Energy plays big role in stimulus plan

Denver - A smart electric grid and the development of clean, renewable energy to power a 21st century U.S. economy are part of the stimulus plan, the White House said.

U.S. President Barack Obama signed the $787 billion bill at a ceremony in Denver Tuesday.

The bill allocates $11 billion for the electric grid, the White House said in a release, and will be used for integration and use of greater amounts of renewable energy; more use of innovative efficiency technologies; and a reduction in "electric congestion" that costs ratepayers.

The act also includes funding for 3,000 miles of new or modernized transmission lines, the administration said. It also deploys 40 million so-called smart meters in homes, and upgrading transmission and distribution technologies that have not significantly changed in a half century.

The American Reinvestment and Recovery Plan includes a number of measures that administration officials said would improve energy efficiencies in the U.S. homes and federal buildings.

Green-energy solutions would be realized through a program that ultimately promotes a trained workforce for jobs created by federal renewable energy and energy efficiency initiatives, the White House said.

"Because we know we can't power America 's future on energy that's controlled by foreign dictators, we are taking a big step down the road to energy independence, and laying the groundwork for a new, green energy economy that can create countless well-paying jobs," Obama said during the ceremony.