funds when restructuring troubled loans.
