American Recovery Act turns growth green in Columbia

Brad McConnell was well aware of the nascent movement for energy-efficient housing when he started a contracting company last October that specializes in weatherizing homes. What he didn't foresee was the enormity of federal stimulus funding aimed at creating green-collar jobs to support the push for energy efficiency.

"It's incredibly good timing for me," McConnell, founder of Mid-Missouri Home Energy Services, said. "Nobody knew there was going to be $5 billion available," he said, referring to the allocation for the Weatherization Assistance Program through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The theory behind the Recovery Act's green jobs strategy is that the best route to a clean energy environment goes through consumers' wallets.

For instance, if tax incentives drive up demand for wind energy products, that not only creates jobs for manufacturers of wind energy technology but drives advancements in the field and turns a formerly blue-collar job (truck driver) into a green-collar job (truck driver transporting wind turbines).