June 1, 2011 WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Appropriations Committee today released the fiscal year 2012 Energy and Water and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, which will be considered in the Energy and Water Subcommittee tomorrow.
The legislation provides the annual funding for the various agencies and programs under the Department of Energy, including the National Nuclear Security Administration, as well as the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and various regional water and power authorities. The bill released today totals $30.6 billion – a cut of $5.9 billion below the President’s request and $1 billion below last year – which brings the total cost of the bill to nearly the 2006 funding level.
Army Corps of Engineers – The Army Corps of Engineers is funded at $4.8 billion, a decrease of $89 million below last year’s level and $195 million above the budget request. There are no congressionally earmarked projects within this bill.
The legislation advances American competitiveness and export ability by providing more than $1.75 billion for navigation projects and studies. The bill also supports public health and safety by funding flood and coastal storm damage reduction activities at $1.54 billion – including $474 million for critical dam safety improvements.
The bill does not fund all of the presidentially requested projects for the Army Corps – redirecting $59 million to navigation and flood control activities that will have a more immediate impact on job creation and the economy. Due to the large number of ongoing projects, the bill provides a limited amount of discretionary funding to continue essential flood control and navigation projects to be prioritized by the Corps. This additional flexibility will help address critical navigation and flood control needs across this country, while improving Administration transparency and maintaining Congressional authority over budget decisions.
Bureau of Reclamation – The legislation contains $934 million – $161 million below last year’s level and $117 million below the President’s request – for the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Reclamation. This funding is intended to help manage, develop and protect the water resources of the western states.
For the complete text of the subcommittee draft of the FY 2012 Energy and Water Appropriations bill, please visit: http://republicans.appropriations.house.gov/_files/EnergyWaterDPOSTED_xml.pdf
The following table compares the FY 2012 Energy and Water Appropriations bill with last year’s level and the President’s request:
(Numbers in $000)
| FY11 enacted | FY12 request | Mark | Compared to FY11 | Compared to request | |
| Title I: Corps of Engineers – Civil | 4,857,213 | 4,573,000 | 4,768,406 | -88,807 | 195,406 |
| Investigations | 126,746 | 104,000 | 104,000 | -22,746 | —- |
| Construction | 1,613,822 | 1,480,000 | 1,565,941 | -47,881 | 85,941 |
| Mississippi River and Tributaries | 241,906 | 152,000 | 210,000 | -31,906 | 58,000 |
| Operations and Maintenance | 2,365,759 | 2,314,000 | 2,366,465 | 706 | 52,465 |
| Flood control and coastal emergencies | —- | 27,000 | 27,000 | 27,000 | —- |
| Title II: Department of the Interior | 1,094,525 | 1,051,380 | 934,000 | -160,525 | -117,380 |
| Water and Related Resources | 911,673 | 805,187 | 822,300 | -89,373 | 17,113 |
| Subtotal, Bureau of Reclamation | 1,062,585 | 1,018,389 | 971,296 | -91,289 | -47,093 |
| Title III: Department of Energy | 25,591,176 | 30,683,802 | 24,740,746 | -850,430 | -5,943,056 |
| Energy efficiency and renewable energy | 1,795,641 | 3,200,053 | 1,304,636 | -491,005 | -1,895,417 |
| Nuclear energy | 725,824 | 754,028 | 733,633 | 7,809 | -20,395 |
| Fossil Energy R&D | 444,529 | 452,975 | 476,993 | 32,464 | 24,018 |
| Uranium Enrichment D&D Program | 497,084 | 504,169 | 449,000 | -48,084 | -55,169 |
| Science | 4,842,665 | 5,416,114 | 4,800,000 | -42,665 | -616,114 |
| Nuclear waste disposal | -2,800 | —- | 25,000 | 27,800 | 25,000 |
| ARPA-E | 179,640 | 550,011 | 100,000 | -79,640 | -450,011 |
| Loan Guarantee Program | -340 | 1,060,000 | 160,000 | 160,340 | -900,000 |
| Subtotal, Energy programs | 9,181,665 | 12,596,391 | 8,282,016 | -899,649 | -4,314,375 |
| Weapons Activities | 6,896,398 | 7,589,384 | 7,091,661 | 195,263 | -497,723 |
| Defense nuclear nonproliferation | 2,273,653 | 2,519,492 | 2,056,770 | -216,883 | -462,722 |
| Naval Reactors | 959,176 | 1,153,662 | 1,030,600 | 71,424 | -123,062 |
| Subtotal, Defense Activities | 10,522,520 | 11,712,598 | 10,599,031 | 76,511 | -1,113,567 |
| Defense environmental cleanup | 4,979,738 | 5,406,781 | 4,937,619 | -42,119 | -469,162 |
| Other defense activities | 785,020 | 859,952 | 814,000 | 28,980 | -45,952 |
| Power Marketing Administrations | 122,233 | 108,080 | 108,080 | -14,153 | —- |
| Title IV: Independent Agencies | 246,981 | 267,627 | 266,575 | 19,594 | -1,052 |
| Appalachian Regional Commission | 68,263 | 76,000 | 68,400 | 137 | -7,600 |
| Delta Regional Authority | 11,677 | 13,000 | 11,700 | 23 | -1,300 |
| Denali Commission | -4,321 | 11,965 | 10,700 | 15,021 | -1,265 |
| Nuclear Regulatory Commission | 138,072 | 128,600 | 137,613 | -459 | 9,013 |
| Grand total | 31,682,000 | 36,539,809 | 30,638,727 | -1,043,273 | -5,901,082 |
Read the entire press release from the U.S. House of Representatives here: http://appropriations.house.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=320&Month=6&Year=2011
