The Solar Energies Industry Association marked the one-year anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Wednesday by noting development within the solar industry and setting priorities for the future.

"The purpose of the bill was to stimulate immediate job growth with a strong emphasis on clean energy technologies like solar," said SEIA President and CEO Rhone Resch, "And that is exactly what happened."

About 18,000 solar energy jobs were created in 2009, according to the report. More than 50 solar manufacturing plants are now under construction. Resch said that momentum from a new jobs bill could create up to 20,000 jobs within the solar industry this year.

Citing a scarcity of tax equity, SEIA has asked Congress to extend the Treasury Grants Program through the end of 2012. Furthermore, it suggested expanding eligibility for the Department of Energy's loan program from only commercial projects to any new or significantly improved technologies. Establishing a Clean Energy Deployment Administration should also be a priority, according to the report.

In addition to solar incentives, the Recovery Act has increased federal funding for education and healthcare by $224 billion. It made $275 billion available for federal contracts, grants and loans and required recipients to report quarterly on spending.