[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 102 (Tuesday, June 19, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4011-S4012]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  ENERGY AND WATER APPROPRIATIONS BILL

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, one of the top goals for the Senate 
this year was to recover a regular appropriations process. It has been 
a long time since the system worked as intended.
  The spending agreement we passed in March achieved several critical 
objectives. It broke the arbitrary limits on funding for our Armed 
Forces. It delivered the largest year-on-year increase in resources for 
our troops in more than a decade. It provided record levels of veterans 
funding, with increased oversight and modernization. It secured major 
resources for infrastructure improvements. It took steps to prevent 
school violence. It scaled up research, treatment, and prevention 
funding to fight opioid addiction. It was a product of bipartisan, 
bicameral negotiations with the White House.
  But while the spending agreement achieved a lot, it wasn't anybody's 
best case scenario. No Senator on either side of the aisle was thrilled 
with the process, nor was the President, nor were the American people.
  We all agreed that we owe Americans a more functional process for 
allocating their hard-earned money. So here in the Senate, we made it a 
top bipartisan priority to bring some regular order back into the 
process.
  Led by Chairman Shelby, Ranking Member Leahy, and all the 
subcommittee leadership, our Appropriations Committee has engaged in 
precisely the kind of thorough, considered committee work that ought to 
define the appropriations process. Thanks to their hard work, the full 
Senate can now take up this package, which includes appropriations for 
Energy and Water Development, Military Construction and Veterans 
Affairs, and the legislative branch. We will be considering it on the 
floor this week.
  Keeping families and communities safe, defending our Nation, and 
upgrading our economic foundation, the Energy and Water components in 
this legislation address each of these national priorities. For 
example, they provide for critical improvements in the safety, 
security, and readiness of our Nation's nuclear arsenal. Today, as the 
Nation enters a period of renewed global competition among great 
powers, it is vital that we maintain a robust and well-maintained 
nuclear deterrent. This legislation puts forward the funds to continue 
safeguarding our stockpile and prepare the Nation for existing and 
future nuclear threats.
  It also includes record funding for the Department of Energy's Office 
of Science for research into subjects like new energy technologies and 
advanced computing. There are also funds for fossil fuel research, 
particularly for coal carbon capture.
  In addition to our energy future, the legislation bolsters 
infrastructure initiatives. It provides ample support for the future of 
America's water resources. It directs nearly $7 billion to the Army 
Corps of Engineers for maintaining our ports and inland waterways, 
protecting our shores, and reducing the damage caused by flooding.
  These funds will keep us on track to meet national priorities, but I 
can also testify to the impact this legislation will have on 
communities across the country, including in my home State of Kentucky. 
Earlier this year I asked Secretary Perry to take a visit with me to 
the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in western Kentucky. I was glad he 
took me up on the offer. At the plant, Secretary Perry noted that we 
``have a moral responsibility'' to properly decommission the site. The 
legislation before us is an important step to fulfill that 
responsibility to the community and to the thousand-plus workers 
dedicated to environmental cleanup.
  This legislation also provides funding for the Appalachian Regional 
Commission to help deliver infrastructure improvements to distressed 
counties in Kentucky and the region. It funds important civil works 
projects like the Olmsted Locks and Dam and the Kentucky Lock. These 
are critical to the free flow of commerce along Kentucky's 1,900-plus 
miles of inland waterways and the 13,000 maritime jobs they support.

[[Page S4012]]

  These are just a few examples from my State. The reality is that this 
legislation supplies needed support to communities all across our 
country.
  Energy matters to all Americans. Water infrastructure matters to all 
Americans. I urge everyone to join me in supporting this bill.

                          ____________________