SUMMARY: Energy and Water and Related Agencies Fiscal Year 2022 Appropriations Bill
Washington, D.C. – The Energy and Water Development fiscal year 2022 appropriations bill totals $53.625 billion in discretionary budget authority, $1.873 billion more than fiscal year 2021 and equal to the President’s request. The bill provides $10.662 billion to improve the nation’s water infrastructure, which includes a record level of funding for the Army Corps of Engineers’ Civil Works program at $8.7 billion, an increase of $906 million over fiscal year 2021. Funding for the Corps will be used to build projects that reduce the risk of flood and storm damage, improve the efficiency of our ports, harbors, and inland waterways, and restores aquatic environments. The bill also includes $1.832 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation, an increase of $310 million over fiscal year 2021, to assist the western states in maintaining water supply for Tribes, rural communities, and parts of the country experiencing drought conditions.
“The energy and water funding bill advanced by the Appropriations Committee today will help improve and modernize the infrastructure needs of California and the nation, and I was pleased to work with Ranking Member Kennedy to finalize this bipartisan legislation,” Chairman Feinstein said. “The bill makes significant investments in our water infrastructure that will allow the Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation to complete water storage, dam safety, water recycling and desalination projects across the country. The bill also makes notable investments in our fight against climate change, significantly increasing funding for the Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Office of Science and Office of Electricity.”
Key Points & Highlights –
Drought Relief
The bill includes $450 million in emergency funding to the Bureau of Reclamation to address the severe drought in the western United States.
Corps of Engineers
The bill includes the highest-ever level of funding for the Army Corps’ Civil Works program at $8.7 billion, $906 million over fiscal year 2021. The Corps maintains our inland waterways and ports, manages a portion of our water supply, provides emission-free electricity from dams, restores aquatic ecosystems, looks after our recreational lands and waters, reduces flooding, and provides emergency response to natural disasters. The annual net economic benefit generated by the Corps’ Civil Works mission is estimated to be $89 billion, which equates to a return of about $12 for every dollar expended.
Department of the Interior
The bill provides $1.962 billion for the Department of Interior, which is $300 million more than fiscal year 2021. This amount includes $21 million for the Central Utah Project and $1.8 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation.
Funding for the Bureau of Reclamation includes $186 million to fund Western drought programs under the WIIN Act. These programs fund long-term drought strategies including, water storage, water recycling and reuse, and desalination. Additionally to address the needs caused by the severe drought the bill also provides $450 million in emergency funding for the severe drought in the western states.
Department of Energy (DOE)
The Energy and Water bill provides $45.323 billion for DOE. This amount is $3.3 billion more than the fiscal year 2021 level. These funds include:
Scientific Discovery
The bill provides $7.490 billion in new directed funding, $464 million more than fiscal year 2021, for the Office of Science. The Office of Science is the largest federal sponsor of basic research in the physical sciences, and supports 22,000 researchers at 17 national laboratories and more than 300 universities. The bill continues to advance the highest priorities in materials research, high performance computing and biology to maintain U.S. scientific leadership.
Applied Energy Research and Development
The bill provides $6.817 billion for applied energy programs, $1.330 billion more than fiscal year 2021. This funding supports research, development, demonstration and deployment of an extensive range of clean energy technologies, including for nuclear, fossil and renewable energy applications, that keep the United States at the forefront of energy innovation. This amount includes $500 million for the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) to develop next-generation, innovative energy technologies and $100 million for the new Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations.
Nonproliferation
The bill provides $2.264 billion, an increase of $4 million more than fiscal year 2021. The bill funds efforts to secure radiological materials in the U.S. and abroad, to conduct research and development activities on nuclear proliferation and detonation detection, and installation of radiological detection equipment at border crossing and seaports around the world.
Nuclear Weapons
The bill provides $15.484 billion for nuclear weapons activities, an increase of $139 million over fiscal year 2021 levels. The bill fully funds life extension programs for the B61, W88, and W80-4 warheads. Significant increases are also included to address deferred maintenance among NNSA’s facilities, and improve its ability to modernize the nuclear stockpile.
Naval Reactors
The bill funds Naval Reactors at $1.840 billion, a $156 million increase from fiscal year 2021. The agreement funds operations and infrastructure activities at facilities in New York and Pennsylvania.
Renewable Energy
The agreement provides a historic level of funding of $3.89 billion for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) – a historic funding high for EERE – and a $1.03 billion increase over fiscal year 2021 levels. These increased funds will energize every EERE effort, from vehicle technologies, to hydrogen research and development, marine, wind, and solar energy, and weatherization assistance programs. These programs remain central to facilitating our nation’s ongoing transition to a clean energy economy.
Independent Agencies
The Energy and Water bill provides $461 million, $48 million more than fiscal year 2021, for eight independent agencies, including the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, five regional commissions, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board.
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