'Your papers, please' must never be heard in America
Abound Solar, propped up by tens of millions of dollars in federal loans that remain unpaid, acknowledged defects in the solar panels it was selling before the Colorado company went bankrupt, according to a customer.
With its bankruptcy case ended and its failure faded from headlines, solar panel maker Solyndra LLC appears set to receive a big reduction in years worth of overdue property tax bills, potentially setting up tax consultants with a hefty seven-figure payday.
The Justice Department probe into the collapse of solar panel maker Solyndra LLC after the company received a half-billion dollars in federal loan guarantees has prompted requests by government lawyers investigating the company for closing documents and invoices, according to newly filed court records.
Bankrupt solar-panel company Solyndra LLC and the criminal investigation into its downfall have faded from public view, but the law firm representing the company in a grand jury probe quietly has stayed busy, racking up nearly a half-million dollars in legal fees over the past year, records show.
The recent election has made me re-examine everything I am thankful for this season. For instance, I'm glad I'm not a baker who worked at Hostess Brands Inc., a diplomat who works in this administration or an assembly-line worker at Solyndra LLC.
The recent bankruptcy of battery maker A123 Systems after it won a nearly quarter-billion-dollar federal grant threatens the business prospects of another well-known government-backed company: luxury car manufacturer Fisker Automotive.
Battery maker A123 Systems vowed thousands of new jobs when it received a nearly quarter-billion-dollar stimulus grant in late 2009, but federal job-tracking figures show only a few hundred positions were created before the company joined a growing list of federally backed energy businesses that ended in bankruptcy.
Bankrupt solar panel maker Solyndra LLC defended its reorganization plan Monday against mounting criticism from the federal government, while launching a legal offensive against Chinese solar companies over what it deems unfair trade practices.
The Internal Revenue Service urged a bankruptcy judge to reject solar panel maker Solyndra LLC's bankruptcy plan Wednesday, saying it amounts to little more than an avenue for owners of an empty corporate shell to avoid paying taxes.
The White House contends that all energy loan guarantees are awarded solely on the merits of the project, with no political influence from President Obama, Vice President Joseph R. Biden or other administration officials. But a series of emails from solar power giant BrightSource Energy Inc. show how the company applied political pressure and used behind-the-scenes cajoling to win a $1.6 billion loan guarantee in April 2011.
When he appeared before a House committee during the summer to explain why his solar company went bankrupt owing taxpayers $70 million, the chief executive for Abound Solar Inc. placed the blame largely on competition from heavily subsidized Chinese competitors.
President Obama's unwavering support for taxpayer-funded "green" energy projects came under fire at Wednesday night's presidential debate, with Republican Mitt Romney on the attack, accusing the incumbent of picking "losers" in the energy sector while turning his back on American fossil fuels such as natural gas and coal.
Government officials blame unfair competition from China for the collapse of solar panel manufacturer Solyndra, but such concerns didn't stop the federal government from breaking stimulus program rules to use Chinese solar panels atop a federal building housing the offices of a senator, congressman and several agencies.
Nearly a year after members of Congress called for an investigation into the collapse of a Colorado wireless company that went bankrupt after receiving a multimillion-dollar loan package from the George W. Bush administration, a trustee is suing the Obama administration over accusations that officials hastened the wireless firm's collapse.
More than 800 workers who lost their jobs in mass layoffs in the days before Solyndra LLC went bankrupt — just two years after the company won a more than half-billion-dollar federal loan — have reached a settlement as the company's bankruptcy grinds toward a close, according to newly filed court papers.
