[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 106 (Thursday, July 24, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H5745-H5750]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1998

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Nussle). Pursuant to House Resolution 
194 and rule XXIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of 
the Whole House on the State of the Union for the consideration of the 
bill, H.R. 2203.

                              {time}  2143


                     In the Committee of the Whole

  Accordingly the House resolved itself into the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union for the consideration of the bill (H.R. 
2203) making appropriations for energy and water development for the 
fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, and for other purposes, with Mr. 
Oxley in the chair.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the 
first time. The gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. McDade], and the 
gentleman from California [Mr. Fazio], each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. McDade].
  (Mr. McDADE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. McDADE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Chairman, as I indicated when the Committee on Rules kindly 
yielded time to us to consider colloquies, we have a number of Members 
who have colloquies which are very important to each one of them and we 
are going to take care of them with expedition and try to get that 
done.
  Before I say anything about the bill or anything else, however, I 
want to express my appreciation to the gentleman from California [Mr. 
Fazio], my dear friend the ranking member, who performed with great 
diligence and made great impact on the bill. And I want to say to the 
gentleman that it is a pleasure to work with him. I appreciate all of 
his efforts and guidance.
  Let me say too, Mr. Chairman, that I want to tell every single member 
of this subcommittee how grateful I am for their diligence and their 
efforts. Every one of them put a footprint on this bill and added to 
its unanimous nature.
  Mr. Chairman, this bill is reported unanimously from the subcommittee 
and unanimously from the full committee. It is because all of us as 
Members worked together, aided by one of the ablest staffs on Capitol 
Hill. I have nothing but thanks to the staff for their diligence, their 
efforts, their intelligence, their persistence, and their patience. All 
of them worked extremely hard and we are grateful to them.
  Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2203, the Energy and 
Water Development appropriations bill for fiscal year 1998. The Energy 
and Water bill is a fiscally responsible measure which continues to 
protect important priorities of Congress. At $20 billion, the bill is 
$52 million above the fiscal year 1997 level and $2.6 billion below the 
budget request. The bill is within its allocation of both budget 
authority and outlays.
  The subcommittee has worked diligently to strike the right balance 
between the energy and water programs funded in this bill. 
Unfortunately, the administration's request underfunds vital water 
resource activities across the country, including flood control, shore 
protection activities, and harbor maintenance. The subcommittee has 
been deluged with a crushing number of requests from Members regarding 
water resource projects in their districts. Recognizing the value of 
these investments, the subcommittee has been as accommodating as 
possible to Members within the constraints of a severe budgetary 
environment.
  Mr. Chairman, the Energy and Water bill includes $4 billion for the 
Corps of Engineers. This amount includes an increase of $550 million, 
or 16 percent, over the budget request for the water resource 
activities of the corps. Still, this amount is $188 million below the 
amount appropriated last year. Although the subcommittee was unable to 
fund all the worthy requests it received for water projects, it did 
commit a substantial amount to protect and enhance our vital investment 
in the country's water resource infrastructure.
  Notably, the recommendation rejects the proposed policies of the 
administration that would: First, require full upfront funding of Corps 
of Engineers construction projects, and second, severely restrict the 
role of the corps in shoreline protection and small harbor navigation 
projects. With respect to these administration initiatives, the 
committee was confronted with enormous opposition and no visible 
support.
  The Formerly Utilized Site Remedial Action Program [FUSRAP], 
previously funded as a program of the Department of Energy, is included 
in this bill as a program of the Army Corps of Engineers, The committee 
has increased the budget for this program--established to clean up 
sites participating in the country's early development of nuclear 
weapons materials--by nearly 50 percent over last year to $110 million. 
This increase, coupled with the transfer of programmatic 
responsibilities to the corps, is intended to accelerate the cleanup of 
contaminated sites, enhance program efficiency, and reduce costs to the 
taxpayer.
  Title II of the bill includes funding for programs of the Department 
of the Interior, including the Bureau of Reclamation. The $910 million 
recommended in title II is $23 million below the budget request and an 
increase of $86 million over the current fiscal year. The 
recommendation includes $120 million--$23 million below the budget 
request--for a new initiative: the Bay-Delta Enhancement and Water 
Supply project. This new program is designed to protect and enhance 
water resources in northern California's Bay-Delta region. It is worth 
noting that voters in the State of California have passed a $1 billion 
bond issue for purposes complementary to the Federal investment.

  Title III includes funding for both defense and nondefense functions 
of the Department of Energy. The recommendation for the Department of 
Energy is $15.3 billion, $3.2 billion below the budget request. The 
reduction from the request is largely due to the rejection of the 
administration's proposals for Environmental Management privatization 
and full upfront funding of construction projects.
  Eleven billion dollars--over half of the bill--is committed to the 
atomic energy defense activities of DOE. Of this amount, nearly $5.3 
billion is devoted to the cleanup of our nuclear defense production 
complex. Other defense activities funded in this bill include the 
maintenance of our nuclear weapons stockpile, nonproliferation efforts, 
and the disposal of defense nuclear waste. The defense portion of the 
bill is generally consistent with the House National Security 
authorization bill for fiscal year 1998.
  The remaining $4.3 billion appropriated to the Department of Energy 
is to continue the important civilian activities of the Department. The 
committee has been especially protective of basic science and energy 
research conducted by the Department, appropriating $2.2 billion to a 
newly created science account. This account funds efforts involving 
nuclear physics, high energy physics, basic energy sciences, and 
biological and environmental research.
  The bill includes $225 million for fusion energy sciences, including 
funding for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor 
project. High energy physics and nuclear physics programs are funded at 
$680 million and $321 million, respectively--a $5 million increase over 
the budget request for each program. Furthermore, the bill fully funds 
the budget request for the human genome project, $85 million; the large 
hadron collider, $35 million; the National Spallation Neutron Source, 
$23 million; and other high-value basic research programs.
  Mr. Chairman, the bill provides a grand total of $329.3 million in 
direct support of solar and renewable energy activities of the 
Department of Energy. The bill includes $285 million for solar and 
renewable energy programs directly administered by the Office of Energy 
Efficiency and Renewable Energy. This represents an increase of $18.7 
million over the fiscal year 1997 level. In addition, the 
recommendation includes $44 million for basic renewable energy research 
activities of the Office of Energy Research.
  The bill also includes a total of $350 million for the nuclear waste 
disposal activities of DOE, including the continued characterization of 
Yucca Mountain in Nevada as a potential geologic repository. This is 
$30 million less than the budget request and $32 million less than the 
amount provided in fiscal year 1997. Of the total amount, $160 million 
is to be derived from the Nuclear Waste Fund, capitalized by 
contributions of nuclear utility ratepayers, and $190 million 
represents the Federal contribution for disposal of high-level defense 
waste.

[[Page H5746]]

  I would note, Mr. Chairman, that the bill does not provide funding 
for two new spending programs proposed by the administration for fiscal 
year 1998: the Nuclear Energy Security Program and the Next Generation 
Internet initative. Given the severe budgetary environment, as well as 
the committee's concerns about DOE mission creep, the committee was 
disinclined to initiate these new spending proposals.
  The bill applies several management reforms to the Department of 
Energy. These reforms are designed to promote efficiency, enhance 
accountability, and control departmental mission creep. There are 
general provisions in the bill, which, among other things: Require that 
management and operating contracts be competitively awarded; demand 
adherence to Federal Acquisition Regulations; permit the award of 
support service contracts only in instances where such contracts are 
demonstrably cost-effective; and require an independent assessment by 
the Corps of Engineers of all new DOE construction projects. The 
committee is confident that these reforms will help the Department 
achieve a higher standard of accountability to Congress and the 
taxpayer.
  Title IV of the bill provides $194 billion for various independent 
agencies, including the Appalachian Regional Commission, the Defense 
Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 
The amount recommended is a reduction of $105 million below the fiscal 
year 1997 enacted level and $116 million below the budget request.
  The elimination of direct appropriations to the Tennessee Valley 
Authority accounts for the large reduction in funding for independent 
agencies. Earlier this year, the Chairman of TVA proposed elimination 
of Federal appropriations after fiscal year 1998. The committee was so 
enthused by this proposal that it decided to accelerate its 
implementation by 1 year. Although TVA--a $5.7 billion enterprise--will 
not receive appropriations in fiscal year 1998, it is directed under 
this bill to continue its essential nonpower programs using internally 
generated revenues and savings. This approach preserves the prerogative 
of Congress and its committees to determine the long-term future of 
TVA's nonpower programs.
  The sum of $160 million is provided for the Appalachian Regional 
Commission and $16 million is included for the Defense Nuclear 
Facilities Safety Board. These amounts represent level funding for both 
agencies. In addition, the bill includes $463 million for the Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission and $2.4 million for the Nuclear Waste Technical 
Review Board.
  Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the Members of the Energy and Water 
Subcommittee who have worked so hard to make this a well-balanced bill. 
This balance would not be possible without their full cooperation and 
dedicated efforts. I am especially grateful to my esteemed colleague 
and ranking minority member, the Honorable Vic Fazio, with whom I have 
worked hand in hand to develop the recommendations in this bill. He is 
a formidable advocate of the programs within the subcommittee's 
jurisdiction, and I thank him for his considerable efforts.
  Mr. Chairman, I urge all of my colleagues to support the Energy and 
Water Development appropriations bill, 1998.
  


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                              {time}  2145

  Mr. McDADE. Mr. Chairman, I yield to the gentleman from California 
[Mr. Rohrabacher] for purposes of a colloquy.
  Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Chairman, I would like to add my congratulations 
to the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. McDade], to the ranking member, 
the gentleman from California [Mr. Fazio], to the gentleman from 
Louisiana [Mr. Livingston] and to all those who are involved in this 
piece of legislation. It is in keeping with the great tradition, I 
might add, of Tom Bevill, who did such a terrific job in heading this 
subcommittee, and Mr. Myers.
  And, of course, all of these efforts over the years have been marked 
in this subcommittee by bipartisanship, and that is deeply appreciated 
on this Congressman's part.
  I appreciate not only the gentleman's bipartisanship but also the 
great way he has been handling himself in the expertise behind this 
bill.
  As the chairman and other House conferees prepare for conference with 
the Senate, I would like to call their attention to the water 
infrastructure restoration study in Huntington Beach, California. This 
study was initiated by the Corps of Engineers last year to assess the 
current status of the city's water infrastructure and to identify 
improvements to withstand an earthquake.
  I would also like to mention the cost-shared feasibility study to 
determine the appropriate measures to shore up the coastal bluffs at 
Blufftop Park in Huntington Beach. Unfortunately funding was not 
included in the committee bill this year for these projects. I would 
ask if the chairman would be willing to work during the conference to 
identify funding to continue these critical studies.
  Mr. McDADE. Mr. Chairman, I want to commend my colleague for bringing 
these studies to my attention. The committee considered numerous 
projects and studies including studies of the seismic reliability of 
infrastructure in southern California similar to the Huntington Beach 
study. I look forward to working with my colleague regarding these 
studies that he mentioned as the bill moves through the process.
  Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman and I thank the 
ranking member.
  Mr. McDADE. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the 
gentlewoman from California [Ms. Sanchez] to engage the chairman in a 
colloquy.
  Ms. SANCHEZ. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding me the 
time.
  I would like to bring to the attention of the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania [Mr. McDade] an item that was authorized in the Water 
Resources and Development Act of 1996 and merits the committee's 
consideration for the energy and water appropriations bill for fiscal 
year 1998.
  In January of 1995, heavy rains led to extensive flooding and 
property damage in the western portion of Garden Grove. Over 160 homes 
in Garden Grove were flooded. Due to this flooding a feasibility study 
for the Bolsa Chica Channel project was authorized in the Water 
Resources and Development Act of 1996.
  Mr. McDADE. Mr. Chairman, will the gentlewoman yield?
  Ms. SANCHEZ. I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania.
  Mr. McDADE. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the gentlewoman for 
bringing this problem to our attention. I want to assure the 
gentlewoman from California [Ms. Sanchez] that we will work with her 
and with my friend, the gentleman from California [Mr. Fazio] as the 
bill moves through the process to make every effort to address the 
problem.
  Mr. McDADE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I am at this juncture happy to announce to the House that I have a 
unanimous consent request to make that I think will be of interest to 
the Members.
  Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that all votes on the pending 
bill and amendments on the pending bill be reserved until tomorrow 
morning.
  The CHAIRMAN. The Chair informs the gentleman that the Chair has that 
authority under the rule and does not need unanimous consent. So with 
that, the gentleman may proceed.
  Mr. McDADE. I appreciate the Chair's indulgence.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Chairman, I first would like to congratulate my good friend, the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. McDade] for the very hard work and 
dedication that he has exhibited in bringing this bill to the floor. As 
the new chairman of the Energy and Water Subcommittee, he has taken 
hold and demonstrated a unique spirit of bipartisanship and his strong 
leadership in guiding the energy and water policy of this country.
  The recommended energy and water development appropriations bill for 
fiscal year 1998 is essentially level with last year and is within the 
allocation of both budget authority and outlays to this subcommittee. 
Consistent with tradition, the committee has smiled more favorably, I 
think it is fair to say, on water development projects than the 
administration has requested, to the tune of some $550 million over the 
budget request. The committee was literally inundated with a record 
number of requests from Members seeking funding for projects, many of 
which were newly authorized by the Water Resources Development Act of 
1996.
  Although we could not accommodate 100 percent of those requests, the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. McDade has paid particular attention 
to these needs throughout the country, although the water development 
area is still significantly cut back by some $188 million below last 
year's amount.
  The energy portion of the bill has suffered some severe cutbacks. 
Once again, in these tight budget years, it was difficult meeting all 
the competing priorities between environmental cleanup, stockpile 
stewardship, nuclear nonproliferation, renewable energy and basic 
energy research as well as defense needs. I think we have done as well 
as we can do. But we will be obviously dealing with a number of issues 
in conference. We have heard some comments here on the floor tonight 
about issues that I am sure we will work together to resolve, hopefully 
to the satisfaction of the Department of Energy and the administration.
  I am particularly pleased that we were able to work out an agreement 
on the solar and renewable budget within the very strict limitations we 
had. For the first time, I believe, in all the years I have been on 
this subcommittee, we will not have an amendment on that subject 
because I believe we have satisfied a broad cross-section of the 
Members.
  I would like to congratulate my good friend and colleague, Mr. Joe 
McDade, for his hard work and dedication in bringing this measure to 
the floor. As the new chairman of the Energy and Water Subcommittee, he 
has demonstrated a unique spirit of bipartisanship and strong 
leadership in guiding the energy and water policy of this country.
  The recommended Energy & Water Development appropriations bill for 
fiscal year 1998 is essentially level with last year and within the 
allocation of both budget authority and outlays.
  Consistent with tradition, the committee has smiled far more 
favorably on water development projects than the administration's 
request--to the tune of $550 million over the budget request.
  The committee was inundated with a record number of requests from 
Members seeking funding for projects, many of which were newly 
authorized by the Water Resources Development Act of 1996.
  Although we could not accommodate 100 percent of those requests, Joe 
McDade has paid particular attention to these needs throughout the 
country, although the water development area is still significantly cut 
back--by $188 million--below last year's amount.
  In particular, I wanted to cite funding for a significant new 
initiative in California--the Calfed Bay-Delta environmental 
restoration initiative.
  The San Francisco Bay-Delta system is the largest estuary on the West 
Coast. Millions of birds and 53 species of fish migrate through and 
live in the Bay-Delta Estuary, including many listed as threatened or 
endangered.
  The estuary provides drinking water for 20 million people and 
irrigation water for 200 crops, including 45 percent of the Nation's 
produce.
  The Bay-Delta is in dire need of a comprehensive and lasting plan to 
restore its ecological health and to improve its management, and to 
that end, farmers, environmentalists,

[[Page H5750]]

and water users throughout the State have come together to find long-
term solutions.
  Voters in the State overwhelmingly supported a $1 billion bond issue 
to fund such restoration efforts--Californians have clearly taken the 
initiative.
  The administration requested $143 million for the first year of 
funding for the Federal share of projects related to Bay-Delta 
restoration, knowing that effective action will require close 
coordination between Federal, State, and local entities.

  Our committee, in a tight budgetary year, included $120 million for 
this project, a significant step in getting this initiative underway 
and an amount that will be fully matched by funds approved by 
California voters.
  The bipartisan California delegation as well as Governor Wilson is 
unanimous in their support for this initiative and grateful to our 
subcommittee for choosing to fund it in a tight budgetary year--we will 
fight to hold this funding level at conference.
  The energy portion of the bill has suffered severe cutbacks. Once 
again in these tight budget years it was difficult meeting all of the 
competing priorities between environmental cleanup, stockpile 
stewardship, nuclear nonproliferation, renewable energy, basic energy 
research, and defense needs.
  I am particularly pleased that we were able to work out an agreement 
on the solar and renewable budget within these strict limitations. In 
past years this issue has been in contention as an amendment on the 
floor of the House. In the interest of working in a renewed bipartisan 
fashion, Mr. McDade graciously offered to negotiate with myself and the 
116 members of the Renewable Energy Caucus to find mutual agreement on 
the needed level of funding.
  The level of funding agreed upon, $185 million, is a nominal increase 
over last year's budget. As a long time supporter of this program, I 
think this represents a substantial commitment to developing an 
alternative to our dependency on foreign oil. We have to look to our 
future energy needs and prepare to rely on new sources that are cleaner 
and renewable. I commend the chairman once again for his cooperation 
and support on this issue.
  I am also pleased that we were able to fund the fusion program at the 
President's request. We are in the last year of funding for the design 
phase of this program, and this funding signals our commitment as a 
nation to seeing this project through this initial stage.
  We also managed to fully fund the National Ignition Facility which 
will help take us into the next century with regard to the 
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. This new approach to stockpile 
stewardship is critical to eliminating underground testing and 
shepherding us into a more peaceful era.
  I know the administration has some concerns with this bill. As the 
ranking member of the subcommittee, I look forward to working with them 
to address whatever problems may exist during the conference 
committee's consideration of this bill.
  But overall, I believe this bill is well balanced and demonstrates 
great responsiveness on the part of the chairman and the subcommittee 
members to meet the energy and water needs of this country.
  I want to urge my colleagues to support this measure and vote for its 
final passage today on the floor.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McDADE. Mr. Chairman, in order to expedite the procedures of the 
House, there was a rule pending that the parties involved in have been 
working on for some hours. In order to expedite consideration of that 
rule, I move that the Committee do now rise.
  The motion was agreed to.
  Accordingly the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. 
Klug) having assumed the chair, Mr. Oxley, Chairman of the Committee of 
the Whole House on the State of the Union, reported that that 
Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2203) making 
appropriations for energy and water development for the fiscal year 
ending September 30, 1998, and for other purposes, had come to no 
resolution thereon.

                          ____________________