Geothermal, solar energy funding announced

The Obama administration says it will provide $467 million in funding to expand and accelerate the development and use of geothermal and solar energy

Officials said the funding from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act represents "a substantial down payment that will help the solar and geothermal industries overcome technical barriers, demonstrate new technologies and provide support for clean energy jobs for years to come."

"We have a choice," said Obama. "We can remain the world's leading importer of oil, or we can become the world's leading exporter of clean energy. We can hand over the jobs of the future to our competitors, or we can confront what they have already recognized as the great opportunity of our time: The nation that leads the world in creating new sources of clean energy will be the nation that leads the 21st century global economy. That's the nation I want America to be."