[House Document 111-65]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



111th Congress, 1st Session - - - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 111-65

 
          A REQUEST FOR BUDGET AMENDMENTS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2010

                               __________

                             COMMUNICATION

                                  from

                     THEPRESIDENTOFTHEUNITEDSTATES

                              transmitting

         FY 2010 BUDGET AMENDMENTS FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY




 September 24, 2009.--Referred to the Committee on Appropriations and 
                         ordered to be printed
                                           The White House,
                                    Washington, September 17, 2009.
Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
Speaker of the House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
    Dear Madam Speaker: I am committed to investing in energy 
technologies that accelerate the transition to a low-carbon 
economy, create the energy jobs of the future, and continue to 
promote the development of the domestic production of clean 
energy. Our efforts to do so will improve the economy, reduce 
dependence on oil, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions. To 
that end, as part of the constant assessment of energy policy, 
I ask the Congress to consider the enclosed FY 2010 Budget 
amendments for the Department of Energy. This $30 million 
request would support the development of enrichment technology 
that could someday serve as a domestic fuel source for nuclear 
energy and national security. The request also could support 
the Department's nuclear nonproliferation mission. These 
amendments would be fully offset through reallocations from 
within the Department of Energy. These amendments would not 
increase the overall budget authority level of the FY 2010 
request.
    Details of these requests are set forth in the enclosed 
letter from the Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget.
            Sincerely,
                                                      Barack Obama.
                [Estimate No. 7, 111th Cong. 1st Sess.]

                 Executive Office of the President,
                           Office of Management and Budget,
                                Washington, DC, September 17, 2009.
The President,
The White House.
    You have stressed the importance of investing in low-carbon 
energy jobs and securing our energy future. As you are aware, 
the Secretary of Energy has requested authority to provide $30 
million in funding for domestic gas centrifuge enrichment 
technology demonstration activities during FY 2010. This 
funding would support efforts to develop domestic gas 
centrifuge enrichment technology so that it can move to 
commercial scale uranium enrichment operations and potentially 
serve as a domestic source of fuel for nuclear power and the 
enrichment requirements of the Defense community. In support of 
these efforts, submitted for your consideration are amendments 
to your FY 2010 Budget for the Department of Energy (DOE).
    These amendments would reallocate a total of $30 million 
within the existing DOE request and would not increase the 
overall budget authority level of your FY 2010 Budget request. 
The amendments would realign $15 million from the Defense 
Nuclear Nonproliferation account to the Nuclear Energy account. 
The remaining $15 million would be provided from within the 
Nuclear Energy account. The decrease in funding for Defense 
Nuclear Nonproliferation would not affect planned programs, as 
the expectations for the pace of expenditure of these funds has 
been revised since the Budget was submitted. The reallocation 
within the Nuclear Energy account would come from a redirection 
of research and development activities funding within the 
Generation IV Nuclear Energy Systems program. Programs impacted 
by these amendments are described below.

             DOMESTIC GAS CENTRIFUGE ENRICHMENT TECHNOLOGY

    The $30 million total increase requested for this effort 
would support ongoing development by USEC, Inc. of a domestic 
gas centrifuge uranium enrichment technology licensed from DOE. 
The technology was originally developed by DOE and the 
Department continues to see promise in it. USEC intends to 
bring the technology into full-scale commercial operation but 
it is not yet commercially viable. DOE has defined a series of 
specific milestones that the technology must meet and to help 
achieve these milestones, DOE supports funding $30 million for 
these efforts during FY 2010 through a cost-shared cooperative 
agreement. If the technology succeeds, it is expected to reach 
an annual production capacity of 3.8 million separative work 
units of enriched uranium per year. This would be enough 
enriched uranium to fuel about 38 typical 1,000 megawatt 
commercial nuclear reactors for a year. The technology could 
also support DOE's nuclear nonproliferation mission.

              GENERATION IV NUCLEAR ENERGY SYSTEMS PROGRAM

    Of the total $30 million request for domestic gas 
centrifuge enrichment technology, $15 million would be provided 
through a reallocation from within the Nuclear Energy account. 
This reallocation would come from amounts originally intended 
for the Generation IV Nuclear Energy Systems Program.

                    DEFENSE NUCLEAR NONPROLIFERATION

    The remaining $15 million that is needed for the Nuclear 
Energy account for domestic gas centrifuge enrichment 
technology would come from a requested decrease to the Defense 
Nuclear Nonproliferation account from amounts originally 
requested for denuclearization activities in the Democratic 
People's Republic of Korea. As a result of a rephasing of 
expenditures, $15 million of that request can be reallocated 
from this program without impacting the denuclearization 
agenda.

                             RECOMMENDATION

    I have carefully reviewed these amendments and am satisifed 
that they are necessary at this time. Therefore, I join the 
Secretary of Energy in recommending you transmit these 
proposals to the Congress.
            Sincerely
                                           Peter R. Orszag,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosures.
                          DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


                National Nuclear Security Administration


                    DEFENSE NUCLEAR NONPROLIFERATION

FY 2010 Budget Appendix Page: 407
FY 2010 Pending Request: $2,136,709,000
Proposed Revision: -$15,000,000
Revised Request: $2,121,709,000

(In the appropriations language under the above heading, delete 
``$2,136,709,000'' and substitute $2,121,709,000.)
    This amendment would reduce the Defense Nuclear 
Nonproliferation account by $15 million. The reduction will be 
taken from funding requested for denuclearization activities in 
the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) within the 
Nonproliferation and International Security program. This 
reduction will not impact the denuclearization agenda.
    The $15 million decrease to this account would be used to 
offset a proposed increase to the Nuclear Energy account, as 
described in the accompanying amendment. Taken together, the 
overall budget authority requested in the FY 2010 Budget would 
not be increased.
                          DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


                            Energy Programs


                             NUCLEAR ENERGY

FY 2010 Budget Appendix Page: 417
FY 2010 Pending Request $761,274,000\1\
Proposed Revision: $15,000,000
Revised Request: $776,274,000

(In the appropriations language under the above heading, delete 
``$761,634,000'' and substitute $776,274,000; and add the 
following after the words ``until expended'' and just before 
the deleted proviso:

, of which $30,000,000 is for domestic gas centrifuge 
enrichment technology.)
    This amendment would result in a net increase to the 
Nuclear Energy account of $15 million. Since a total of $30 
million is necessary to establish a program to support domestic 
gas centrifuge enrichment technology research and development, 
another $15 million would be provided by reallocating funds 
from within the Nuclear Energy account. This funding would come 
from amounts originally intended for research and development 
activities in the Office of Nuclear Energy's Generation IV 
Nuclear Energy Systems program.
    The proposed $15 million increase to the Nuclear Energy 
account would be offset by a proposed decrease to the Defense 
Nuclear Nonproliferation account, as described in the 
accompanying amendment. Taken together, the overall budget 
authority requested in the FY 2010 Budget would not be 
increased.
----------
    \1\The total FY 2010 appropriation amount requested for the Nuclear 
Energy account in the FY 2010 Budget Appendix is incorrectly shown as 
$761,634,000. The correct FY 2010 pending request is $360,000 less, or 
$761,274,000, as shown in this amendment and in the FY 2010 
Congressional Justification materials provided to the Congress by the 
Department of Energy.

                                  
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