Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Congressional research reportMay 15, 2024
Ask Donna
What actually matters in this document.
Text
Energy and Water Development:
FY2024 Appropriations
Updated May 15, 2024
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
R47553
SUMMARY
R47553
Energy and Water Development:
FY2024 Appropriations
May 15, 2024
The Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies appropriations (E&W) bill funds civil
works activities of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in the Department of Defense;
the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and Central Utah Project
(CUP); the Department of Energy (DOE); the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC); the
Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC); and several other independent agencies. DOE
typically accounts for about 80% of the bill’s funding.
Mark Holt
Specialist in Energy Policy
Anna E. Normand
Specialist in Natural
Resources Policy
Overall Funding Totals
President Biden submitted his FY2024 budget request on March 9, 2023. The Administration
request included $62.012 billion for energy and water development agencies, an increase of $2.809 billion (5%) above the
FY2023 enacted amount, excluding emergency appropriations, offsets, and adjustments. The House Appropriations
Committee approved its FY2024 E&W bill on June 22, 2023 (H.R. 4394, H.Rept. 118-126) and the House passed it with
amendments October 26, 2023. The Senate Appropriations Committee approved its version of the bill on July 20, 2023 (S.
2443, S.Rept. 118-72). Energy and water development appropriations were included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2024, signed into law March 9, 2024 (P.L. 118-42). Enacted funding totaled $61.375 billion, about 1% below the
Administration request (excluding recissions and adjustments).
Energy and Water Development Appropriations, FY2023 and FY2024
dollars in millions (and % change from FY2023 enacted)
Agency
FY2023
Enacted
Corps of Engineers
8,310
Bureau of Reclamation/CUP
FY2024
Request
(% Change)
FY2024 House
(% Change)
FY2024 Senate
Comm.
(% Change)
FY2024 Enacted
(% Change)
7,413 (-11%)
9,573 (+15%)
8,837 (+6%)
8,703 (+5%)
1,954
1,469 (-25%)
1,871 (-4%)
1,941 (-1%)
1,923 (-2%)
Department of Energy
48,445
52,571 (+9%)
48,021 (-1%)
50,269 (+4%)
50,247 (+4%)
Independent Agencies
494
559 (+13%)
523 (+6%)
499 (+1%)
502 (+2%)
Total appropriations
59,204
62,012 (+5%)
59,988 (+1%)
61,547 (+4%)
61,375 (+4%)
Rescissions and other adjustments
-2,202
-4
-8,607
-3,452
-22
Adjusted total
57,002
62,008 (+9)
51,381 (-10%)
58,095 (+2%)
61,353 (+8%)
Sources: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024; S.Rept. 118-72, H.Rept. 118-126, H.R. 4394,
Administration FY2024 Budget Request.
Notes: CUP = Central Utah Project Completion Account. Enacted amounts do not include emergency supplemental
appropriations. Adjusted total for House bill includes $2.877 billion in scorekeeping adjustments.
Major Issues
Recent Supplemental Funding. From FY2018 through FY2023, Congress provided supplemental appropriations for E&W
agencies. These appropriations were noted in the Administration’s FY2024 budget justifications and factored into the
congressional debate on FY2024 E&W appropriations. This debate included considerations over the amount of regular
appropriations that the FY2024 E&W bill should provide, and whether to rescind or redirect supplemental appropriations.
Congressionally Directed Funding (Earmarks). For FY2024, the House Appropriations Committee allowed earmark requests
within the major USACE and Reclamation accounts, while the Senate Appropriations Committee allowed earmark requests
for major USACE, Reclamation, and DOE energy-related accounts. The explanatory statement included 273 energy and
water development earmarks under USACE, Reclamation, and DOE accounts totaling $1.613 billion.
Energy Efficiency Standards. Several amendments aimed at DOE energy efficiency standards were adopted during House
floor debate. The amendments would have blocked funds for DOE efficiency rules on furnaces, water heaters, manufactured
housing, commercial icemakers, and room air conditioners, and any regulation with an annual economic impact of more than
$100 million. They were not included in the enacted measure.
Congressional Research Service
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Contents
Introduction and Overview .............................................................................................................. 1
Administration Request ............................................................................................................. 2
House ........................................................................................................................................ 3
Senate Appropriations Committee ............................................................................................ 4
FY2024 Enacted Funding ......................................................................................................... 4
FY2023 Enacted Funding ......................................................................................................... 5
FY2024 Budgetary Limits......................................................................................................... 5
Funding Issues and Initiatives ......................................................................................................... 6
Congressionally Directed Funding ............................................................................................ 6
Recent Supplemental Funding .................................................................................................. 8
Water Resources Agency Funding .......................................................................................... 10
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ......................................................................................... 10
Bureau of Reclamation ...................................................................................................... 11
Proposed Increases for EERE and New Accounts .................................................................. 12
Proposed Energy Efficiency Rescissions and Reductions....................................................... 13
Controversy over Energy Efficiency Standards ...................................................................... 14
Increases for Advanced Nuclear Reactors and Fuel ................................................................ 15
Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) Sales, Closing of Gasoline Reserve, and Proposed
Rescissions ........................................................................................................................... 16
Proposed Increase for the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations ........................................ 16
Reduction in Crosscutting Hydrogen Funding ........................................................................ 18
Title 17 Loan Guarantee Program Authority and Funding ...................................................... 18
Increase for Weapons Activities, Decrease for Naval Reactors .............................................. 19
Startup of Surplus Plutonium Disposition ............................................................................... 20
Cleanup of Former Nuclear Sites: Adequacy of Proposed Funding ....................................... 21
Federal Regional Commissions and Authorities: Initial Funding for Great Lakes
Authority, Denali Commission Cost-Sharing, and Authorizations of Appropriations ......... 21
Bill Status and Recent Funding History ........................................................................................ 22
Description of Major Energy and Water Programs ....................................................................... 23
Agency Budget Justifications .................................................................................................. 24
Army Corps of Engineers........................................................................................................ 25
Additional Funding ........................................................................................................... 27
Bureau of Reclamation and Central Utah Project ................................................................... 27
Additional Funding ........................................................................................................... 29
Department of Energy ............................................................................................................. 29
DOE Crosscutting Initiatives ............................................................................................ 34
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy........................................................................ 34
Electricity Delivery, Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Energy Reliability.................. 35
Nuclear Energy ................................................................................................................. 36
Fossil Energy and Carbon Management ........................................................................... 36
Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) .................................................................................. 37
Science .............................................................................................................................. 38
Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy .................................................................. 39
Clean Energy Demonstrations .......................................................................................... 39
Loan Guarantees and Direct Loans ................................................................................... 39
Energy Information Administration .................................................................................. 40
Congressional Research Service
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Nuclear Weapons Activities .............................................................................................. 40
Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation .................................................................................... 41
Cleanup of Former Nuclear Weapons Production and Research Sites ............................. 42
Power Marketing Administrations .................................................................................... 43
Independent Agencies ............................................................................................................. 43
Appalachian Regional Commission .................................................................................. 45
Nuclear Regulatory Commission ...................................................................................... 45
Congressional Hearings ................................................................................................................. 46
House ...................................................................................................................................... 46
Senate ...................................................................................................................................... 47
Figures
Figure 1. Funding for Major Components of Energy and Water Development
Appropriations Bill, FY2023 Through FY2024 ........................................................................... 1
Figure 2. E&W CPF/CDS Total Funding from FY2022 Through FY2024..................................... 7
Tables
Table 1. Enacted Supplemental Appropriations for Agencies Funded by Energy and Water
Development Acts ........................................................................................................................ 8
Table 2. House Amendments Impacting DOE Energy Conservation Standards ........................... 14
Table 3. Additional Appropriations for Clean Energy Demonstrations in Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58) ....................................................................................... 17
Table 4. Status of Energy and Water Development Appropriations, FY2024 ............................... 22
Table 5. Energy and Water Development Appropriations, FY2019-FY2024 ................................ 23
Table 6. Energy and Water Development Appropriations Summary ............................................. 23
Table 7. Army Corps of Engineers ................................................................................................ 26
Table 8. Bureau of Reclamation and CUP..................................................................................... 28
Table 9. Department of Energy...................................................................................................... 30
Table 10. Additional FY2023 and FY2024 DOE Funding Under IIJA ......................................... 32
Table 11. Additional FY2023 DOE Funding Under IRA .............................................................. 33
Table 12. Additional FY2023 Funding for DOE in Divisions M and N of P.L. 117-328 .............. 34
Table 13. DOE Crosscutting Initiatives ......................................................................................... 34
Table 14. Independent Agencies Funded by Energy and Water Development
Appropriations............................................................................................................................ 44
Table 15. Additional Appropriations in IIJA for Regional Commissions and Authorities ............ 44
Table 16. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Funding Categories .................................................. 46
Contacts
Author Information........................................................................................................................ 47
Congressional Research Service
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Introduction and Overview
The Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies appropriations (E&W) bill includes
funding for civil works activities of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in the
Department of Defense, in Title I; the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation
(Reclamation) and Central Utah Project (CUP), in Title II; the Department of Energy (DOE), in
Title III; and a number of independent agencies, including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC) and the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), in Title IV. Figure 1 compares the
major components of the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill from FY2023
through the FY2024 enacted. Energy and water development appropriations were included in the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, signed into law March 9, 2024 (P.L. 118-42).
Figure 1. Funding for Major Components of Energy and Water Development
Appropriations Bill, FY2023 Through FY2024
(excluding supplementals)
Sources: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024; S.Rept. 118-72; H.Rept. 118-126;
H.R. 4394; FY2024 agency budget justifications; explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2023.
Notes: Enacted amounts do not include supplemental appropriations or adjustments and rescissions. CUP =
Central Utah Project Completion Account, Senate Comm. = reported by the Senate Appropriations Committee,
House = passed by the House.
President Biden submitted his FY2024 budget request on March 9, 2023. The Administration
request included $62.012 billion for energy and water development agencies, an increase of
$2.809 billion (5%) above the FY2023 enacted amount, excluding emergency appropriations,
adjustments, and offsets. DOE funding would have risen by $4.126 billion (9%), to $52.571
billion, and independent agencies by $65 million (13%), to $559 million. USACE would have
been reduced by $897 million (-11%), to $7.413 billion, and Reclamation and CUP would have
declined by $485 million (-25%), to $1.469 billion, excluding adjustments and offsets.1
The House Appropriations Committee approved its FY2024 E&W bill on June 22, 2023 (H.R.
4394, H.Rept. 118-126), and the House passed the bill with amendments on October 26, 2023.
1 Unless otherwise noted, appropriations numbers in this report for FY2023 and FY2024 are taken from the explanatory
statement for the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, Division D, Congressional Record, March 5, 2024, p. S1523,
https://www.congress.gov/118/crec/2024/03/05/170/39/CREC-2024-03-05.pdf; FY2024 agency budget justifications;
H.Rept. 118-126; S.Rept. 118-61; and H.R. 4394 as passed by the House. Some appropriations totals for FY2023 have
changed from previously calculated amounts because of re-estimates of revenue offsets and other adjustments.
Congressional Research Service
1
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Total funding in the House-passed bill was $59.988 billion, excluding emergency appropriations,
adjustments, and offsets, but including a floor amendment that reduced the DOE Office of Energy
Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) appropriations by $1 billion. That DOE total was $781
million (1%) above the FY2023 enacted level and $2.028 billion (-3%) below the Administration
request. DOE would have received $48.021 billion, $425 million (-1%) below the FY2023
enacted amount and $4.551 billion (-9%) below the request. USACE would have received $9.573
billion, $1.260 billion (15%) above the FY2023 enacted amount and $2.160 billion (29%) above
the request. Reclamation and CUP would have received $1.871 billion, a decrease of $83 million
(-4%) from the FY2023 enacted level and an increase of $402 million (27%) over the request.
Independent agencies would have received $523 million, an increase of $29 million (6%) over the
FY2023 level and $36 million (-6%) below the request. The House-passed bill also included
rescissions from DOE energy efficiency programs totaling $5.730 billion and budget
scorekeeping adjustments of $2.877 billion.
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved its version on July 20, 2023 (S. 2443, S.Rept.
118-72), with no subsequent floor action taking place. The committee bill totaled $61.547 billion,
excluding emergency appropriations, adjustments, and offsets. That amount was $2.343 billion
(4%) above the FY2023 enacted level and $466 million (-1%) below the request. DOE would
have received $50.269 billion, an increase of $1.824 billion (4%) from the FY2023 enacted
amount and a reduction of $2.302 billion (-4%) from the request. USACE would have received
$8.837 billion, an increase of $527 million (6%) over the FY2023 enacted amount and $1.424
billion (19%) above the request. Reclamation and CUP would have received $1.941 billion, $13
million (-1%) below the FY2023 enacted amount and $472 million (32%) above the request.
Independent agencies would have received $499 million, an increase of $4 million (1%) over the
FY2023 enacted level and a decrease of $61 million (-11%) from the request.
President Biden signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (P.L. 118-42), including
FY2024 energy and water development appropriations as Division D, on March 9, 2024.
Excluding adjustments, the enacted measure totaled $61.375 billion for energy and water
development agencies, an increase of $2.171 billion (4%) above the enacted FY2023 amount and
$638 billion (-1%) below the request. DOE received $50.247 billion, an increase of $1.801 billion
(4%) over FY2023 and $2.324 billion (-4%) below the request. USACE received $8.703 billion,2
which was $393 million (5%) more than in FY2023 and $1.290 billion (17%) higher than the
request. Reclamation and CUP received a slight reduction of $31 million (-2%) from FY2023,
totaling $1.923 billion for FY2024. However, the enacted amount was $454 million (31%) above
the request. Independent agencies received a total of $502 million, an increase of $8 million (2%)
from the FY2023 amount and $57 million (-10%) below the request.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA; P.L. 117-58) and the budget reconciliation
measure commonly referred to as the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA; P.L. 117-169)
provided additional appropriations for energy and water development agencies above the enacted
amounts in the Consolidated Appropriations Act for FY2023 and FY2024 (as well as several
other years). For instance, IIJA appropriated an additional $16.040 billion for FY2023 and
$13.688 billion for FY2024. IRA appropriated $4.588 billion for Reclamation and $35.067 billion
for DOE for FY2022, to remain available for as long as through FY2031.
Administration Request
DOE’s major program areas include energy, science, defense, and environmental management.
The Administration’s largest proposed increase in the energy programs area was for EERE, which
2 This does not include $22 million in recessions.
Congressional Research Service
2
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
would have risen by $1.332 billion (28%) over the equivalent FY2023 enacted amount, to $4.792
billion. This included several large programs under the EERE appropriations account—the
Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP), Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply
Chains, and low-income weatherization and state planning grants in the Office of State and
Community Programs—for which the Administration proposed to have separate accounts in
FY2024.
Other energy programs with large proposed percentage increases were the Office of Technology
Transitions, which facilitates the commercialization of new energy technologies, proposed to
increase by 156% in FY2024 to $57 million, and the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations,
which would have risen by 142% to $215 million. The Office of Indian Energy Policy and
Programs would have increased by 47% to $110 million, and the Advanced Research Projects
Agency—Energy (ARPA-E) would have increased by 38% to $650 million.
Funding for DOE’s Office of Science was set to increase by $700 million (9%), to $8.800 billion,
under the Administration budget request, with the largest percentage increases proposed for
Isotope R&D and Production (58%), to $173 million, and Fusion Energy Sciences (32%), to
$1.010 billion. Funding for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), which is
responsible for nuclear warheads, nuclear weapons nonproliferation, and naval reactor research
and development (R&D), was proposed to increase by $1.682 billion (8%), to $23.845 billion.
Environmental Management (waste management and cleanup) would have increased by $17
million (less than 1%), to $8.280 billion.
The water agencies in the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill were proposed for
funding reductions under the FY2024 budget request. Discretionary E&W appropriations for
USACE would have declined from their FY2023 enacted level by $897 million (-11%), to $7.413
billion. Reclamation (separately from CUP) would have been reduced by $482 million (-25%), to
$1.449 billion.
Among the independent agencies funded by the bill, NRC would have received an increase in
total appropriations from $927 million in FY2023 to $979 million in FY2024 (up $52 million, or
6%). NRC’s budget is mostly offset by nuclear industry fees, which may vary from year to year;
the Administration proposed an increase in the agency’s net appropriation from $137 million in
FY2023 to $156 million in FY2024 (up $19 million, or 14%). Funding for ARC would have
increased from $200 million in FY2023 to $235 million in FY2024 (up $35 million, or 18%). The
request included $5 million in initial funding for the newly authorized Great Lakes Authority. The
funding for the other regional authorities in the bill was largely unchanged from the FY2023
enacted levels.
House
In the House-passed bill, DOE would have received FY2024 appropriations of $48.021 billion,
offset by $5.730 billion in rescissions and $2.877 billion in budget scorekeeping adjustments.
Excluding the rescissions and adjustments, the DOE appropriation would have been an increase
of $781 million (1%) above the FY2023 enacted level and $2.028 billion (-3%) below the
request.
EERE’s FY2024 appropriations as reported by the House Appropriations Committee were
reduced by $1 billion by a floor amendment, which did not specify how the reduction was to be
allocated. As passed by the House, EERE would have received $1.994 billion for FY2024,
including several programs that the Administration proposed to fund separately. The Housepassed level would have constituted a decrease of $1.466 billion (-42%) from the FY2023 amount
and $2.798 billion (-58%) below the equivalent request. The House-passed bill would have
Congressional Research Service
3
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
rescinded $5.700 billion in previous EERE energy efficiency appropriations in the Inflation
Reduction Act (P.L. 117-169). DOE nuclear energy research would have received $1.783 billion,
an increase of $160 million (10%) over the FY2023 level and $220 million (14%) above the
request. The DOE Office of Science would have received $8.100 billion, the same as the FY2023
enacted amount and $700 million (-8%) below the request. NNSA would have received $23.959
billion, an increase of $1.797 billion (8%) over FY2023 and $114 million (less than 1%) above
the request.
USACE would have received $9.573 billion, an increase of $1.263 billion (15%) over the
FY2023 enacted amount and $2.160 billion (29%) above the request. Reclamation and CUP
would have received $1.871 billion, a decrease of $83 million (-4%) from the FY2023 level and
an increase of $402 million (27%) above the request. NRC would have received a net
appropriation of $156 million, the amount requested. Other independent agencies would also have
received mostly the requested amounts, with the main exception being ARC, which would have
received $200 million, the same amount as in FY2023 and $35 million (-15%) below the request.
The Delta Regional Authority (DRA) would have received $31.1 million, which is an increase of
$1 million from the FY2023 enacted and FY2024 budget request amounts of $30.1 million.
Senate Appropriations Committee
DOE would have received appropriations of $50.269 million in the Senate committee bill,
including rescissions, adjustments, and offsets, an increase of $1.824 billion (4%) over the
FY2023 enacted amount and a decrease of $2.302 billion (-4%) from the request. EERE,
including programs that the Administration proposed to fund under separate accounts, would have
received $3.687 billion, an increase of $227 million (7%) over the FY2023 amount and a
decrease of $1.105 billion (23%) from the equivalent request. Science would have received
$8.430 billion, an increase of $330 million (4%) over the FY2023 enacted level and $370 million
(-4%) below the request. DOE appropriations were to be offset by a $401 million rescission from
the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Petroleum Account and $95 million estimated from the sale of
the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve.
USACE would have received $8.837 billion, an increase of $527 million (6%) above the FY2023
enacted amount and $1.424 billion (19%) above the request. Reclamation and CUP would have
received $1.941 billion, a decrease of $13 million (-1%) from the FY2023 amount and $472
million (32%) above the request. NRC would have received the same amount as the request,
although more prior-year carryover was to be used to reduce the net appropriation. ARC was to
receive $200 million, the same as in FY2023 and $35 million (-15%) below the request.
Requested first-time funding of $5 million for the Great Lakes Authority would have been cut in
half, while the other regional authorities and commissions were to receive all or slightly more
than the amounts requested.
FY2024 Enacted Funding
Division D of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, provided DOE with $50.247 billion, an
increase of $1.801 billion (4%) over FY2023 and $2.324 billion (-4%) below the request. EERE,
including programs that the Administration proposed to fund under separate accounts, received
$3.460 billion, the same as the FY2023 amount and a decrease of $1.332 billion (28%) from the
equivalent request. Science received $8.240 billion, an increase of $140 million (2%) over the
FY2023 enacted level and $560 million (-6%) below the request. NNSA received $24.135 billion,
an increase of $1.972 billion (9%) over FY2023 and $290 million (1%) above the request.
Congressional Research Service
4
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
USACE received $8.703 billion, excluding rescissions and adjustments, which is $393 million
(5%) more than in FY2023 and $1.290 billion (17%) higher than the request. Reclamation and
CUP received $1.923 billion, a reduction of $31 million (-2%) from FY2023 and $454 million
(31%) above the request.
NRC received $944 million, an increase of $17 million (2%) over the FY2023 level and a
decrease of $35 million (-4%) from the request, although the net appropriation was almost the
same as in FY2023.3 ARC received $200 million, the same as in FY2023 and $35 million (-15%)
below the request. The Great Lakes Authority received first-time funding of $5 million, the
requested amount, while the other regional authorities and commissions received all or slightly
more than the amounts requested. The Northern Border Regional Commission and DRA received
an amount that was $1 million more than their FY2024 requested amounts ($41 million and $31.1
million, respectively).
FY2023 Enacted Funding
FY2023 Energy and Water Development funding was included in Division D of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2023, passed by Congress on December 22, 2022, and signed into law on
December 29, 2022 (P.L. 117-328). Excluding emergency supplementals and rescissions, the
Consolidated Appropriations Act provided a total of $57.133 billion, 3% above the FY2022
enacted level. Division M of the act included emergency additional FY2023 appropriations of
$300 million for Nuclear Energy and $125 million for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation.
Division N also provided supplemental appropriations of $1.480 billion for USACE, $1.000
billion for DOE’s Electricity account to improve Puerto Rico’s electricity grid, and $520 million
for the Western Area Power Administration. Many energy and water development programs also
received additional FY2023 appropriations from IIJA.
DOE received $48.445 billion in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, excluding
emergency supplementals and rescissions. This was $3.590 billion (8%) above the FY2022
enacted level. USACE received $8.310 billion, which was slightly below (less than 1%) the
FY2022 enacted level, and Reclamation received $1.931 billion, an increase of $30 million (2%)
over the FY2022 enacted amount.
For more details, see
•
•
•
CRS Report R47293, Energy and Water Development: FY2023 Appropriations,
by Mark Holt and Anna E. Normand.
CRS In Focus IF12090, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: FY2023 Appropriations,
by Anna E. Normand and Nicole T. Carter.
CRS In Focus IF12127, Bureau of Reclamation: FY2023 Budget and
Appropriations, by Charles V. Stern.
FY2024 Budgetary Limits
Congressional consideration of the annual Energy and Water Development appropriations bill is
affected by certain procedural and statutory budget enforcement requirements. These consist
primarily of procedural limits on discretionary spending (spending provided in annual
appropriations acts) established in a budget resolution or through some other means, and
3 NRC appropriations are about 85% offset by fee revenues, leaving a net FY2024 enacted appropriation of $137
million.
Congressional Research Service
5
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
allocations of this amount that apply to spending under the jurisdiction of each appropriations
subcommittee.
The Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA, P.L. 118-5), enacted in June 2023, establishes enforceable
discretionary spending limits (caps) for FY2024 and FY2025. For FY2024, the limits are
$886.349 billion for defense and $703.651 billion for nondefense. Spending designated as an
emergency requirement would be exempt up to any amount, while funding for certain purposes—
such as program integrity initiatives, disaster funding, and reemployment services—would be
exempt up to specified amounts.
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved FY2024 funding allocations to its
subcommittees based on the FRA limits on June 22, 2023. The Energy and Water Development
Subcommittee received an allocation of $33.422 billion for defense and $23.308 billion for
nondefense, totaling $56.730 billion.4
The House Appropriations Committee approved its FY2024 subcommittee allocations on June 15,
2023, reducing the total nondefense ceiling below the FRA level by calling for more than $115
billion in rescissions of previous appropriations. The Committee’s allocation report said that “the
net impact of this effort is to limit the total amount of new discretionary spending to fiscal year
2022 levels.” As a result, the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee allocation was
$52.378 billion.5 For more information, see CRS Report R46468, A Brief Overview of the
Congressional Budget Process, by James V. Saturno, and CRS Insight IN12168, Discretionary
Spending Caps in the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, by Grant A. Driessen and Megan S.
Lynch.
Funding Issues and Initiatives
Several issues drew particular attention during congressional consideration of Energy and Water
Development appropriations for FY2024. The issues described in this section—listed
approximately in the order the affected agencies appear in the Energy and Water Development
bill—were selected based on total funding involved, percentage of proposed increases or
decreases, amount of congressional debate engendered, and potential impact on broader public
policy considerations.
Congressionally Directed Funding
The 118th Congress, largely continuing the policies of the 117th Congress, allowed earmarks for
site-specific projects and other activities in the FY2024 appropriations process. These are referred
to as “community project funding” (CPF) in the House and “congressionally directed spending”
(CDS) in the Senate. From the 112th through the 116th Congresses, moratorium policies largely
prohibited earmarks for such projects. Funding for specific water projects constitutes the majority
of the annual budget request for USACE and Reclamation.6 For FY2024, the House and Senate
Appropriations committees invited Members of Congress to request CPF/CDS items,
4 Senate Appropriations Committee, “Chair’s Proposal: Allocation to Subcommittees for Fiscal Year 2024,” June 22,
2023, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/fy24_302b_allocations.pdf.
5 House Appropriations Committee, “Report on the Suballocation of Budget Allocations for Fiscal Year 2024,” June
15, 2023, https://appropriations.house.gov/sites/republicans.appropriations.house.gov/files/documents/
FY24%20House%20Subcommittee%20Allocations%206.13.23_0.pdf.
6 During the moratorium, Congress appropriated funding above the requested amounts for categories of work, called
additional funding, without identifying specific projects. In the 117th and 118th Congresses, enacted appropriations have
included additional funding for USACE and Reclamation, along with CPF/CDS items.
Congressional Research Service
6
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
respectively. The House Appropriations Committee allowed CPF requests within the major
USACE and Reclamation accounts, while the Senate Appropriations Committee allowed CDS
requests for major USACE, Reclamation, and DOE energy-related accounts.7
The explanatory statement for the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, included 273 energy
and water development CPF/CDS items totaling $1.613 billion.8 This included 217 items for
USACE, totaling about $1.489 billion, and 8 items for Reclamation, totaling about $41 million.
For DOE, the explanatory statement included 48 CDS items totaling about $84 million under the
Energy Projects appropriations account.9 Four of these earmarks were $100 million or more for
USACE construction projects: Chickamauga Lock, TN ($237 million); the Upper Mississippi
River-Illinois Waterway System, IL, IA, MN, MO, and WI ($120 million); the McClellan-Kerr
Arkansas River Navigation System, AR ($103 million); and the Sabine-Neches Waterway, TX
($100 million). Figure 2 shows enacted CPF/CDS amounts per agency for FY2022 through
FY2024 and the patterned area of the stacked column distinguishes the sum of the top three
CPF/CDS items (all under USACE appropriations).
Figure 2. E&W CPF/CDS Total Funding from FY2022 Through FY2024
(nominal $, in millions)
Source: Community Project Funding (CPF)/Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) tables in explanatory
statements accompanying enacted annual appropriations for FY2022 through FY2024.
Notes: The patterned pattered area of the stacked column distinguishes the sum of the top three CPF/CDS
items (all under USACE appropriations).
7 For House CPF details, see “Fiscal Year 2024 Member Request Guidance,” https://appropriations.house.gov/fiscal-
year-2024-member-request-guidance; for the Senate, see “FY 2024 Appropriations Requests and Congressionally
Directed Spending,” https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/fy-2024-appropriations-requests-and-congressionallydirected-spending.
8 Compiled from PDF copies of combined Community Project Funding (CPF) and Congressionally Directed Spending
(CDS) provision data tables that appeared in the FY2024 Consolidated Appropriations Act Explanatory Statement
reprinted in the March 5, 2024, Congressional Record. Amounts given are the totals above the Administration request
for each earmark. Amounts over the presidential budget request level are considered Community Project Funding and
Congressionally Directed Spending for purposes of House and Senate rules.
9 There were no House CPF items for the Department of Energy (DOE). As mentioned above, the House did not allow
CPF submissions for DOE energy-related accounts.
Congressional Research Service
7
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Recent Supplemental Funding
From FY2018 through FY2023, Congress provided supplemental appropriations for USACE and
Reclamation for disaster response and mitigation (e.g., drought, flood); study, construction,
maintenance, and repair of projects; new authorities that expand the agencies’ activities; and
COVID-19 precautions, among other purposes.10 Through FY2024, Congress provided
supplemental appropriations to DOE for clean energy demonstration projects, science facilities
and infrastructure, hydrogen production and distribution infrastructure, nuclear weapons
nonproliferation, and renewable energy R&D, among other purposes. In addition, in some years,
other agencies funded under Energy and Water Appropriations Acts received supplemental
funding. Table 1 details in nominal dollars supplemental appropriations based on the fiscal year
when funds are first available (in some cases, FY2024-FY2026). All of these funds are available
until expended except for funds from the IRA, which are available through various years from
FY2026 to FY2031, and Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation and Salaries and Expenses in P.L.
118-50, which are available through FY2025.11
Table 1. Enacted Supplemental Appropriations for Agencies Funded by Energy and
Water Development Acts
(FY2018-FY2026 dollars in millions)
Act
Title I:
U.S. Army
Corps of
Engineers
FY2018
P.L. 115-123
17,398
—
22
—
FY2019
P.L. 116-20
3,258
16
—
—
FY2020
P.L. 116-136
70
21
128
3
FY2021
—
—
—
—
—
P.L. 117-43
5,711
220
43
—
P.L. 117-58
14,969
1,710
18,687
581
P.L. 117-169
—
4,588
35,067
—
P.L. 117-58
1,080
1,660
13,100
200
P.L. 117-180
20
—
—
—
P.L. 117-328
1,480
—
1,945
—
P.L. 117-58
1,050
1,660
10,778
200
P.L. 118-50
—
—
247
—
FY2025
P.L. 117-58
—
1,660
10,831
200
FY2026
P.L. 117-58
—
1,660
9,072
200
FY Funds
First
Available
FY2022
FY2023
FY2024
Title II:
Bureau of
Reclamation
and CUP
Title III:
Department
of Energy
Title IV:
Independent
Agencies
10 For CRS water resource products on these acts, see CRS In Focus IF11945, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers:
Supplemental Appropriations, by Nicole T. Carter and Anna E. Normand; CRS Insight IN11723, Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act Funding for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Civil Works, by Anna E. Normand and
Nicole T. Carter; CRS Report R47032, Bureau of Reclamation Provisions in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
(P.L. 117-58), by Charles V. Stern and Anna E. Normand; and CRS In Focus IF12437, Bureau of Reclamation Funding
in the Inflation Reduction Act (P.L. 117-169), by Charles V. Stern and Anna E. Normand.
11 §§50233 and 80004 of P.L. 117-169 appropriations are to remain available through FY2026. §§50231 and 50232 of
P.L. 117-169 appropriations are to remain available through FY2031.
Congressional Research Service
8
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Source: CRS using public laws enacted in FY2018-FY2024.
Notes: Fiscal year shown is when funds are first available. All funds are available until expended except for funds
from P.L. 117-169, which are available through various fiscal years from FY2026 to FY2031, and Defense Nuclear
Nonproliferation and Salaries and Expenses in P.L. 118-50, which are available through FY2025.
The relatively large amount of supplemental funding already available to Energy and Water
Development agencies for FY2024 was a consideration in the congressional debate on FY2024
appropriations. This affected considerations about the amount of regular appropriations to be
provided in the FY2024 E&W bill, and whether to fund activities primarily with previously
enacted supplemental appropriations.
For example, DOE cited IIJA funding for two advanced reactor demonstration projects as the
reason that no funding for those projects was included in the FY2024 request. The House
committee report recommended $60 million in new funding for the two projects, the Senate
committee report recommended none, and $60 million was included in the enacted measure. In
contrast, DOE’s Office of the Inspector General stated it needed more funding to perform
oversight of recent supplemental funding.12 The FY2024 enacted measure provided $86 million in
regular appropriations—the same as in FY2023—but also transferred $115 million in unobligated
appropriations from IIJA and IRA to the Inspector General (Section 307).13 Sections 311 and 312
of the enacted FY2024 E&W measure also transferred up to $3.670 billion in unobligated IIJA
appropriations to DOE for domestic nuclear fuel availability programs and advanced reactors.14
Other general provisions in the FY2024 enacted measure directed that certain appropriations for
USACE—specific prior supplemental and emergency appropriations and appropriations from P.L.
118-42 and future acts—may provide additional funding for certain studies and projects that have
received funding from the following accounts:
•
•
•
the USACE Construction account in P.L. 113-2;
the USACE Investigations and Construction accounts in P.L. 115-123; and
the USACE Investigations account in P.L. 117-58.
Further, Congress directed that “any additional funds for such studies and projects shall be subject
to the same terms and conditions applicable to the headings of those acts” as listed above. The
enacted measure also directed use of some unobligated and unallocated prior Construction
appropriations, including $1.435 billion from the IIJA, to fund projects listed in the explanatory
statement (see the following section).
For more details on selected supplemental funding, see
•
•
•
CRS In Focus IF11945, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Supplemental
Appropriations, by Nicole T. Carter and Anna E. Normand.
CRS Insight IN11723, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Funding for U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Civil Works, by Anna E. Normand and
Nicole T. Carter.
CRS Report R47032, Bureau of Reclamation Provisions in the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58), by Charles V. Stern and Anna E.
Normand.
12 DOE, Office of the Inspector General, FY2024 Congressional Justification, at https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/
files/2023-03/doe-fy-2024-budget-vol-2-ig-v2.pdf.
13 Email from DOE Office of the Inspector General, March 29, 2024.
14 The transfers were conditional upon restrictions on Russian nuclear fuel imports, which were imposed by the
Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act, signed May 13, 2024 (P.L. 118-62).
Congressional Research Service
9
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
•
•
•
CRS In Focus IF12437, Bureau of Reclamation Funding in the Inflation
Reduction Act (P.L. 117-169), by Charles V. Stern and Anna E. Normand.
CRS Report R47034, Energy and Minerals Provisions in the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58), coordinated by Brent D. Yacobucci.
CRS Report R47262, Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA): Provisions Related
to Climate Change, coordinated by Jane A. Leggett and Jonathan L. Ramseur.
Water Resources Agency Funding
The Administration’s FY2024 budget requests for USACE and Reclamation were lower than the
enacted FY2023 regular appropriations ($897 million less or 11% lower for USACE and $482
million less or 25% lower for Reclamation). The Administration noted in its request that the IIJA
provided advance appropriations for these agencies, including funding that was first made
available in FY2024 (see Table 1).15 The IRA also provided $4.588 billion in FY2022 for certain
Reclamation activities; this funding remains available through FY2026 or FY2031.16
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
For USACE civil works, the House-passed bill would have provided $9.573 billion and the
Senate committee bill would have provided $8.837 billion,17 compared with the $7.413 billion
budget request from the Administration. The enacted bill provided USACE $8.703 billion,
excluding $22 million in rescissions across four major accounts, for a total of $8.681 billion. In
addition, the act directed prior unobligated appropriations to fund FY2024 Construction account
activities. The appropriations are
•
•
$1.435 billion from unobligated and unallocated prior-year IIJA Construction
appropriations, and
$35 million from unobligated and unallocated prior-year Continuing Authorities
Program (CAP) appropriations.
The enacted bill directed that USACE use the aforementioned IIJA appropriations to fund
projects listed in the explanatory statement and that the projects receiving these appropriations
“shall be subject to the terms and conditions” of IIJA Construction funding.18 In addition, the
House-passed bill included a number of policy provisions related to USACE that were not
15 The IIJA provided $1.050 billion in advance appropriations to USACE for FY2024—$1.000 billion for O&M
activities and $50 million for coastal flood damage reduction construction. The Administration allocated these
supplemental funds toward eligible USACE activities in FY2024 IIJA spend plans available at
https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Supplemental-Work/BIL/. The IIJA provided $1.660 billion in
advance appropriations to Reclamation for FY2024. Reclamation describes allocation of these funds in its FY2024 IIJA
spend plan available at https://www.usbr.gov/bil/2022-spendplan.html.
16 For more information, see section “Bureau of Reclamation” below.
17 The Senate committee bill included rescissions totaling $98 million, while the House-passed bill did not include
emergency spending or rescissions.
18 For instance, qualifying navigation projects funding by IIJA Construction appropriations do not require trust fund
cost-share contributions. For more information on IIJA Construction appropriation provisions, see CRS Insight
IN11723, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Funding for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Civil Works, by
Anna E. Normand and Nicole T. Carter.
Congressional Research Service
10
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
included in the enacted measure.19 The Senate committee bill would have created a new USACE
account—Planning, Engineering, and Design, which was not included in the enacted measure.20
Newly funded USACE studies and projects are commonly referred to as new starts. The
Administration requested funding in FY2024 for five new studies and one new construction
start—Cape Cod Canal Bridges, MA.21 The FY2024 enacted measure funded these
Administration-requested new starts and new studies and projects from CPF/CDS requests. The
explanatory statement also directed USACE to select three additional new study starts and one
new construction start.22 USACE is to allocate additional funding provided by the act to studies
and projects designated as the new starts and to other eligible studies and projects in a work plan
60 days after enactment.23 The additional funding is in addition to the funding provided to studies,
projects, and activities as listed in the explanatory statement.
Bureau of Reclamation
Consistent with prior years, President Biden’s FY2024 request for Reclamation was less than the
previous year’s enacted amount. Reclamation’s largest account, the Water and Related Resources
Account, would have received $1.301 billion in the Administration request, or $486 million
(27%) less than the FY2023 enacted amount. Reclamation’s WaterSMART program (which funds
several different water conservation activities) would have been reduced by 68% in the request,
accounting for $129 million of the proposed reduction.
Compared with the Administration’s total budget request of $1.449 billion, the House-passed bill
would have provided $1.848 billion and the Senate committee bill would have provided $1.922
billion for Reclamation. Within these amounts, the House and Senate committee bills would have
approved additional funding amounts of $361 million and $335 million, respectively, to be
allocated by Reclamation after enactment. The House-passed bill language would also would
have released previously appropriated funding for a project recommended during the Trump
Administration (the Shasta Dam and Reservoir Enlargement Project) that was not agreed to by
Congress or recommended by the Biden Administration; the Senate committee bill would have
barred any funding provided by the bill to be used for the project. The House-passed bill also
contained a separate title (Title V) that included a number of operational directives for
Reclamation’s Central Valley Project. For the WaterSMART program, both committee reports
recommended increases over the Administration budget request, with the House report
recommending $88 million and the Senate report recommending $141 million.
The enacted FY2024 E&W measure provided $1.923 billion for Reclamation, including $315
million in Additional Funding and $41 million for CPF/CDS projects. The enacted measure did
not approve the proposed House-passed bill language for the Shasta Dam and Reservoir
19 Such House provisions included nullifying the USACE and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s rule on
“Revised Definition of ‘Waters of the United States’” and requiring that the Secretary of the Army neither promulgate
nor enforce regulations prohibiting individuals from possessing a firearm (including assembled or functional firearms)
at a USACE water resource project.
20 The joint explanatory statement did recommend Investigations appropriations in two columns: (1) Feasibility and (2)
Preconstruction, Engineering, and Design (PED), which was a change from previous joint explanatory statements.
21 Annual and supplemental appropriations in FY2022 and FY2023 funded at least 48 new studies and 50 new
construction projects. CRS correspondence with USACE on July 12, 2022, October 25, 2022, and March 29, 2023.
22 The construction project is to be for flood and storm damage reduction and the three new studies are for flood and
storm damage reduction that were authorized in the Water Resources Development Act of 2022 (Title LXXXI of
Division H of P.L. 117-263) and in states that had a “Federal Disaster Emergency” declared in 2022.
23 USACE, “Civil Works Budget and Performance,” https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Budget/
#Work-Plans.
Congressional Research Service
11
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Enlargement Project or the Central Valley Project provisions in Title V of H.R. 4394. The Senate
committee bill prohibition on using FY2024 funds for the Shasta project also was not enacted.
For WaterSMART, the FY2024 enacted measure provided $140 million, a decrease of $46 million
from the FY2023 enacted amount.
For more information, see the following:
•
•
•
CRS In Focus IF12370, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: FY2024 Appropriations,
by Anna E. Normand and Nicole T. Carter.
CRS In Focus IF12369, Bureau of Reclamation: FY2024 Budget and
Appropriations, by Charles V. Stern.
CRS Report R44148, Indian Water Rights Settlements, by Charles V. Stern.
Proposed Increases for EERE and New Accounts
The Administration’s FY2024 request would have increased EERE funding by $1.332 billion
(39%) over the FY2023 enacted amount, to $4.792 billion. This included separate appropriations
accounts that the request would have established for several large programs under the EERE
appropriations account—FEMP, Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains, and the
Office of State and Community Programs. The enacted FY2024 E&W measure provided $3.460
billion for EERE, the same as in FY2023. Also, as it did in FY2023, Congress did not approve the
separate appropriations accounts proposed by the Administration.
EERE programs with the largest requested percentage increases were Wind Energy Technologies
(up $253 million, or 192%), Geothermal Technologies (up $98 million, or 83%), Industrial
Efficiency and Decarbonization (up $128 million, or 48%),24 Renewable Energy Grid Integration
(up $14 million, or 31%), and Vehicle Technologies (up $72 million, or 16%).
These increases did not include the efficiency programs that the Administration proposed moving
to separate DOE appropriations accounts. For example, FEMP would have received $82 million
in FY2024 under the request, and the Office of State and Community Energy Programs, which
handles state energy planning grants and low-income home weatherization assistance, would have
received $705 million. The enacted FY2024 E&W measure provided those programs with $43
million and $471 million, respectively.
The House and the Senate Appropriations Committee did not approve the separate accounts
proposed by the Administration and recommended substantially lower funding levels than
requested for most EERE programs.
As discussed in the following section, the House adopted a floor amendment that reduced total
EERE funding by $1 billion from the level reported by the House Appropriations Committee
without specifying how the reduction would be allocated. The committee report included $674
million for renewable energy, a reduction of $118 million (-15%) from the FY2023 enacted
amount and $595 million (-47%) below the request. The committee report included $690 million
for energy efficiency, a reduction of $92 million from FY2023 (-12%) and $294 million (-30%)
below the request. Grants for energy efficiency and state planning (state and community energy
programs) received $344 million in the committee report, a reduction of $127 million (-27%)
from FY2023 and $361 million (-51%) below the request.
24 Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization has been part of Advanced Manufacturing. In the FY2024 request, DOE
proposes dividing Advanced Manufacturing into two programs: (1) Advanced Materials and Manufacturing
Technologies and (2) Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization.
Congressional Research Service
12
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
The Senate committee bill included $912 million for renewable energy, an increase of $120
million (15%) over the FY2023 enacted amount and a decrease of $357 million (-28%) from the
request. The bill would have provided $827 million for energy efficiency, an increase of $45
million (6%) over FY2023 and a decrease of $157 million (-16%) from the request. State and
community energy program grants totaled $493 million in the Senate committee bill, an increase
of $22 million (5%) over FY2023 and a decrease of $212 million (-30%) from the request.
The enacted FY2024 E&W measure provided $795 million for renewable energy, an increase of
$3 million (less than 1%) over the FY2023 enacted amount and $474 million (-37%) below the
request. The enacted measure included $784 million for energy efficiency, an increase of $2
million from FY2023 and a decrease of $200 million (-20%) below the request. State and
community energy programs received $471 million, the same as in FY2023 and $234 million
(-33%) below the request.
IIJA appropriated $16.264 billion in FY2022 through FY2026 in additional emergency spending
for programs in the EERE account, of which $1.940 billion was for FY2024.25 EERE programs
received $12.150 billion in additional funding in IRA, available from FY2022 through FY2026,
FY2027, FY2029, or FY2031, depending upon the provision.
For more details, see CRS In Focus IF12376, DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy FY2024 Appropriations, by Martin C. Offutt and Corrie E. Clark.
Proposed Energy Efficiency Rescissions and Reductions
The House-passed bill (Section 312) would have rescinded $5.7 billion in energy efficiency
appropriations provided by IRA. In addition, an amendment adopted on the floor reduced the
bill’s total for EERE by $1 billion, to $1.994 billion (-33%). The amendment did not indicate how
the reduction was to be allocated among EERE programs. It also did not transfer the budget
authority elsewhere in the E&W bill, resulting in a $1 billion reduction in the bill’s total
appropriation level. The EERE rescissions were not included in the enacted E&W measure.
The House-passed bill’s rescissions included $1 billion in IRA appropriations for two programs
that support work by state energy offices on energy efficient building codes. The IRA
appropriated $330 million for grants to assist states and any local governments in adopting
updates to building codes from national and international organizations and $670 million to assist
state and local entities in adopting so-called “zero energy” code provisions that meet more
stringent efficiency requirements and require greater renewable energy production.
Also included in the $5.7 billion rescission was $4.5 billion for the High-Efficiency Electric
Home Rebate Program created in the IRA to provide rebates for replacing common home
appliances with those using electricity. The rescissions also include $200 million in funding for
state energy offices to train and educate contractors to work in support of this program and in
support of another IRA program of rebates, Home Energy Performance-Based, Whole House
Rebates, also known as a HOMES (Home Owner Managing Energy Savings).
The House Appropriations Committee report contended that the bill “addresses some of the
causes of inflation by rescinding more than $5.5 billion in excess spending from prior years.” The
report’s Minority Views criticized the proposed rescissions of “over $5 billion for critical energy
25 DOE, FY 2024 Congressional Justification, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, March 2023, p. 8,
https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2023-03/doe-fy-2024-budget-vol-4-eere-v2.pdf. Includes all programs
funded by the EERE appropriations account in the House and Senate committee bills.
Congressional Research Service
13
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
programs from the Inflation Reduction Act that would have helped American families save
money on their monthly energy bills.”26
Controversy over Energy Efficiency Standards
DOE revises most of the energy efficiency standards in its Appliance and Commercial Equipment
Standards Program on a six-year cycle. Compliance with the revised standards, typically three
years after publication, can lead to additional costs to industry as manufacturing costs increase,
including up-front capital costs. The revisions generally are estimated to save consumers and
firms money due to lower energy costs over the life of the appliance or equipment. Several
amendments adopted to the House-passed H.R. 4394 would have prohibited or preserved DOE’s
ability to revise and/or implement and enforce these standards. An additional amendment would
have impacted the energy conservation standards for manufactured housing. These are described
in Table 2.
Section 317 of the House-passed bill would have blocked DOE funds from being used to
implement the February 1, 2023, proposed rule on the efficiency of natural gas cooking products
(e.g., gas stoves) (88 Federal Register 6818) “or any substantially similar rule, including any rule
that would directly or indirectly limit consumer access to gas kitchen ranges or ovens.” Section
307 of the House-passed bill would have blocked funds from being used for increasing efficiency
standards on distribution transformers.
None of these provisions were included in the enacted FY2024 measure.
Table 2. House Amendments Impacting DOE Energy Conservation Standards
Amendment
No. and
Sponsor
Appliance or
Equipment
Legislative Text
Affected Notice
Affected
Regulation
No. 34,
Cammack (FL)
Any new or revised
standard if annual
economic impact
were to exceed
$100 million
“None of the funds ... may
be made available to
finalize any rule or
regulation that meets the
definition of section
804(2)(A) of title 5,
United States Code.”a
(i.e., >$100 million
economic impact/year)
None specified
None specified
No. 35, Fallon
(TX), Fischbach
(MN)
Consumer furnaces
“None of the funds made
available by this Act may
be used to implement,
administer, or enforce the
final rule”
88 Federal Register
87502
10 C.F.R.
430.32(e)
No. 40, Hageman
(WY)
Consumer water
heaters
“None of the funds made
available by this Act may
be used to finalize,
implement, administer, or
enforce the proposed
rule”
88 Federal Register
49058
10 C.F.R.
430.32(d)
No. 46, Norman
(SC)
Manufactured
housing
“[N]one of the funds
made available by this Act
88 Federal Register
32728
10 C.F.R. Part
460
26 House Appropriations Committee, H.Rept. 118-126, pp. 7, 250.
Congressional Research Service
14
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Amendment
No. and
Sponsor
Appliance or
Equipment
Legislative Text
Affected Notice
Affected
Regulation
may be used to carry out
the final rule”
No. 53, Ogles
(TN), Perry (PA)
Automatic
commercial
icemakers
“None of the funds made
available by this Act may
be used to finalize the
[proposed] rule”
88 Federal Register
65628b
10 C.F.R. Part
431 Subpart H
No. 54, Palmer
(AL)
Room air
conditioners
“None of the funds made
available by this Act may
be used to implement,
administer, or enforce the
[final] rule”
88 Federal Register
34298
10 C.F.R.
430.32(b)
Source: Congressional Record, Daily Digest, October 25-26, 2023.
Notes: These amendments were not included in the enacted FY2024 measure. For further information about
DOE’s Appliance and Equipment Standards Program, see CRS Report R47038, The Department of Energy’s
Appliance and Equipment Standards Program, by Martin C. Offutt.
a. “Any rule that ... has resulted in is likely to result in an annual effect on the economy of $100,000,000 or
more” 5 U.S.C. §804(2).
b. The notice updated the analysis contained in the proposed rule of May 11, 2023 (88 Federal Register 30508).
For more information, see CRS Insight IN12115, DOE’s Regulations on Gas Stoves, by Martin C.
Offutt, and CRS Insight IN12179, DOE’s Proposed Regulation on Electricity Distribution
Transformers, by Martin C. Offutt.
Increases for Advanced Nuclear Reactors and Fuel
The enacted FY2024 E&W measure (Section 311) provided $950 million for DOE to support up
to two small modular reactor demonstrations, through the Office of Clean Energy
Demonstrations, and nuclear reactor safety training. Section 312 provided up to $2.720 billion for
DOE to support domestic uranium mining, conversion, and enrichment, and to support the
acquisition of high-assay low enriched uranium (HALEU) for advanced reactors. The funds come
from the unobligated balance of $6 billion appropriated by IIJA for the DOE Civil Nuclear Credit
program to prevent the closure of existing nuclear power plants. DOE has conditionally approved
$1.1 billion of Civil Nuclear Credits for one plant, Diablo Canyon in California.27
Transfers under Section 312 were contingent on the imposition of sanctions on enriched uranium
imports from Russia. The House passed the Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act on
December 11, 2023 (H.R. 1042, H.Rept. 118-296), the Senate passed it April 30, 2024, and it was
signed into law May 13, 2024 (P.L. 118-62). The law prohibits Russian imports of enriched
uranium beginning 90 days after enactment, although waivers for specified amounts are allowed
through the end of 2027.
The FY2024 enacted appropriations measure included $100 million in the Nuclear Energy
account for advanced nuclear fuel availability. The House-passed E&W bill (Section 316)
included nuclear fuel supply language similar to that in the enacted measure. It also included
27 DOE Grid Deployment Office, “Civil Nuclear Credit Program,” https://www.energy.gov/gdo/civil-nuclear-credit-
program.
Congressional Research Service
15
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
$156 million in FY2024 for advanced nuclear fuel programs authorized by the Energy Act of
2020 (Division Z of P.L. 116-260).
Many proposed designs for advanced nuclear reactors would require HALEU fuel, which has
higher enrichment of the fissile isotope uranium 235 than used by existing U.S. nuclear plants.
HALEU is not available in commercial quantities, and the nuclear industry contends that
government action is needed to prevent a “choke point” in advanced reactor development.28 The
latest appropriations in the FY2024 E&W act to support the establishment of a HALEU supply
chain are in addition to $700 million previously appropriated for that purpose by IRA.
Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) Sales, Closing of Gasoline
Reserve, and Proposed Rescissions
The FY2024 E&W enacted measure required DOE to close the Northeast Gasoline Supply
Reserve (NGSR) and sell its entire inventory, resulting in an estimated revenue offset of $95
million (Section 308). The FY2024 DOE budget request included $16 million to fully fund the
operation of NGSR, but both the House-passed and Senate committee bills called for closure.
Established in 2014, the NGSR currently holds 1 million barrels of gasoline products in leased
commercial storage facilities in Maine and New Jersey to address regional supply disruptions,
such as from major storms. The enacted measure prohibited DOE from establishing any new
regional petroleum product reserves unless specific appropriations are provided in the future, a
prohibition also included in the Senate Appropriations Committee report and House-passed bill.
The enacted measure (Section 309) prohibited the use of funds in the bill for SPR sales to
Chinese entities and the export of SPR petroleum products to China. The House had passed a bill
with similar provisions on January 12, 2023 (H.R. 22).
The explanatory statement accompanying the enacted measure directed DOE to continue SPR
refill efforts following emergency sales during FY2022 and FY2023. The statement also directed
DOE to brief the House and Senate Appropriations Committees on plans to refill the SPR no later
than 90 days after enactment and quarterly thereafter.
The Senate committee bill would have rescinded $401 million from the SPR Petroleum Account,
but that rescission was not enacted. Following rescissions of more than $12 billion in the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, and SPR oil purchases through March 2024, the
Petroleum Account held approximately $2 billion; such sales proceeds are used to purchase oil to
refill the SPR. The Senate Appropriations Committee report directed DOE to immediately
provide a report about the SPR modernization program.
The FY2024 enacted E&W measure provided full funding for the operation of the Northeast
Home Heating Oil Reserve, $7 million, as requested by the Administration and included in the
House-passed and Senate committee bills.
Proposed Increase for the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations
The Administration requested $215 million in FY2024 for the DOE Office of Clean Energy
Demonstrations (OCED). This would have been a 142% increase from OCED’s FY2023 regular
annual appropriation, but the program’s regular appropriations are overshadowed by $21.456
billion appropriated for OCED through FY2026 by IIJA (see Table 3). In addition, IRA
28 Siri Hedreen and Andrea Jenetta, “Advanced Nuclear Developers Cite Fuel Supply as ‘Choke Point’ to
Deployment,” Platts Nuclear Fuel, August 4, 2023.
Congressional Research Service
16
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
appropriated $5.812 billion for an OCED program on Advanced Industrial Facilities Deployment
for FY2022-FY2026. The House-passed bill would have provided $35 million for OCED
program direction but none for new demonstrations, which were to instead use previously
appropriated funds, according to the committee report. The Senate committee bill included $89
million for OCED, the same as the FY2023 enacted amount. The FY2024 enacted E&W measure
provided $50 million.
OCED funds clean energy and industrial decarbonization demonstration projects for potential
commercialization. OCED took over DOE support for two advanced nuclear reactor
demonstration projects previously overseen by the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), but no
funding was requested for those projects in FY2024, because “funding is not required at this
time,” according to the DOE budget justification. The justification added that the advanced
reactor demonstration program has “a gap of approximately $400 million.”29 The House-passed
bill (Section 316) would have transferred $1.197 billion from the DOE Civil Nuclear Credit
program for FY2024 through FY2026 to support NE’s NuScale small modular reactor
demonstration planned at Idaho National Laboratory. However, that project was terminated by its
sponsors on November 8, 2023, after sufficient private-sector funding could not be secured.30 As
noted above, the enacted FY2024 E&W measure transferred $800 million from the Civil Nuclear
Credit program to OCED for up to two cost-shared advanced reactor projects with a nonxfederal
cost share of at least 50%. (For more details, see CRS In Focus IF12636, Nuclear Energy in a
Climate Change Context: Current Appropriations for Nuclear Energy Development, by Jonathan
D. Haskett and Mark Holt.)
Table 3. Additional Appropriations for Clean Energy Demonstrations in
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58)
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
Program
FY2022
FY2023
FY2024
FY2025
FY2026
Total
Energy Storage Demonstration Pilot
Grants Program
88.8
88.8
88.8
88.8
—
355.0
Long-Duration Demonstration Initiative
and Joint Program
37.5
37.5
37.5
37.5
—
150.0
Advanced Reactor Demonstration
Program
677.0
600.0
600.0
600.0
—
2,477.0
Carbon Capture Large-scale Pilot
Projects
387.0
200.0
200.0
150.0
—
937.0
Carbon Capture Demonstration Projects
937.0
500.0
500.0
600.0
—
2,537.0
Industrial Emission Demonstration
Projects
100.0
100.0
150.0
150.0
—
500.0
Clean Energy Demonstration Program
on Current and Former Mine Land
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
500.0
1,600.0
1,600.0
1,600.0
1,600.0
1,600.0
8,000.0
Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs
29 DOE, FY 2024 Congressional Justification, Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, March 2023, p. 3,
https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2023-03/doe-fy-2024-budget-vol-3-oced.pdf.
30 NuScale, “Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) and NuScale Power Agree to Terminate the Carbon
Free Power Project (CFPP),” press release, November 8, 2023, https://www.nuscalepower.com/en/news/press-releases/
2023/uamps-and-nuscale-power-agree-to-terminate-the-carbon-free-power-project.
Congressional Research Service
17
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Program
FY2022
FY2023
FY2024
FY2025
FY2026
Total
Program Upgrading Our Electric Grid
and Ensuring Reliability and Resiliency
1,000.0
1,000.0
1,000.0
1,000.0
1,000.0
5,000.0
Energy improvement in rural and remote
areas
200.0
200.0
200.0
200.0
200.0
1,000.0
5,127.3
4,426.3
4,476.3
4,526.3
2,900.0
21,456.0
153.8
132.8
134.3
135.8
87.0
643.7
Total
3% set-aside for program administration
Source: P.L. 117-58, Division J.
Note: Appropriations would be in addition to other amounts made available for these purposes.
Reduction in Crosscutting Hydrogen Funding
The DOE crosscutting hydrogen activity includes several offices with responsibility for
supporting hydrogen work based on different primary sources of energy (e.g., renewable, fossil,
nuclear) and types of end-use (e.g., vehicles, portable power, thermal comfort). DOE’s FY2024
request for crosscutting hydrogen appropriations totaled $382 million, a decrease of $49 million
(-11%) below the FY2023 enacted level of $431 million.31 Most of the hydrogen funding comes
from EERE and Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM), with smaller amounts from the
Office of Nuclear Energy and the Office of Science. The FY2024 enacted E&W measure
provided $396 million for DOE hydrogen programs, an increase of $14 million (4%) above the
request and $35 million (-8%) below the FY2023 enacted level.
In addition to funding in the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill, IIJA
appropriated $9.500 billion for three hydrogen- and fuel cell-related DOE programs from FY2022
to FY2026 ($1.900 billion in FY2024). The largest of these, the Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs
in the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, was appropriated $8.000 billion to support
demonstration projects involving networks of clean hydrogen producers and consumers and the
connecting infrastructure.
DOE launched a “Hydrogen Shot” initiative in June 2021—one of its “Energy Earthshots”
dedicated to the scale-up of emerging low-carbon energy technologies—with a goal of making
hydrogen, produced through electrolysis, commercially available at a cost of $1 for 1 kilogram in
1 decade, not including delivery and dispensing.
For more information, see CRS In Focus IF12163, Department of Energy Funding for Hydrogen
and Fuel Cell Technology Programs FY2022, by Martin C. Offutt, and CRS In Focus IF12514,
DOE Appropriations for Its Hydrogen Program: FY2024, by Martin C. Offutt.
Title 17 Loan Guarantee Program Authority and Funding
The House-passed bill would have rescinded $15 billion of authority for DOE loan guarantees
under Title 17 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-58) that had been provided by the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023. Under budget scoring rules, that reduction in loan
guarantee authority would result in a $150 million appropriations offset in the bill. The Senate
Appropriations Committee report included the same offset. The House also adopted a floor
amendment to the Title 17 loan guarantee account “to provide loan guarantees in support of the
31 DOE, FY 2024 Congressional Justification, Crosscutting Activities, Hydrogen, March 2023,
https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2023-03/doe-fy2024-budget-volume-2-crosscutting-v3.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
18
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline.”32 The rescission and Alaska Pipeline provision were not included
in the FY2024 E&W enacted measure, which provided $70 million for the Title 17 program’s
administrative costs, entirely offset by fees for a net-zero appropriation.
The Senate committee report required DOE to provide recommendations to the committee for
supporting loan guarantees for Alaska natural gas projects, including pipelines and liquefied
natural gas (LNG) facilities, under 15 U.S.C. §720n(f). The report also directed DOE to be fuel
and technology neutral, including for additional emission controls to existing coal and natural gas
power plants, when considering projects under the Section 1706 Energy Infrastructure
Reinvestment Program.
Increase for Weapons Activities, Decrease for Naval Reactors
The FY2024 budget request for DOE Weapons Activities was $18.833 billion—$1.717 billion
(10%) higher than the FY2023 enacted level. However, the FY2024 funding request of $1.964
billion for Naval Reactors was $117 million (-6%) below the FY2023 amount. Both programs are
carried out by NNSA, a semiautonomous agency within DOE. The House-passed bill would have
increased Weapons Activities by $284 million over the requested amount and included a further
reduction of $18 million in Naval Reactors from the request. The Senate committee bill would
have provided the requested amounts for both accounts. The enacted amount for Weapons
Activities was $19.108 billion, an increase of $275 million (1%) over the request, and the enacted
amount for Naval Reactors was $1.946 billion, $18 million (-1%) below the request.
Under Weapons Activities, concern was raised during congressional hearings on the FY2024
budget request about delays in the W80-4 warhead modernization for the planned Long Range
Standoff cruise missile. After problems with several components, the first production unit of the
warhead is now expected to be delivered in FY2027 after a two-year delay, according to NNSA.
The FY2024 request for the program was $1.010 billion, a decrease of $113 million from the
FY2023 amount, which NNSA says is “due to completion of some development activities.”33 The
full requested amount was approved in the FY2024 enacted measure.
The enacted measure added $70 million for the W80-4 warhead to be used with the proposed
nuclear sea-launched cruise missile, not included in the FY2024 budget request. This was the
amount in the House-passed bill, while the Senate committee bill included $35 million.
The full requested amount for several other warhead modernization programs in Weapons
Activities was approved by the enacted measure, including
•
•
$450 million for the B61-12 Life Extension Program (LEP) for FY2024, a
decrease of $222 million (-33%) from the FY2023 enacted amount. The B61-12
LEP is to combine four existing variants of the B61 gravity bomb and be
completed in FY2026.
$179 million for the W88 Alteration in FY2024, an increase of $17 million (10%)
from the FY2023 amount. The program is to upgrade the arming-fuzing-firing
system on the warhead and refresh the warhead’s conventional high explosives.
This warhead is carried on a portion of the D-5 (Trident) submarine-launched
ballistic missiles (SLBMs).
32 See description of amendment No. 21 (Rep. Peltola) printed in H.Rept. 118-242.
33 DOE, FY 2024 Congressional Justification, vol. 1, March 2023, p. 124, https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/
2023-04/doe-fy-2024-budget-vol-1-nnsa-v4.pdf. Descriptions of other warhead modernization programs begin on p.
131.
Congressional Research Service
19
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
•
•
$1.069 billion for the W87-1 warhead modification program for FY2024, an
increase of $389 million (57%) from FY2023. The Air Force plans to deploy the
W87-1 on the new U.S. land-based intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), the
Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD). This would provide the Air Force
with an alternative warhead if the W87-1 FPU is delayed. According to NNSA,
the additional funding is needed for increased component testing and
environmental flight tests.
$390 million for the W93 warhead, which is a new design intended for
deployment on ballistic missile submarines by 2040.34 The increase of $149
million (62%) from the FY2023 enacted amount represents the program’s
planned acceleration to include prototype construction and testing of non-nuclear
hardware.
Congressional concern has also been raised about NNSA’s schedule for developing production
capacity for plutonium pits, a central component of nuclear warheads. NNSA plans to develop pit
production capacity at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico and the Savannah River
Site in South Carolina.35 Pit production is included under Plutonium Modernization, for which
NNSA requested $2.969 billion for FY2024, a decrease of $127 million (-4%) from the FY2023
enacted level. The enacted measure provided $2.911 billion, a $142 million (5%) increase over
the FY2024 budget request. This amount, intended as an increase for the Savannah River Site,
was in the Senate committee bill. The House-passed bill included $3.005 billion for Plutonium
Modernization.
Appropriations for NNSA nuclear weapons activities and other defense programs typically
closely track the levels authorized in annual National Defense Authorization Acts (NDAAs). The
FY2024 NDAA was signed by the President on December 22, 2023, authorizing $19.122 billion
for weapons activities (P.L. 118-31, H.R. 2670, H.Rept. 118-301).
For more information, see CRS Report R47657, Energy and Water Development Appropriations
for Nuclear Weapons Activities: In Brief, by Anya L. Fink and Alexandra G. Neenan.
Startup of Surplus Plutonium Disposition
The FY2024 budget request provided for plutonium disposition related activities in the Material
Management and Minimization (Material Disposition subprogram) and the Nonproliferation
Construction accounts. The budget request said the Surplus Plutonium Disposition (SPD) project
“will add glovebox capacity at the Savannah River Site to accelerate plutonium dilution and aid
in the removal of plutonium from the state of South Carolina.” In the coming years, NNSA plans
to expand capability to disassemble and convert plutonium cores or “pits” for disposal. The
FY2024 request said NNSA is completing the final design review to request approval and start
full construction on the SPD project in FY2024, which represents a delay and cost increase. The
request said NNSA is “increasing the total project cost by $155 million resulting in a
corresponding increase to the high-end of the cost range which is $775 million” and extending the
completion date to the fourth quarter of FY2030. The budget request said these changes are
necessary due to design, safety, and construction challenges “of integrating the new mission into
the existing facility and operations.” It also cited a lack of skilled professional and craft labor,
34 For more information and views on the W93, see Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, “Fact Sheet: The
W93 Warhead,” January 28, 2021, https://armscontrolcenter.org/the-w93-warhead.
35 NNSA, “NNSA Approves Start of Construction for Plutonium Pit Production Subproject at Los Alamos National
Laboratory,” February 9, 2023, https://www.energy.gov/nnsa/articles/nnsa-approves-start-construction-plutonium-pitproduction-subproject-los-alamos.
Congressional Research Service
20
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
which is also an issue for other NNSA construction projects. The enacted FY2024 E&W measure,
along with both the House and Senate committee reports, provided the full Administration request
of $77 million for the SPD project.
Cleanup of Former Nuclear Sites: Adequacy of Proposed Funding
DOE’s Office of Environmental Management (EM) is responsible for environmental cleanup and
waste management at the department’s nuclear facilities. The $8.280 billion request for EM
activities for FY2024 was $17 million (less than 1%) above the FY2023 enacted level of $8.263
billion, including adjustments and offsets. The House-passed bill included a slight increase (less
than 1%) over the requested amount, while the Senate committee bill would have increased total
EM funding from the request by $233 million (3%). The enacted FY2024 E&W measure
provided $8.482 billion for EM, and increase of $219 million (3%) over the FY2023 enacted
level.
The primary appropriations component of the EM program is the Defense Environmental
Cleanup account, which finances the cleanup of former nuclear weapons production sites. For
FY2024, the Administration requested $7.074 billion, 1% above the FY2023 enacted amount. The
enacted FY2024 E&W measure provided $7.285 billion, an increase of $260 million (4%) over
the FY2023 enacted level. For the Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup account, which funds the
cleanup of federal nuclear energy research sites, the request was $349 million, 3% below the
FY2023 enacted level. The enacted FY2024 E&W measure provided $342 million for this
account, a decrease of $17 million (-5%) from the FY2023 enacted level. The third component of
the EM budget is the Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund
(UED&D), for which the FY2024 request was $857 million, a decrease of 2% from the FY2023
enacted amount. This fund was established by Title XI of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (P.L.
102-486) to pay for the cleanup of three federal facilities that enriched uranium for national
defense and civilian purposes, located near Paducah, KY; Piketon, OH (Portsmouth plant); and
Oak Ridge, TN. The enacted FY2024 E&W measure provided $855 million for the UED&D
Fund, a decrease of $24 million (-3%) from the FY2023 enacted level.
The largest requested EM increase in FY2024 was for the Office of River Protection at the
Hanford (WA) Site, which would have increased by $245 million (14%) from the FY2023
enacted level. According to the DOE request, the increase reflected startup of direct-feed lowactivity waste treatment and design and construction of other waste treatment facilities at the site.
The enacted FY2024 E&W measure provided $1.890 billion for the Office of River Protection, an
increase of $160 million (9%) over the FY2023 enacted amount and $85 million (-4%) below the
request.
The adequacy of funding for the Office of Environmental Management to attain cleanup
milestones across the entire site inventory has been a recurring issue. Cleanup milestones are
enforceable measures incorporated into compliance agreements negotiated among DOE, the
Environmental Protection Agency, and the states. These milestones establish time frames for the
completion of specific actions to satisfy applicable requirements at individual sites.
Federal Regional Commissions and Authorities: Initial Funding for
Great Lakes Authority, Denali Commission Cost-Sharing, and
Authorizations of Appropriations
The enacted FY2024 appropriations measure includes $5 million in initial funding for the Great
Lakes Authority (GLA), a new federal regional authority authorized by the Consolidated
Congressional Research Service
21
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Appropriations Act, 2023 (P.L. 117-328, Division O, Title IV, §401). The GLA service region is
defined as areas in the watershed of the Great Lakes and the Great Lakes System in Illinois,
Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.36 The authorizing
legislation requires that before the GLA may convene, the President must nominate and the
Senate must confirm a federal co-chairperson. As of April 2024, President Biden had not
nominated a federal co-chairperson for the GLA.
The FY2024 Consolidated Appropriations Act changed the cost-share provisions for Denali
Commission-funded construction projects in distressed communities, and extended those
provisions to projects for federally recognized tribes and Alaska Native Corporations. The
provisions increased the nonfederal cost-share maximum from 80% to 90% for certain projects.
For the Northern Border Regional Commission, P.L. 118-42 included a provision waiving the
10% limit on FY2024 funding that may be used for administrative expenses.
The authorization of appropriations expired after FY2023 for five of the independent agencies
that receive appropriations in the E&W bills, and the authorization of appropriations expired after
FY2021 for one of the independent agencies.37
For more information, see CRS Insight IN12089, Federal Regional Commissions: Great Lakes
Authority Established and Other Updates, by Julie M. Lawhorn, and CRS Report R45997,
Federal Regional Commissions and Authorities: Structural Features and Function, by Julie M.
Lawhorn.
Bill Status and Recent Funding History
Table 4 indicates the steps taken during consideration of FY2024 Energy and Water Development
appropriations. (For more details, see the CRS Appropriations Status Table at http://www.crs.gov/
AppropriationsStatusTable/Index.)
Table 4. Status of Energy and Water Development Appropriations, FY2024
Subcommittee
Markup
Final Approval
House
Senate
House
Comm.
6/15/23
none
6/22/23
House
Passed
Senate
Comm.
10/26/23
7/20/23
Senate
Passed
Conf.
Report
House
Senate
Public
Law
3/6/24
3/8/24
3/9/24
Source: CRS Appropriations Status Table.
Note: No conference held.
36 The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (P.L. 117-328, Division O, Title IV, §401) amended 40 U.S.C.
§15301(a) to establish the Great Lakes Authority (GLA). The structure and functions of the GLA are based on the
model of the Northern Border Regional Commission, the Southeast Crescent Regional Commission, and the Southwest
Border Regional Commission, which were established in the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (i.e., 2008
farm bill). The watershed of the Great Lakes and the Great Lakes System is defined in Section 118(a)(3) of the Federal
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. §1268(a)(3)).
37 The authorization of appropriations ends after FY2023 for the Delta Regional Authority (see 7 U.S.C. §2009aa-12);
Southeast Crescent Regional Commission (SCRC); Southwest Border Regional Commission (SBRC); Northern Border
Regional Commission (NBRC); and Great Lakes Authority (GLA) (see 40 U.S.C. §15751 for the authorization of
appropriations for SCRC SBRC, NBRC, and GLA). The authorization of appropriations for the Denali Commission
was provided through FY2021 (see 42 U.S.C. §3121 note, Section 312). The IIJA (P.L. 117-58) provided the
authorization of appropriations for the Appalachian Regional Commission through FY2026 (see 40 U.S.C. §14703).
Congressional Research Service
22
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Table 5 includes budget totals for regular (excluding supplementals) energy and water
development appropriations enacted for FY2018 through actions in FY2024.
Table 5. Energy and Water Development Appropriations, FY2019-FY2024
(budget authority in billions of current dollars)
FY2019
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
FY2023
FY2024
Request
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
44.7
48.4
49.5
55.6
59.2
62.0
60.0
61.5
61.4
Source: Compiled by CRS from totals provided by congressional budget documents.
Notes: Figures exclude permanent budget authorities, scorekeeping adjustments, rescissions, and emergency
funding. See Table 1 for emergency funding for these fiscal years.
Description of Major Energy and Water Programs
The annual Energy and Water Development appropriations bill includes four titles: Title I—Corps
of Engineers—Civil; Title II—Department of the Interior (Bureau of Reclamation and Central
Utah Project); Title III—Department of Energy; and Title IV—Independent Agencies, as shown
in Table 6. Major programs in the bill are described in this section in the approximate order they
appear in the bill. Previous appropriations and the amounts recommended and approved during
the major stages of the FY2024 appropriations process are shown in the accompanying tables,
and additional details about many of these programs are provided in separate CRS reports as
indicated. For a discussion of current funding issues related to these programs, see “Funding
Issues and Initiatives,” above. Congressional clients may obtain more detailed information by
contacting CRS analysts listed in CRS Report R42638, Appropriations: CRS Experts, by James
M. Specht and Justin Murray.
Table 6. Energy and Water Development Appropriations Summary
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
Title
FY2020 FY2021 FY2022 FY2023 FY2024
Approp. Approp. Approp. Approp. Request
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm
FY2024
Approp.
Title 1: USACE
7,650
7,795
8,343
8,310
7,413
9,573
8,837
8,703
Title II: CUP and
Reclamation
1,680
1,691
1,924
1,954
1,469
1,871
1,941
1,923
Title III:
Department of
Energy
38,657
39,625
44,856
48,445
52,571
49,021
50,269
50,247
Title IV:
Independent
Agencies
407
414
454
494
559
523
499
502
48,395
49,525
55,576
59,204
62,012
59,988
61,547
61,375
-71
-73
-2,704
-2,202
-4
-5,730
-3,452
-22
48,324
49,452
52,872
57,002
62,008
54,258
58,095
61,353
Subtotal
Rescissions and
Scorekeeping
Adjustmentsa
E&W Total
Additional House
bill scorekeeping
adjustment
Congressional Research Service
-2,877
23
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Title
FY2020 FY2021 FY2022 FY2023 FY2024
Approp. Approp. Approp. Approp. Request
House bill total
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm
FY2024
Approp.
51,381
Sources: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024; H.Rept. 118-126; S.Rept. 118-72;
H.R. 4394; P.L. 117-328 and explanatory statement; FY2022 agency budget justifications; explanatory statement
for H.R. 133, 116th Congress; FY2021 agency budget justifications; explanatory statement for Division C of H.R.
1865, 116th Congress. Excludes emergency appropriations. Subtotals may include other adjustments. Columns
may not sum to totals because of rounding and adjustments.
a. Budget “scorekeeping” refers to determinations of spending amounts for congressional budget enforcement
purposes. These scorekeeping adjustments may include rescissions and offsetting revenues from various
sources.
Agency Budget Justifications
FY2024 budget justifications for the largest agencies funded by the annual Energy and Water
Development appropriations bill can be found through the links below. The justifications provide
detailed descriptions and funding breakouts for programs, projects, and activities under the
agencies’ jurisdiction.
•
•
•
•
Title I, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Civil Works,
https://usace.contentdm.oclc.org/utils/getfile/collection/p16021coll6/id/2317 (see
Table 7)
Title II (see Table 8)
• Bureau of Reclamation, https://www.usbr.gov/budget
• Central Utah Project, https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/fy2024-cupcagreenbook.pdf-508.pdf
Title III, Department of Energy, https://www.energy.gov/cfo/articles/fy-2024budget-justification (see Table 9)
Title IV, Independent Agencies (see Table 14)
• Appalachian Regional Commission, https://www.arc.gov/budgetperformance-and-policy
• Delta Regional Authority, https://dra.gov/accountability/congressionalbudget-justification/
• Denali Commission, https://www.denali.gov/finance/congressional-budgetjustifications/
• Northern Border Regional Commission, https://www.nbrc.gov/content/CJ
• Southeast Crescent Regional Commission, https://scrc.gov/cj/
• Nuclear Regulatory Commission, https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doccollections/nuregs/staff/sr1100/
• Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, https://www.dnfsb.gov/about/
congressional-budget-requests
• Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board, http://www.nwtrb.gov/about-us/
plans
Congressional Research Service
24
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Army Corps of Engineers
USACE is an agency in the Department of Defense with both military and civilian
responsibilities. Under its civil works program, which is funded by the Energy and Water
Development appropriations bill, USACE plans, builds, operates, and in some cases maintains
water resource facilities for coastal and inland navigation, riverine and coastal flood risk
reduction, and aquatic ecosystem restoration.38
In recent decades, Congress has generally authorized USACE studies, construction projects, and
other activities in omnibus water authorization bills, typically titled as Water Resources
Development Acts (WRDA), prior to funding them through appropriations legislation. Recent
Congresses enacted omnibus water resources authorization acts in 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, and
2022. (The latest WRDA was Title LXXXI of Division H of the James M. Inhofe National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, P.L. 117-263.) These acts consisted largely of
authorizations for new USACE studies and projects, and they altered numerous USACE policies
and procedures.39
Unlike for highways and in municipal water infrastructure programs, federal funds for USACE
are not distributed to states or projects based on formulas or delivered via competitive grants.
Instead, USACE generally is directly involved in planning, designing, and managing the
construction of projects that are cost-shared with nonfederal project sponsors.
Policies in the 112th through the 116th Congresses limited congressionally directed funding of sitespecific projects (i.e., earmarks). Prior to the 112th Congress, Congress would direct funds to
specific projects not in the budget request or increase funds for certain projects. For FY2011FY2021, Congress appropriated additional funding for categories of USACE work without
identifying specific projects. During that period, after congressional enactment of the
appropriations legislation and accompanying report language on priorities and other guidance for
use of the additional funding, the Administration developed a work plan that reported on (1) the
studies and construction projects selected to receive funding for the first time (new starts) and (2)
the specific studies and projects receiving additional funds. For FY2022 through FY2024,
Congress approved earmarks in specified categories, in addition to providing additional funding
for specific categories for USACE to allocate in work plans.40 For more information, see CRS
Report R46320, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Annual Appropriations Process, by Anna E.
Normand and Nicole T. Carter.
Table 7 shows USACE appropriations accounts from FY2020 through FY2024.
38 Military responsibilities are funded through the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
appropriations bill.
39 For more information on USACE authorization legislation, see CRS In Focus IF11322, Water Resources
Development Acts: Primer, by Nicole T. Carter and Anna E. Normand, and CRS Report R45185, Army Corps of
Engineers: Water Resource Authorization and Project Delivery Processes, by Nicole T. Carter and Anna E. Normand.
40 USACE work plans are available at USACE, “Civil Works Budget and Performance,” at
https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Budget/#Work-Plans.
Congressional Research Service
25
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Table 7. Army Corps of Engineers
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
Program
FY2020
Approp.
FY2021
Approp.
FY2022
Approp.
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
Approp.
Investigations
151.0
153.0
143.0
172.5
129.8
136.1
82.9
143.0
Planning,
Engineering, and
Design
—
—
—
—
—
—
47.0c
—
Construction
2,681.0
2,692.6
2,492.8
1,808.8
2,014.6
2,889.9
1,945.9
1,854.7
Mississippi River
and Tributaries
(MR&T)
375.0
380.0
370.0
370.0
226.5
364.4
352.0
368.0
Operation and
Maintenance
(O&M)
3,790.0
3,849.7
4,570.0
5,078.5
2,629.9
5,496.6
5,529.3
5,552.8
Regulatory
210.0
210.0
212.0
218.0
221.0
218.0
221.0
221.0
General
Expenses
203.0
206.0
208.0
215.0
212.0
216.5
212.0
216.0
FUSRAP
200.0
250.0
300.0
400.0
200.0
200.0
400.0
300.0
Flood Control
and Coastal
Emergencies
(FCCE)
35.0
35.0
35.0
35.0
40.0
41.5
35.0
35.0
Office of the
Asst. Secretary
of the Army
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
6.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
WIFIA
Programa
—
14.2
7.2
7.2
7.2
5.0
7.2
7.2
Harbor
Maintenance
Trust Fundb
—
—
—
—
1,726.0
—
—
—
Inland
Waterways
Trust Fundb
—
—
—
—
0.0
—
—
—
7,650.0
7,795.5
8,343.0
8,310.0
7,413.0
9,573.0
8,837.3
8,702.7
—
-0.5
—
—
-4.5
—
—
-22.2
7,650.0
7,795.0
8,343.0
8,310.0
7,408.5
9,573.0
8,837.3
8,680.5
Total approp.
Rescissions
Total Title I
FY2023 FY2024
Approp. Request
Sources: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024; H.Rept. 118-126; S.Rept. 118-72;
H.R. 4394; USACE Civil Works FY2024 Budget and USACE Civil Works FY2022 Budget at
https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Budget/; FY2024 Budget Appendix for Corps of Engineers—
Civil Works at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/coe_fy2024.pdf; Division D of P.L. 117328; Division D of P.L. 117-103; Division D of P.L. 116-260; Division C of P.L. 116-94; Division A of P.L. 115-244.
Notes: Columns may not sum to totals because of rounding.
a. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, created a new USACE account to support direct loans and for
the cost of guaranteed loans, as authorized by the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014
(WIFIA, Title V, Subtitle C of P.L. 113-121).
b. In the Administration’s FY2024 request, as with previous requests, some activities that are funded in the
O&M, Construction, and MR&T accounts are proposed to be funded directly from the Harbor Maintenance
Congressional Research Service
26
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
c.
Trust Fund (HMTF) and Inland Waterway Trust Fund (IWTF) accounts. That is, the Administration
proposes funding eligible USACE activities directly from the trust funds. This would replace the current
practice of having USACE’s O&M, Construction, and MR&T accounts incur expenses for HMTF-eligible and
IWTF-eligible activities, and for these expenses to be reimbursed from the HMTF and IWTF accounts. For
example, HMTF-eligible maintenance dredging would no longer be funded by the O&M account and
reimbursed by the HMTF; instead, the dredging would be funded directly from the HMTF account. These
proposals were not enacted in FY2024. Similar proposals also were not enacted in FY2019, FY2020,
FY2021, FY2022, and FY2023.
The Senate committee report included this control point that was not included in the explanatory
statement for the enacted measure.
Additional Funding
In addition to the regular appropriations for FY2022 and FY2023, USACE received the following
supplemental appropriations:
•
•
•
•
$5.711 billion in Division B of P.L. 117-43;
$14.969 billion for FY2022, $1.080 billion for FY2023, and $1.050 billion for
FY2024 in the IIJA (P.L. 117-58);
$1.480 billion in Division N of P.L. 117-328;41 and
$20 million in the FY2023 continuing resolution (P.L. 117-180).
For more information on USACE supplemental funding, see CRS In Focus IF11945, U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers: Supplemental Appropriations, by Anna E. Normand and Nicole T. Carter.
Bureau of Reclamation and Central Utah Project
Most of the large dams and water diversion structures in the West were built by, or with the
assistance of, the Bureau of Reclamation. While USACE built hundreds of flood control and
navigation projects, Reclamation’s original mission was to develop water supplies, primarily for
irrigation to reclaim arid lands in the West for farming and ranching. Reclamation has evolved
into an agency that assists in meeting the water demands in the West while working to protect the
environment and the public’s investment in Reclamation infrastructure. The agency’s municipal
and industrial water deliveries have more than doubled since 1970.
Today, Reclamation manages hundreds of dams and diversion projects, including more than 300
storage reservoirs, in 17 western states. These projects provide water to approximately 10 million
acres of farmland and 31 million people. Reclamation is the largest wholesale supplier of water in
the 17 western states and the second-largest hydroelectric power producer in the nation.
Reclamation facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation, and other benefits.
Reclamation facility operations are often controversial, particularly for their effect on fish and
wildlife species and because of conflicts among competing water users during drought conditions.
As with USACE, the Reclamation budget is made up largely of individual project funding lines,
rather than general programs that would not be covered by congressional earmark requirements.
Therefore, as with USACE, these Reclamation projects have often been subject to earmark
disclosure rules. The moratorium on earmarks through FY2021 restricted congressional steering
41 Of the $1.480 billion in emergency supplemental funds provided by the Disaster Relief Supplemental Appropriations
Act, 2023 (Division N of P.L. 117-328), $350 million was made available for USACE to allocate in a work plan for
construction and O&M of certain categories of projects (i.e., similar to additional funding provided through annual
appropriations in FY2014-FY2022). USACE allocated the $350 million from Division N along with additional funding
provided by Division D in its FY2023 work plans.
Congressional Research Service
27
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
of money directly toward specific Reclamation projects. For FY2022 through FY2024, the rules
again allowed congressionally directed funding for specific Reclamation projects.
Reclamation’s single largest account, Water and Related Resources, encompasses the agency’s
traditional programs and projects, including construction, operations and maintenance, dam
safety, and ecosystem restoration, among others.42 Reclamation also typically requests funds in a
number of smaller accounts, and has proposed additional accounts in recent years.
Implementation and oversight of CUP, also funded by Title II, is conducted by a separate office
within the Department of the Interior.43
For more information, see CRS In Focus IF12369, Bureau of Reclamation: FY2024 Budget and
Appropriations, by Charles V. Stern, and CRS In Focus IF12127, Bureau of Reclamation: FY2023
Budget and Appropriations, by Charles V. Stern. Table 8 shows Reclamation and CUP
appropriations accounts from FY2020 through FY2024.
Table 8. Bureau of Reclamation and CUP
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
FY2020
Approp.
FY2021
Approp.
1,512.2
1,521.1
1,747.1
1,787.2
Policy and
Administration
60.0
60.0
64.4
CVP Restoration
Fund (CVPRF)
54.8
55.9
Calif. Bay-Delta
(CALFED)
33.0
Gross Current
Reclamation
Authority
Program
Water and
Related
Resources
Central Utah
Project (CUP)
Completion
FY2022 FY2023 FY2024
Approp. Approp. Request
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
Approp.
1,301.0
1,701.4
1,773.5
1,751.7
65.1
66.8
65.1
66.8
66.8
56.5
45.8
48.5
48.5
48.5
48.5
33.0
33.0
33.0
33.0
33.0
33.0
33.0
1,660.0
1,670.0
1,901.0
1,931.0
1,449.3
1,848.0
1,921.8
1,900.0
20.0
21.0
23.0
23.0
19.6
23.0
19.6
23.0
42 The Water and Related Resources Account is largely funded by the Reclamation Fund, which receives and
distributes receipts related to a number of federal activities (including royalties received from oil and gas leasing on
federal lands). For more on this fund and financing of selected Reclamation Projects, see CRS Report R41844, The
Reclamation Fund: A Primer, by Charles V. Stern.
43 The Central Utah Project moves water from the Colorado River basin in eastern Utah to the western slopes of the
Wasatch Mountain range. It was authorized in 1956 under the Colorado River Storage Project Act (P.L. 84-485). For
more information, see the CUP website at https://www.usbr.gov/projects/index.php?id=498.
Congressional Research Service
28
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Program
Reclamation
and CUP
FY2020
Approp.
FY2021
Approp.
1,680.0
1,691.0
FY2022 FY2023 FY2024
Approp. Approp. Request
1,924.0
Offsets and
adjustments
Total
1,680.0
1,691.0
1,924.0
1,954.0
1,468.9
-45.8
-48.5
1,908.2
1,420.4
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
Approp.
1,871.0
1,941.4
1,923.0
1,871.0
1,941.4
1,923.0
Sources: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024; H.Rept. 118-126; S.Rept. 118-72;
H.R. 4394; Reclamation and CUP FY2024 congressional budget justifications; Division D of P.L. 117-328; Division
D of P.L. 117-103; Division D of P.L. 116-260; Division C of P.L. 116-94; Division A of P.L. 115-244.
Note: Columns may not sum to totals because of rounding. CVP = Central Valley Project.
Additional Funding
For each of FY2022 through FY2026, IIJA provided $1.660 billion for Reclamation’s Water and
Related Resources account. (For more information, see CRS Report R47032, Bureau of
Reclamation Provisions in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58), by Charles V.
Stern and Anna E. Normand.) IRA also appropriated additional funds in FY2022 for Reclamation:
$4.000 billion for drought mitigation, available through FY2026; $550 million for disadvantaged
communities, available through FY2031; $25 million for projects to cover water conveyance
facilities with solar panels, available through FY2031; and $13 million for drought relief actions
to mitigate drought impacts for tribes affected by the operation of a Reclamation water project,
available through FY2031.
Department of Energy
The Energy and Water Development appropriations bill has funded all DOE programs since
FY2005. Major DOE activities are authorized under multiple energy statutes and include the
following:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
R&D on renewable energy, energy efficiency, nuclear power, fossil energy, and
electricity;
nuclear weapons and nonproliferation;
general science;
environmental cleanup;
energy statistics, projections, and analysis;
loan programs;
the Strategic Petroleum Reserve; and
power marketing administrations.
Table 9 provides the recent funding history for DOE programs, most of which are briefly
described further below.
Congressional Research Service
29
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Table 9. Department of Energy
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
FY2021
Approp.
FY2022
Approp.
FY2023
Approp.
FY2024
Request
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
Approp.
2,861.8
3,200.0
3,460.0
3,826.1
1,994.0
3,686.8
3,460.0
Energy Programs
Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy
Industrial Emissions
and Technology
Coordination
3.5
Electricity Delivery
211.7
277.0
350.0
297.5
315.6
290.0
280.0
Cybersecurity, Energy
Security, and
Emergency Response
156.0
185.8
200.0
245.5
200.0
200.0
200.0
1,507.6
1,654.8
1,473.0
1,562.6
1,783.0
1,550.9
1,685.0
750.0
825.0
890.0
905.5
857.9
892.0
865.0
87.9
83.7
Nuclear Energya
Fossil Energy and
Carbon Management
Energy Projects
222.0
Naval Petroleum and
Oil Shale Reserves
13.0
13.7
13.0
13.0
13.0
13.0
13.0
Strategic Petroleum
Reserveb
189.0
226.4
207.3
281.0
281.0
-281.0
213.4
Northeast Home
Heating Oil Reserve
6.5
6.5
7.0
7.2
7.2
7.2
7.2
Energy Information
Administration
126.8
129.1
135.0
156.6
135.0
135.0
135.0
Non-Defense
Environmental
Cleanup
319.2
333.9
358.6
348.7
341.7
354.0
342.0
Uranium Enrichment
Decontamination and
Decommissioning
Fund
841.0
860.0
879.1
857.5
865.2
862.0
855.0
7,026.0
7,475.0
8,100.0
8,800.4
8,100.0
8,430.0
8,240.0
Office of Technology
Transitions
19.5
22.1
56.6
22.1
20.0
20.0
Office of Clean Energy
Demonstrations
20.0
89.0
215.3
35.0
89.0
50.0
60.0
60.0
Science
Federal Energy
Management Program
82.2
Grid Deployment
Office
106.6
Office of
Manufacturing and
Energy Supply Chains
179.5
Office of State and
Community Programs
705.0
Congressional Research Service
30
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
FY2021
Approp.
FY2022
Approp.
FY2023
Approp.
FY2024
Request
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
Approp.
Advanced Research
Projects Agency—
Energy (ARPA-E)
427.0
450.0
470.0
650.2
470.0
450.0
460.0
Nuclear Waste
Disposal
27.5
27.5
10.2
12.0
12.0
12.0
12.0
Departmental Admin.
(net)
166.0
240.0
283.0
433.5
275.0
283.0
286.5
Office of Inspector
General
57.7
78.0
86.0
165.2
92.0
86.0
86.0
Office of Indian Energy
22.0
58.0
75.0
110.1
75.0
75.0
70.0
Advanced Technology
Vehicles Manufacturing
(ATVM) Loans
5.0
5.0
9.8
13.0
13.0
13.0
13.0
29.0
181.2
ATVM Rescission of
Emergency Funding
-1,908.0
Title 17 Loan
Guarantee
29.0
0
Title 17 Rescission of
Emergency Funding
-392.0
Tribal Energy Loan
Guarantee
2.0
2.0
4.0
6.3
6.3
6.3
6.3
Total, Energy
Programs
12,444.8
16,116.0
17,525.2
20,036.8
15,894.0
17,325.5
17,443.2
Weapons Activities
15,345.0
15,920.0
17,116.1
18,832.9
19,117.2
18,833.0
19,108.0
Nuclear
Nonproliferation
2,260.0
2,354.0
2,490.0
2,509.0
2,380.0
2,596.5
2,581.0
Naval Reactors
1,684.0
1,918.0
2,081.5
1,964.1
1,946.1
1,964.1
1,946.0
443.2
464.0
475.0
539.0
516.0
485.0
500.0
Total, NNSA
19,732.2
20,656.0
22,162.6
23,845.0
23,959.3
23,878.6
24,135.0
Defense
Environmental
Cleanup
6,426.0
6,710.0
7,025.0
7,073.6
7,073.6
7,296.6
7,285.0
573.3
586.0
427.0
575.0
285.0
c
Office of
Admin./Salaries and
Expenses
Defense Uranium
Enrichment D&D
Other Defense
Activities
920.0
985.0
1,035.0
1,075.2
1,075.2
1,079.9
1,080.0
Southwestern
10.4
10.4
10.6
11.4
11.4
11.4
11.4
Western
89.4
90.8
98.7
99.9
99.9
99.9
99.9
Falcon and Amistad
O&M
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
Congressional Research Service
31
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
FY2021
Approp.
FY2022
Approp.
FY2023
Approp.
FY2024
Request
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
Approp.
100.0
101.4
109.6
111.5
111.5
111.5
111.5
General provisions
2.0
-286.1
2.0
2.0
-93.0
2.0
-93.0
DOE Total
Appropriations
39,625.0
44,855.6
48,445.4
52,571.1
48,020.5
50,269.1
50,246.8
50,269.1
50,246.8
Total, PMAs
Offsets and
adjustments
Total, DOE
-2,202.0
39,625.0
44,855.6
46,243.4 52,571.1c
-5,730
42,290.5
Sources: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024; H.Rept. 118-126; S.Rept. 118-72;
H.R. 4394; DOE FY2024 budget justification; P.L. 117-328 and explanatory statement; H.Rept. 117-98; DOE
FY2022 congressional budget justification, explanatory statement for H.R. 133, 116th Congress; H.Rept. 116-449;
explanatory statement for Division C of H.R. 1865, 116th Congress.
Notes: Columns may not sum to totals because of rounding. Table includes some category adjustments for
comparability.
a. Includes $178 million from defense budget function.
b. Includes Strategic Petroleum Reserve Petroleum Account and rescissions.
c. Senate report includes net appropriations of -$126.5 million for Title 17 loan guarantees in the
Administration request, resulting in a requested total of $19,910.3 million for energy programs and total
requested DOE appropriations of $52,444.6 million.
As well as the regular annual appropriations shown in Table 9, DOE received additional
appropriations from IIJA; the additional amounts for FY2023 and FY2024 are shown in Table 10.
Additional appropriations are also available to DOE from IRA, beginning in FY2022 as shown in
Table 11. Additional amounts for FY2023 were appropriated by Division M and N of P.L. 117328, as shown in Table 12.
Table 10. Additional FY2023 and FY2024 DOE Funding Under IIJA
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
Program
IIJA FY2023
IIJA FY2024
2,221.8
1,945
100.0
100.0
Electricity
1,610.0
1,610.0
Nuclear Energy
1,200.0
1,200.0
Fossil Energy and Carbon Management
1,444.5
1,447.0
Carbon Dioxide Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Program
Account
2,097.0
0
Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations
4,426.3
4,476.3
13,099.6
10,778.3
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response
Total
Source: H.Rept. 117-394, DOE FY2024 congressional budget justification.
Congressional Research Service
32
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Table 11. Additional FY2023 DOE Funding Under IRA
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
Program
IRA section
Approp.
Fiscal years
Home Energy Efficiency Rebates
50121
4,300
FY2022-FY2031
Home Electric Efficiency Rebates, States
50122
4,275
FY2022-FY2031
Home Electric Efficiency Rebates, Tribes
50122
225
FY2022-FY2031
Home Efficiency Contractor Training Grants
50123
200
FY2022-FY2031
Building Energy Code Adoption
50131(b)
330
FY2022-FY2029
Building Energy Code Adoption
50131(c)
670
FY2022-FY2029
Title 17 Loan Guarantees
50141
3,600
FY2022-FY2026
ATVM Loans
50142
3,000
FY2022-FY2028
Domestic Manufacturing Conversion Grants
50143
2,000
FY2022-FY2031
Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment
50144
5,000
FY2022-FY2026
Tribal Energy Loan Guarantees
50145
75
FY2022-FY2028
Electric Transmission Facility Financing
50151
2,000
FY2022-FY2030
Transmission Line Siting Grants
50152
760
FY2022-FY2029
Offshore Wind Planning
50153
100
FY2022-FY2031
Advanced Industrial Facilities Deployment
50161
5,812
FY2022-FY2026
Inspector General
50171
20
FY2022-FY2031
National Laboratory Infrastructure
50172
Office of Science
FY2022-FY2027
50172(a)
Science Laboratory Infrastructure Projects
133
High Energy Physics Construction and Equipment
304
Fusion Energy Construction and Equipment
280
Nuclear Physics Construction and Equipment
217
Advanced Scientific Computing Facilities
164
Basic Energy Sciences Projects
295
Isotope Research and Development Facilities
158
Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management
50172(b)
150
Office of Nuclear Energy
50172(c)
150
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
50172(d)
150
50173
700
Availability of High-Assay Low-Enriched Uranium
DOE Total
FY2022-FY2026
35,067
Source: P.L. 117-169. Appropriations for items in Section 50172 are for the same fiscal year period.
Congressional Research Service
33
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Table 12. Additional FY2023 Funding for DOE in Divisions M and N of P.L. 117-328
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
Program
Division M
Division N
Total
Advanced Nuclear Fuel Availability
100.0
100.0
Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program
60.0
60.0
National Reactor Innovation Center
20.0
20.0
Risk Reduction for Future Demonstrations
120.0
120.0
125.3
125.3
Nuclear Energy
Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation (Ukraine-related activities)
Electricity (Puerto Rico electricity grid resilience)
1,000.0
1,000.0
520.0
520.0
1,520.0
1,945.3
Western Area Power Administration
Total
425.3
Source: P.L. 117-328, Divisions M and N.
DOE Crosscutting Initiatives
Crosscutting Initiatives consist of activities that draw funding and resources from multiple DOE
program offices and their corresponding appropriations accounts. Five Crosscutting Initiatives are
identified in the FY2024 explanatory statement, as shown in Table 13.
Table 13. DOE Crosscutting Initiatives
(FY2024 enacted budget authority in millions of current dollars)
Crosscut
EERE
FECM
Science
NE
OE
Total
Carbon Dioxide Removal
23
70
25
Critical Minerals
150
70
24
136
Energy Storage
330
5
130
23
Hydrogen
205
120
50
21
396
Industrial Decarbonization
580
245
66
62
953
1,288
510
295
242
Total
118
380
93
93
581
2,428
Source: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024.
Notes: EERE = Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; FECM = Fossil Energy and Carbon Management; NE =
Nuclear Energy; OE = Office of Electricity.
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy conducts R&D on transportation
energy technology, energy efficiency in buildings and manufacturing processes, and the
production of solar, wind, geothermal, and other renewable energy.
The Sustainable Transportation program area includes electric vehicles, vehicle efficiency,
hydrogen and fuel cells, and alternative fuels. DOE’s electric vehicle program includes several
goals for 2030, including “decreasing vehicle battery cell cost to achieve cost parity with internal
combustion engines” and “eliminating dependence on critical materials such as cobalt, nickel, and
Congressional Research Service
34
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
graphite.” The program also supports demonstrations of electrified medium and heavy trucks,
according to the FY2023 DOE budget justification.44
Renewable power programs focus on electricity generation from solar, wind, water, and
geothermal sources. They are also developing concentrated solar technologies to produce hightemperature heat that could replace fossil fuels in steel manufacturing and other industrial
processes.
In the energy efficiency program area, advanced materials and manufacturing technologies
focuses on next-generation materials and processes, secure and sustainable materials, and energy
technology manufacturing and its workforce.45 Industrial efficiency and decarbonization focuses
on sector-specific technology innovation, cross-sector decarbonization technologies, and
technical assistance and workforce development.46 The building technologies program includes
R&D on lighting, space conditioning, windows, and control technologies to reduce building
energy-use intensity.
In the energy efficiency program area, the advanced manufacturing program focuses on
improving the energy efficiency of manufacturing processes and on the manufacturing of energyrelated products. The building technologies program includes R&D on lighting, space
conditioning, windows, and control technologies to reduce building energy-use intensity.
The Biden Administration has split several EERE programs into separate offices, although the
FY2024 E&W enacted measure has continued funding them under the EERE appropriations
account:
•
•
•
State and Community Energy Programs, which provides two types of formula
grants to states: weatherization grants for improving the energy efficiency of lowincome housing units and state energy planning grants. For more details on
energy efficiency grants, see CRS Report R46418, The Weatherization Assistance
Program Formula, by Corrie E. Clark and Lynn J. Cunningham.
Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains, which provides support for increasing
U.S. manufacturing capacity for critical energy technologies and for increasing
industrial energy efficiency.
Federal Energy Management Program, which provides guidance and expertise to
federal agencies to meet federal goals on energy use and emissions.
Electricity Delivery, Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Energy Reliability
The Office of Electricity (OE) “leads the Department of Energy’s research, development, and
demonstration programs to strengthen and modernize our nation’s power grid so that our nation
maintains a reliable, resilient, and secure electricity delivery infrastructure” according to the OE
website.47
OE uses a model of North American energy vulnerabilities for analyzing transmission and other
energy infrastructure needs. Other activities include pursuing megawatt-scale electricity storage,
integrating electric power system sensing technology, and analyzing electricity-related policy
issues. The Administration has established a separate Grid Deployment Office to support
44 DOE, FY2024 Congressional Budget Justification, March 2023, EERE, https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/
2023-03/doe-fy-2024-budget-vol-4-eere-v2.pdf.
45 Ibid., p. 141.
46 Ibid., p. 155.
47 DOE Office of Electricity, “Mission,” https://www.energy.gov/oe/office-electricity.
Congressional Research Service
35
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
modernization of the nation’s electricity transmission system and critical generating facilities
through planning and financial assistance.
The DOE Grid Deployment Office, established by the Biden Administration in 2022, received a
separate appropriations account in the FY2024 E&W enacted measure. According to DOE, the
Grid Deployment Office supports “the development of new and upgraded electric infrastructure
across the country.”48
The Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) is the federal
government’s lead entity for energy sector-specific responses to energy security emergencies—
whether caused by physical infrastructure problems or by cybersecurity issues. The office
conducts R&D on energy infrastructure security technology; provides energy sector security
guidelines, training, and technical assistance; and enhances energy sector emergency
preparedness and response.
Nuclear Energy
DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy supports R&D on technologies to improve the efficiency and
economic viability of existing U.S. nuclear power plants, development and demonstration of
advanced reactor technologies, and R&D on nuclear fuel cycle technologies.
The Reactor Concepts program area comprises research on advanced reactors, including
advanced small modular reactors, and research to enhance the “sustainability” of existing
commercial light water reactors. Advanced reactor research focuses on “Generation IV” reactors,
as opposed to the existing fleet of commercial light water reactors, which are generally classified
as Generations II and III.
The Fuel Cycle Research and Development program includes generic research on nuclear waste
management and disposal. One of the program’s primary activities is the development of
technologies to separate the radioactive constituents of spent fuel for reuse or solidifying into
stable waste forms. Other major research areas in the Fuel Cycle R&D program include the
development of accident-tolerant fuels for existing commercial reactors, evaluation of fuel cycle
options, and development of improved technologies to prevent diversion of nuclear materials for
weapons. The program is also developing sources of HALEU, in which uranium is enriched to
between 5% and 20% in the fissile isotope U-235, for potential use in advanced reactors. HALEU
would be required for several designs currently receiving cost-shared support by DOE’s
Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program. For more information, see CRS Report R45706,
Advanced Nuclear Reactors: Technology Overview and Current Issues, by Mark Holt.
Fossil Energy and Carbon Management
The Fossil Energy and Carbon Management Research, Development, Demonstration, and
Deployment program was formerly known as the Fossil Energy Research and Development
program. It has historically supported research related to coal, natural gas, and petroleum,49
including a major focus area on the development of carbon capture and storage technologies for
use on coal-fired power plants. The program also supports operations at the National Energy
Technology Laboratory.
48 DOE Grid Deployment Office, “About Us,” https://www.energy.gov/gdo/about-us.
49 The Biden Administration renamed the Office of Fossil Energy as the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon
Management in 2021. This name change was also adopted by appropriators throughout the FY2022 appropriations
process. See DOE, “Our New Name Is Also a New Vision,” July 8, 2021, https://www.energy.gov/fe/articles/our-newname-also-new-vision.
Congressional Research Service
36
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Under the Biden Administration, FECM has shifted its focus to what it calls carbon management.
This includes a focus on development of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS)
technologies, hydrogen technologies, and options to reduce methane emissions from fossil fuel
infrastructure. FECM also leads DOE’s activities related to critical minerals and rare earth
elements.
Additionally, FECM is involved in a number of programs funded by IIJA, either managing the
programs directly or consulting with other DOE offices that have the lead management role.
These programs include Regional Direct Air Capture Hubs, Carbon Storage Validation and
Testing, Critical Mineral Innovation Efficiency, and Alternatives, and the Carbon Dioxide
Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation (CIFIA). Total IIJA appropriations for all
programs in which FECM is involved is $1.447 billion for FY2024. Additionally, CIFIA in
FY2023 was appropriated $2.097 billion, which remains available to support CO2 transportation
projects.
FECM’s current carbon capture research focuses on natural gas-fired power plants and
applications outside the power sector, in line with congressional direction provided in the Energy
Act of 2020 (Division Z of P.L. 116-260) and other recent laws. FECM also focuses on research
into producing hydrogen from fossil fuels and using hydrogen in the power sector.
For more information, see CRS In Focus IF11861, DOE’s Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)
and Carbon Removal Programs, by Ashley J. Lawson; CRS In Focus IF12163, Department of
Energy Funding for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology Programs FY2022, by Martin C. Offutt;
and CRS Report R44902, Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) in the United States, by
Angela C. Jones and Ashley J. Lawson.
Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR)
Authorized in 1975 by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (P.L. 94-163, as amended; 42
U.S.C. §§6201 et seq.), the SPR fulfills two statutory policy objectives: (1) reduce the economic
impact of oil supply disruptions, and (2) carry out U.S. obligations under the Agreement on an
International Energy Program (IEP)—a multilateral, voluntary agreement subject to international
law. Currently, the SPR consists of a government-owned crude oil reserve in Texas and Louisiana
and a smaller gasoline reserve in several northeastern states leased from commercial storage
operators.
Since the SPR was established, various administrations directed crude oil drawdowns on four
occasions in response to emergency oil supply disruptions. During FY2022, emergency SPR
authorities aimed to address anticipated oil supply disruptions following Russia’s military
invasion of Ukraine. The Biden Administration released 180 million barrels during FY2022, the
largest ever emergency SPR release.50 More frequently, DOE uses SPR authorities to exchange
crude oil with refiners following natural disasters (i.e., hurricanes) and other regional supply
disruption events.51 The Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve—established in 2014—has never
been utilized.
Because of limited utilization in response to emergency oil supply disruptions prior to the 2022
Ukraine war, growing U.S. crude oil production, and rapidly declining net petroleum imports—
50 CRS Insight IN11916, Strategic Petroleum Reserve Oil Releases: October 2021 Through October 2022, by Phillip
Brown; DOE, “SPR Quick Facts,” https://www.energy.gov/ceser/spr-quick-facts.
51 For additional information about SPR releases, see U.S. Department of Energy, History of SPR Releases, at
https://www.energy.gov/fe/services/petroleum-reserves/strategic-petroleum-reserve/releasing-oil-spr, accessed
February 27, 2023.
Congressional Research Service
37
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
one key metric used to determine IEP emergency oil stock obligations—Congress began requiring
DOE to draw down and sell SPR crude oil to pay for other legislative priorities. Between 2015
and 2021, Congress enacted eight laws mandating the sale of 358.6 million barrels of crude oil.
Congress cancelled 140 million barrels of these mandated sales in the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2023. Additionally, Congress required DOE to sell approximately $1.5
billion of SPR crude oil to pay for an SPR modernization program.52 (For further policy changes
proposed for FY2024, see section on “Strategic Petroleum Reserve Rescissions, Sales, and
Closing of Gasoline Reserve.”)
Science
The DOE Office of Science conducts basic research in six program areas: advanced scientific
computing research, basic energy sciences, biological and environmental research, fusion energy
sciences, high-energy physics, and nuclear physics. According to DOE’s FY2024 budget
justification, the Office of Science “is the Nation’s largest Federal sponsor of basic research in the
physical sciences and the lead Federal agency supporting fundamental scientific research for our
Nation’s energy future.”53
DOE’s Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) program focuses on developing and
maintaining computing and networking capabilities for science and research in applied
mathematics, computer science, and advanced networking. The program plays a key role in the
DOE-wide effort to advance the development of exascale computing, with the first exascale
system starting operation at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in May 2022.54
Basic Energy Sciences (BES), the largest program area in the Office of Science, focuses on
understanding, predicting, and ultimately controlling matter and energy at the electronic, atomic,
and molecular levels. The program supports research in disciplines such as condensed matter and
materials physics, chemistry, and geosciences. BES also provides funding for scientific user
facilities (e.g., the National Synchrotron Light Source II, and the Linac Coherent Light SourceII), and certain DOE research centers and hubs (e.g., Energy Frontier Research Centers, as well as
the Batteries and Energy Storage and Fuels from Sunlight Energy Innovation Hubs).
Biological and Environmental Research (BER) seeks a predictive understanding of complex
biological, climate, and environmental systems across a continuum from the small scale (e.g.,
genomic research) to the large (e.g., Earth systems and climate). Within BER, Biological Systems
Science focuses on plant and microbial systems, while Biological and Environmental Research
supports climate-relevant atmospheric and ecosystem modeling and research. BER facilities and
centers include four Bioenergy Research Centers and the Environmental Molecular Science
Laboratory at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) seeks to increase understanding of the behavior of matter at very
high temperatures and to establish the science needed to develop a fusion energy source. FES
52 For additional information about congressionally required SPR oil sales, see Strategic Petroleum Reserve: Mandated
and Modernization Sales, by Phillip Brown, a congressional distribution memorandum available to congressional
clients by request from the author.
53 DOE, FY2024 Congressional Budget Justification, March 2023, vol. 5, p. 7, https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/
files/2023-03/doe-fy-2024-budget-vol-5-science-v3.pdf.
54 Oak Ridge National Laboratory, “Frontier Supercomputer Debuts as World’s Fastest, Breaking Exascale Barrier,”
May 30, 2022, https://www.ornl.gov/news/frontier-supercomputer-debuts-worlds-fastest-breaking-exascale-barrier. An
exascale computer can perform one quintillion floating point operations per second. See Tim Greene, “World’s First
Exascale Supercomputer Is the World’s Fastest,” Network World, May 31, 2022, https://www.networkworld.com/
article/3662040/worlds-first-exascale-supercomputer-is-the-worlds-fastest.html.
Congressional Research Service
38
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
provides funding for the ITER project, a multinational effort to design and build an experimental
fusion reactor.
The High Energy Physics (HEP) program conducts research on the fundamental constituents of
matter and energy, including studies of dark energy and the search for dark matter. Nuclear
Physics supports research on the nature of matter, including its basic constituents and their
interactions. A major project in the Nuclear Physics program is the construction of the ElectronIon Collider at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, NY.
Two significant research efforts in the Office of Science cut across multiple program areas:
quantum information science, which aims to use quantum physics to process information, and
artificial intelligence and machine learning, which use computerized systems that work and react
in ways commonly thought to require intelligence.
For more details, see CRS Report R47564, Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding:
FY2024, coordinated by John F. Sargent Jr.
Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy
ARPA-E is a DOE office authorized by the America COMPETES Act (P.L. 110-69) to support
transformational energy technology research projects. DOE budget documents describe ARPAE’s mission as overcoming long-term, high-risk technological barriers to the development of
energy technologies. According to DOE, since 2009 ARPA-E has provided $3.76 billion in R&D
funding to 1,560 projects, and 230 project teams have raised more than $12.1 billion in private
sector follow-on funding.55
Clean Energy Demonstrations
DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations funds cost-shared demonstrations of clean energy
technologies, including “clean hydrogen, carbon management, industrial decarbonization,
advanced nuclear reactors, long-duration energy storage, demonstration projects in rural or
remote areas and on current and former mine land, and more.”56 OCED’s portfolio includes the
Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (transferred from the Office of Nuclear Energy),
which is funding two 50% cost-shared advanced reactor demonstrations in Wyoming and Texas.
OCED also supports the regional Hydrogen Hubs established by IIJA to establish hydrogen
supply chains for industrial, transportation, and other decarbonization uses.
Loan Guarantees and Direct Loans
DOE’s Loan Programs Office provides loan guarantees and direct loans under several authorities:
Title 17 (XVII), Tribal, and ATVM for projects that deploy innovative energy technologies, as
authorized by Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT05, as amended at 43 U.S.C.
§§16511 et seq.), direct loans for advanced vehicle manufacturing technologies, and loan
guarantees for tribal energy projects. Section 1703 of EPACT05 authorized loan guarantees for
advanced energy technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and Section 1705 authorized
a temporary program through FY2011 for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. Loans
and guarantees for tribal energy projects are authorized under Section 503 of EPACT05. (For
more information on tribal loans and guarantees, see CRS In Focus IF11793, Indian Energy
Programs at the Department of Energy, by Corrie E. Clark, Mark Holt, and Lexie Ryan.)
55 ARPA-E, “Our Impact,” web page viewed April 17, 2024, https://arpa-e.energy.gov/about/our-impact.
56 DOE Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, “About Us,” https://www.energy.gov/oced/about-us.
Congressional Research Service
39
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Title XVII allows DOE to provide loan guarantees for up to 80% of construction costs for eligible
energy projects. In general, successful applicants must pay an up-front fee, or “subsidy cost,” to
cover potential losses under the loan guarantee program. IRA appropriated $3.600 billion for
Section 1703 subsidy costs. IRA also established a time-limited (available through FY2026),
$250 billion Title 17 loan guarantee commitment authority—Section 1706—for “Energy
Infrastructure Reinvestment Financing.” IRA appropriated $5.000 billion to carry out the Section
1706 program.
Under the loan guarantee agreements, the federal government would repay all covered loans if the
borrower defaulted. Such guarantees would reduce the risk to lenders and allow them to provide
financing at below-market interest rates. DOE currently has more than approximately $60 billion
in authority available to make direct loans and loan guarantees.
To date, the only loan guarantees under Section 1703 awarded have been to the consortium
building two new nuclear reactors at the Vogtle plant in Georgia, totaling about $12 billion, and
for a Utah hydrogen storage project, with a guarantee of $500 million.57 A $1.52 billion Section
1706 conditional loan guarantee commitment to restart the closed Palisades nuclear power plant
in Michigan was announced by DOE on March 27, 2024.58 As of March 2024, applications for
203 additional loan guarantees totaling approximately $262.2 billion were under consideration by
the DOE Loan Programs Office.59
Energy Information Administration
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) was established within DOE as the lead
federal agency for collecting, analyzing, and disseminating data on U.S. and world energy supply
and consumption. EIA data collection spans the energy system from supply and transport to
consumption. All energy sources are included in EIA’s data and analysis products, though some
(e.g., petroleum) are more detailed than others (e.g., renewables). Recent areas of congressional
interest include improvements to EIA’s computer models used to project U.S. energy supply and
demand over time, and EIA’s data collection related to energy consumption in residential and
commercial buildings and by cryptocurrency miners. For more details, see CRS Report R46524,
The U.S. Energy Information Administration, coordinated by Ashley J. Lawson.
Nuclear Weapons Activities
In the absence of explosive testing of nuclear weapons, the United States has adopted a sciencebased program to maintain and sustain confidence in the reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile.
Congress established the Stockpile Stewardship Program in the National Defense Authorization
Act for Fiscal Year 1994 (P.L. 103-160). The goal of the program, as amended by the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (P.L. 111-84, §3111), is to ensure “that the
nuclear weapons stockpile is safe, secure, and reliable without the use of underground nuclear
57 DOE, “Secretary Perry Announces Financial Close on Additional Loan Guarantees During Trip to Vogtle Advanced
Nuclear Energy Project,” news release, March 22, 2019, https://www.energy.gov/articles/secretary-perry-announcesfinancial-close-additional-loan-guarantees-during-trip-vogtle; and DOE, “DOE Announces First Loan Guarantee for a
Clean Energy Project in Nearly a Decade,” June 8, 2022, https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-announces-first-loanguarantee-clean-energy-project-nearly-decade.
58 DOE, “Biden-Harris Administration Announces $1.5 Billion Conditional Commitment to Holtec Palisades to
Support Recommission of Michigan Nuclear Power Plant,” March 27, 2024, https://www.energy.gov/articles/bidenharris-administration-announces-15-billion-conditional-commitment-holtec-palisades.
59 DOE Loan Programs Office, “Monthly Application Activity Report,” March 2024, https://www.energy.gov/lpo/
monthly-application-activity-report. More information about DOE loans and loan guarantees is at the Loan Programs
Office website, https://www.energy.gov/lpo/loan-programs-office.
Congressional Research Service
40
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
weapons testing.” The program is operated by NNSA, a semiautonomous agency within DOE
established by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000 (P.L. 106-65, Title
XXXII). NNSA implements the Stockpile Stewardship Program through the activities funded by
the Weapons Activities account in the NNSA budget.
Most of NNSA’s weapons activities take place at the nuclear weapons complex, which consists of
three laboratories (Los Alamos National Laboratory, NM; Lawrence Livermore National
Laboratory, CA; and Sandia National Laboratories, NM and CA); four production sites (Kansas
City National Security Campus, MO; Pantex Plant, TX; Savannah River Site, SC; and Y-12
National Security Complex, TN); and the Nevada National Security Site (formerly the Nevada
Test Site). NNSA manages and sets policy for the weapons complex; contractors to NNSA
operate the eight sites. Radiological activities at these sites are subject to oversight and
recommendations by the independent Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, funded by Title IV
of the annual Energy and Water Development appropriations bill.
NNSA’s budget has four major Weapons Activities program areas:
•
•
•
•
Stockpile Management supports work directly on nuclear weapons. These include
life extension programs, warhead surveillance, maintenance, and other activities.
Production Modernization programs focus on maintaining and expanding the
production capabilities for the components of nuclear weapons that are critical to
weapons performance. According to NNSA, these include primaries, canned
subassemblies, radiation cases, and non-nuclear components.
Stockpile Research, Technology, and Engineering provides the scientific and
technical foundation for science-based stockpile decisions.
Infrastructure and Operations maintains, operates, and modernizes the NNSA
infrastructure. It supports construction of new facilities and funds deferred
maintenance in older facilities.
Nuclear Weapons Activities also has several smaller programs, including the following:
•
•
•
Secure Transportation Asset, providing for safe and secure transport of nuclear
weapons, components, and materials;
Defense Nuclear Security, providing operations, maintenance, and construction
funds for protective forces, physical security systems, personnel security, and
related activities; and
Information Technology and Cybersecurity, whose elements include
cybersecurity, secure enterprise computing, and Federal Unclassified Information
Technology.
Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation
DOE’s nonproliferation and national security programs provide technical capabilities to support
U.S. efforts to prevent, detect, and counter the spread of nuclear weapons worldwide. These
programs are administered by NNSA’s Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation (DNN).
•
The Materials Management and Minimization program conducts activities to
minimize and, where possible, eliminate stockpiles of weapons-useable material
around the world, such as conversion of reactors that use highly enriched
uranium (useable for weapons) to low-enriched uranium.
Congressional Research Service
41
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
•
•
•
•
•
Global Materials Security works to increase the security of vulnerable stockpiles
of nuclear material in other countries, promotes the worldwide removal,
reduction, and security of radioactive sources (typically used in medical and
industrial devices), and improves the capability of other countries to halt illicit
trafficking of nuclear materials.
The Nonproliferation and Arms Control program conducts reviews of nuclear
export applications and technology transfer authorizations, implements treaty
obligations, and analyzes nonproliferation policies and proposals.
The Bioassurance Program, established in FY2023, aims to expand DOE’s role in
biodefense and develop national laboratory capabilities “to anticipate, detect,
assess, and mitigate emerging biothreats.”
Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development (DNN R&D)
advances U.S. capabilities to detect and characterize threats such as foreign
nuclear material and weapons production, diversion of special nuclear material,
and nuclear detonations.
The Nonproliferation Construction program disposes of excess U.S. weapons
plutonium through a “dilute and dispose” strategy.
This account also includes the Nuclear Counterterrorism and Incident Response Program
(NCTIR), which evaluates nuclear and radiological threats and develops emergency preparedness
plans, including organizing scientific teams to provide rapid response to nuclear or radiological
incidents or accidents worldwide.
For more information, see CRS Report R44413, Energy and Water Development Appropriations
for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation: In Brief, by Mary Beth D. Nikitin.
Cleanup of Former Nuclear Weapons Production and Research Sites
The development and production of nuclear weapons since the beginning of the Manhattan
Project60 during World War II resulted in a waste and contamination legacy managed by DOE that
continues to present substantial challenges. DOE also manages legacy environmental
contamination at sites used for nondefense nuclear research. In 1989, DOE established the Office
of Environmental Management primarily to consolidate its responsibilities for the cleanup of
former nuclear weapons production sites that had been administered under multiple offices.61
DOE has identified more than 100 separate sites in over 30 states that historically were involved
in the production of nuclear weapons and nuclear energy research for civilian purposes.62
Responsibility for long-term stewardship at sites where remediation is complete or remedies are
in place is transferred from EM to the separate DOE Office of Legacy Management (LM) and
60 As described by the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, “The Manhattan Project was a massive, top secret
national mobilization of scientists, engineers, technicians, and military personnel charged with producing a deployable
atomic weapon during World War II. Coordinated by the US Army, Manhattan Project activities were located in
numerous locations across the United States.” The nuclear weapons activities begun by the Manhattan Project are now
the responsibility of DOE. See National Park Service, Manhattan Project National Historical Park website,
https://www.nps.gov/mapr/learn/historyculture/index.htm.
61 In 1989, DOE created the Office of Environmental Restoration and Waste Management, which later was renamed the
Office of Environmental Management.
62 For a list of active and completed sites, see the EM “Cleanup Sites” web page and interactive map at
http://energy.gov/em/cleanup-sites.
Congressional Research Service
42
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
other offices within DOE.63 Some of the smaller sites for which DOE initially was responsible
were transferred to the Army Corps of Engineers in 1997 under the Formerly Utilized Sites
Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP). Once USACE completes the cleanup of a FUSRAP site, it
is transferred back to LM, which has its own DOE funding subaccount within Other Defense
Activities.
Power Marketing Administrations
DOE’s four Power Marketing Administrations (PMAs) were established to sell the power
generated by various federal dams. The PMAs operate in 34 states; their assets consist primarily
of transmission infrastructure in the form of more than 33,000 miles of high voltage transmission
lines and 587 substations. PMA customers are responsible for repaying all power program
expenses, plus the interest on capital projects. Since FY2011, power revenues associated with the
PMAs have been classified as discretionary offsetting receipts (i.e., receipts that are available for
spending by the PMAs), thus the agencies are sometimes noted as having a “net-zero” spending
authority. Only the capital expenses of the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) and
Southwestern Power Administration (SWPA) are supported by appropriations from Congress.
Independent Agencies
Independent agencies that receive funding in Title IV of the Energy and Water Development bill
include NRC, ARC, and the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. NRC receives the largest
funding of these independent agencies. However, about 85% of NRC’s budget is offset by fees, so
that the agency’s net appropriation is less than half of the total funding in Title IV. NRC and ARC
are discussed in more detail below. The recent appropriations history for all the Title IV agencies,
including proposed initial funding for the newly authorized Great Lakes Authority, is shown in
Table 14. (For more about the GLA, see the “Funding Issues and Initiatives” section.) Additional
FY2024 appropriations were provided by the IIJA for ARC and other regional commissions and
authorities as shown in Table 15.
63 The Office of Legacy Management administers the long-term stewardship of DOE sites that do not have a continuing
mission once cleanup remedies are in place. Sites that have a continuing mission are transferred to the DOE offices that
administer those missions, which are responsible for their long-term stewardship.
Congressional Research Service
43
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Table 14. Independent Agencies Funded by Energy and Water Development
Appropriations
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
FY2021
Approp.
FY2022
Approp.
FY2023
Approp.
FY2024
Request
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
Approp.
Appalachian Regional
Commission
180.0
195.0
200.0
235.0
200.0
200.0
200.0
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission
844.4
887.7
927.2
979.2
979.2
957.5
944.1
(Revenues)
-721.4
-756.7
-790.2
-823.2
-823.2
-820.4
-807.0
Net NRC (including
Inspector General)
123.0
131.0
137.0
156.0
156.0
137.1
137.1
Defense Nuclear Facilities
Safety Board
31.0
36.0
41.4
47.2
45.0
42.0
42.0
Nuclear Waste Technical
Review Board
3.6
3.8
3.9
4.1
4.1
4.1
4.1
Denali Commission
15.0
15.1
17.0
17.0
17.0
17.0
17.0
Delta Regional Authority
30.0
30.1
30.1
30.1
31.1
30.1
31.1
5.0
5.0
2.5
5.0
Program
Great Lakes Authority
Northern Border Regional
Commission
30.0
35.0
40.0
40.0
40.0
41.0
41.0
Southeast Crescent Regional
Commission
1.0
5.0
20.0
20.0
20.0
20.0
20.0
Southwest Border Regional
Commission
0.3
2.5
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
413.9
453.5
494.4
559.4
523.2
498.8
502.3
Total
Sources: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024; H.Rept. 118-126; S.Rept. 118-72;
H.R. 4394; President’s FY2024 budget; P.L. 117-328 and explanatory statement; President’s FY2022 budget;
explanatory statement for H.R. 133, 116th Congress; President’s FY2021 budget; explanatory statement for
Division C of H.R. 1865, 116th Congress.
Note: Columns may not sum to totals because of rounding.
Table 15. Additional Appropriations in IIJA for Regional Commissions and
Authorities
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
Regional Commission or Authority
IIJA
FY2022
Approp.
Appalachian Regional Commission
200.0
Delta Regional Authority (DRA)
150.0
Denali Commission
75.0
Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC)
150.0
Southeast Crescent Regional Commission
(SCRC)
Congressional Research Service
IIJA
FY2023
Approp.
200.0
IIJA
FY2024
Approp.
200.0
IIJA
FY2025FY2026
Approp.
400.0
5.0
44
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
Regional Commission or Authority
IIJA
FY2022
Approp.
Southwest Border Regional Commission (SBRC)
IIJA
FY2023
Approp.
IIJA
FY2024
Approp.
IIJA
FY2025FY2026
Approp.
1.3
Source: H.Rept. 118-126; S.Rept. 118-72; H.Rept. 117-394.
Notes: Funding for the federal regional commissions and authorities in the IIJA has varying periods of availability.
Appropriations for ARC are available through FY2026, with $200 million to be allocated each fiscal year starting
in FY2022 and continuing through FY2026. Appropriations for the DRA, Denali Commission, NBRC, SCRC, and
SBRC are available until expended.
Appalachian Regional Commission
Established in 1965,64 ARC is a regional economic development agency. It awards grants and
contracts to state and local governments and nonprofit organizations to foster economic
opportunities, improve workforce skills, build critical infrastructure, strengthen natural and
cultural assets, and improve leadership skills and capacity in the region. ARC’s authorizing
statute defines the Appalachian Region as including all of West Virginia and parts of Alabama,
Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania,
South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. More than 25 million people currently live in the region
as defined.
ARC provides funding to several hundred projects each year, with particular focus on the region’s
most economically distressed counties. Major areas of infrastructure support include broadband
communication systems, transportation, and water and wastewater systems. ARC has supported
establishment of the Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS), a planned 3,000-mile
system of highways that connect with the U.S. Interstate Highway System. According to ARC,
91.1% of ADHS is “under construction or open to traffic.”65
Since FY2016, Congress has appropriated approximately $50 million per year as a set-aside for
ARC’s POWER Initiative (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic
Revitalization), which assists communities impacted by the decline of the coal industry. In
FY2024,66 Congress directed ARC to allocate $65 million to the POWER Initiative. The POWER
Initiative funds a variety of economic, workforce, and community development projects to
stabilize and stimulate economic activity in affected communities.
For more background on ARC and other regional commissions and authorities, see CRS In Focus
IF11140, Federal Regional Commissions and Authorities: Overview of Structure and Activities,
by Julie M. Lawhorn. For more background on the POWER Initiative, see CRS Report R46015,
The POWER Initiative: Energy Transition as Economic Development, by Julie M. Lawhorn.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
NRC is an independent agency that establishes and enforces safety and security standards for
nuclear power plants and users of nuclear materials. Major appropriations and budget request
categories for NRC are shown in Table 16. Nuclear Reactor Safety is NRC’s largest program and
is responsible for licensing and regulating the U.S. fleet of 93 power reactors, plus two under
construction. NRC is also responsible for licensing and regulating nuclear waste facilities, such as
64 Appalachian Regional Development Act of 1965, P.L. 89-4.
65 For more information, see ARC home page at https://www.arc.gov.
66 Amount specified in the House and Senate Appropriations Committee reports.
Congressional Research Service
45
Energy and Water Development: FY2024 Appropriations
the proposed underground nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, NV (which has received
no new appropriations since FY2010).
NRC is required by law to offset its total annual appropriation, excluding specified items, through
fees charged to nuclear reactor owners and other holders of NRC licenses. NRC does not retain
the fee revenue, but instead sends it to the U.S. Treasury. Budget items excluded from fee
recovery include prior-year balances, development of advanced reactor regulations, international
activities, and nonsite-specific homeland security. As a result, NRC’s net appropriation is about
15% of the agency’s total budget.
Table 16. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Funding Categories
(budget authority in millions of current dollars)
FY2021
Approp.
FY2022
Approp.
FY2023
Approp.
FY2024
Request
FY2024
House
FY2024
S.Comm.
FY2024
Approp.
Nuclear Reactor Safety
452.8
477.4
490.7
530.8
530.8
530.8
522.0
Nuclear Materials and
Waste Safety
102.9
107.3
111.6
126.0
126.0
126.0
124.2
Decommissioning and
Low-Level Waste
22.8
22.9
23.9
27.0
27.0
27.0
26.5
Corporate Support
271.4
266.3
285.3
304.0
304.0
304.0
301.6
Integrated University
Program
16.0
16.0
16.0
16.0
16.0
Prior-Year Balances
-35.0
-16.0
-16.0
Inspector General
13.5
13.8
15.8
18.6
18.6
15.8
15.8
844.4
887.7
927.2
1,006.4
1,006.4
1,019.5
1,006.1
Carryover
-27.1
-27.1
-62.0
-62.0
Total Minus Carryover
979.2
979.2
957.5
944.1
Funding Category
Total
Sources: Explanatory statement for Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024; H.Rept. 118-126; S.Rept. 118-72;
H.R. 4394; NRC FY2024 congressional budget justification; P.L. 117-328 and explanatory statement; NRC
FY2022 congressional budget justification; explanatory statement for H.R. 133, 116th Congress; NRC FY2021
Budget Justification; explanatory statement f
This text is long and has been trimmed here. Open the source document for the complete record.
This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.