Summary: In response to a congressional request, GAO determined: (1) total funding for state energy assistance programs from both congressional appropriations and oil company overcharge settlements; (2) how much the Department of Energy (DOE) collected from oil companies as a result of overcharge settlements; and (3) how states used oil overcharge funds.
GAO found that: (1) during fiscal years 1982 through 1986, Congress appropriated $1.4 billion for four DOE energy conservation programs and $9.9 billion for a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) low-income energy assistance program; (2) as of September 30, 1986, DOE had collected about $5.6 billion from oil companies for overcharge violations; and (3) DOE distributed about $1.4 billion of these funds to injured parties and about $3.2 billion to states. GAO also found that: (1) as of September 30, 1986, states had used about $200 million of the oil overcharge funds for energy assistance programs; and (2) states spent about 81 percent of the funds for DOE programs and 19 percent for the HHS program.
