The Dept. of Energy’s $243 million allocation for weatherization assistance in Michigan had fixed up just seven houses as of Sept. 30, according to a status report issued this month by the state Economic Recovery Office.

The weatherization program, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, is managed by the state Department of Human Services and carried out by the state’s regional Community Action Agencies.

The program got off to a slow, officials say, because many local agencies were forced to wait on new wage guidelines from the Dept. of Labor before hiring contractors to carry out home repairs and upgrades.

The new wage rules were issued Aug. 13.

“Since then, those [Community Action Agencies] CAAs which hire contractors to complete the work have issued their requests for proposals, held vendor meetings and have worked through the bid process,” said Leslee Fritz, director of the state Economic Recovery Office. “At this point, many of the CAAs have completed that process and are now working. Others are still working their way through the process.”

“The expectation is that the Recovery Act funding will enable our CAAs to serve more than 28,000 additional homes over the next two years.”

The Recovery Act funding will pay up to $6,500 for upgrades such as sealing windows and doors and insulating attics, walls and foundations at the homes of low income people. Priority will be given to the elderly, people with disabilities, and families with children.