New year brings a new focus to ECA priority issues
With the start of the new year comes a host of important issues occurring in 2022. Key dates to watch include:
January 10: The House of Representatives reconvenes. The Senate reconvened January 3.
January 25: The President delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress.
February 18: The Continuing Resolution (CR) for FY 2022 - the current budget year - federal government funding expires.
March 7: The Federal FY 2023 Administration Budget Request would typically be due to Congress (and FY 2024 funding Senate and House hearings would begin) on February 7. However, this year's budget is expected to be at least one month late. As a reminder, the FY 2022 budget request was released in mid-May in 2021.
September 30: FY 2022 federal budget year ends.
November 8: Mid-term elections occur for all House seats, 34 of the 100 seats in the Senate, and 39 State and territorial governors.
Budgets
FY 2021 - Currently operating under the CR.
FY 2022 - Congress is working to pass the overdue appropriations bills for the FY 22 budget this year.
FY 2023 - The FY 23 Administration Budget Request is expected in March. The fiscal year begins in October.
FY 2024 - FY 24 budget discussions between the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) are set to begin in the first months of the year.
ECA members should contact their local DOE site representative to discuss budget priorities at this time. For additional information on the federal budget, please visit the ECA Budget Tracker.
Infrastructure Law projects
Implementation of projects funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is expected to begin in 2022. ECA communities are requesting support from DOE to support missions at DOE sites and their frontline communities, specifically relating to energy infrastructure projects included in the $62 billion provided to DOE by the law.
PILT funding request
The communities hosting the Savannah River Site and the Hanford Site, with the support of local school boards, have requested that Payments In-Lieu of Taxes (PILT) continue to be included in the budget request for FY 23 and beyond. The Administration did not request PILT funding last year. These critical payments support local school, police, and emergency response funding for the frontline communities adjacent to DOE sites.
Mid-term elections
This year's mid-term elections may bring about changes in leadership of key committees including the following: Appropriations, Armed Services, and Budget (House and Senate); Energy and Commerce (House); Science, Space, and Technology (House); Commerce, Science, and Transportation (Senate); and Energy and Natural Resources (Senate).
ECA will continue to provide updates on these key issues as they become available.