The U.S. Department of Energy will sink hundreds of thousands of dollars into solar-power initiatives in the Salt Lake Valley, thanks to a federal stimulus payout announced Tuesday.

The money comes as part of a $10 million Solar America Cities grant, designed to help 16 cities nationwide develop programs and policies that better enable them to tap the energy of the sun.

"Salt Lake City is proud to be selected as one of the key U.S. cities leading the charge to remove barriers for solar-energy use," Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker said in a statement. "Our residents will reap the benefits in accessibility and affordability derived from the work of the Solar Salt Lake Project."

While Salt Lake County's share of the grant money remains unspecified -- only that it is in the hundreds of thousands of dollars -- the money will be used to reduce regulatory barriers that stand in the way of solar development and to devise financing mechanisms that will encourage large-scale installations.

Jeremiah Stettler