Proposed funding would boost DOE budget by $3.3 bn, HASC begins FY23 NDAA markup
APPROPRIATIONS
On Tuesday, members of the House Appropriations Energy and Water Subcommittee advanced a bill proposing increased funding levels for the Department of Energy (DOE) in fiscal year 2023. The subcommittee bill provides $56.3 billion in total, an increase of $3.4 billion above fiscal year 2022. This boosted funding level includes $48.2 billion for DOE, an increase of $3.3 billion above FY2022.
The bill provides $7.88 billion for the Office of Environmental Management (EM). This figure originally represented an increase above the Administration’s request; however, the Administration recently revised its budget request for the Hanford Site, which would boost the site’s budget by about $191 million. The bill’s proposed funding for EM is now approximately $146 million under the Administration’s request and around $20 million lower than the FY2022 appropriated level.
The bill also proposes $21.2 billion for the National Nuclear Security Administration, about $200 million below the Administration’s request, but $1.5 billion above the FY2022 appropriated amount.
A funding breakdown from the subcommittee’s website is below.
Environmental Management – The bill provides $7.88 billion. This funding is used for nuclear cleanup work at 15 sites across the country. This includes:
Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup – The bill provides $333.9 million, an increase of $10.6 million above the request.
Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning – The bill provides $823.3 million, an increase of $900,000 above the request.
Defense Environmental Cleanup – The bill provides $6.7 billion, an increase of $12.5 million above the fiscal year 2022 level.
National Nuclear Security Administration – The bill provides $21.2 billion for DOE’s nuclear security programs. This funding will maintain a safe, secure, and credible nuclear deterrent while addressing the threat of nuclear proliferation and terrorism. This includes:
Weapons Activities – The bill provides $16.3 billion, an increase of $413 million above the fiscal year 2022 level.
Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation – The bill provides $2.42 billion, an increase of $70 million above the fiscal year 2022 level and $77 million above the request.
Naval Reactors – The bill provides $2 billion, an increase of $82 million above the fiscal year 2022 level.
Nuclear Energy – The bill provides $1.78 billion, an increase of $125 million above the fiscal year 2022 level and $105 million above the request.
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy – The bill provides $4 billion, an increase of $800 million above the fiscal year 2022 level.
State and Community Energy Programs – The bill provides $562 million, an effective increase of $135 million above the fiscal year 2022 level.
Advanced Research Projects Agency—Energy – The bill provides $550 million, an increase of $100 million above the fiscal year 2022 level.
Science – The bill provides $8 billion, an increase of $525 million above the fiscal year 2022 level and $201 million above the request.
Energy Projects – The bill provides $117.3 million for Community Project Funding in the Department of Energy.
Nuclear Waste Disposal – The bill provides $10.2 million for oversight of the Nuclear Waste Fund.
The Committee also proposed a total net appropriation of $137 million for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, $41.4 million for the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, and $3.9 million for the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board.
To read a full summary of the draft bill, please click here.
On Tuesday, June 28, the full Appropriations Committee will mark up the energy bill, where Members will have the opportunity to adjust funding levels before sending the bill to the House floor.
NDAA
Today, the House Armed Services Committee will commence its markup of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY2023. The Administration’s topline request is nearly $803 billion, but the committee may be poised to recommend an even higher figure, around $840 billion.
Last week, the Senate Armed Services Committee completed its markup and released a summary of its version of the bill, which recommended an $857 billion topline.
The topline for NNSA in the House committee’s bill is $21.4 billion, a recommended increase of $20 million above the Administration’s request. The Senate’s bill would authorize $22 billion for NNSA.
The House NDAA also includes $6.9 billion for defense environmental cleanup, equivalent to the Administration’s request. Meanwhile, the Senate’s bill would recommend cutting such funding (a $6.5 billion level), which would be a decrease from this year’s budget request and last year’s appropriated level.
The House bill notes NNSA’s acknowledgement that production of 80 plutonium pits by 2030 is not achievable. A new provision would instead require the federal government to produce however many pits are identified as necessary by the Secretary of Defense, and ensure that Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and Savannah River Plutonium Processing Facility have the ability to produce at least 30 and 50 pits during any year, respectively.
This would effectively eliminate the “80 pits by 2030” requirement. LANL would remain the Plutonium Science and Production Center of Excellence for the United States.
The House bill also includes a provision that would require the Nuclear Weapons Council to annually review the plans and budget of NNSA and “assess whether such plans and budget meet the current and projected requirements relating to nuclear weapons.”
This assessment will include “whether the plans and budget reviewed…will enable the Administrator to meet the requirements to produce war reserve plutonium pits.” If the requirements for pit production are not met, the bill would require “(i) an explanation for why the plans and budget will not enable the Administrator to meet such requirements; and (ii) proposed alternative plans, budget, or requirements by the Council to meet such requirements.”
The House markup of the NDAA may be streamed using the link here.