[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 17872-17873]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         FOSSIL ENERGY FUNDING

  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about the 
fossil energy funding in the Energy and Water Appropriations bill.
  Fossil energy is a critical resource that we should not and can not 
just throw away. Providing the majority of our energy, we need to use 
these resources in a safe and responsible way. Harnessing domestic 
fossil energy could create jobs, lift up struggling communities, and 
provide jobs for our strong and dedicated workforce.
  I know there are people who remain very much opposed to funding 
fossil energy research who want to move away from fossil fuels as 
quickly as possible. But the fact of the matter is that, at this time, 
our Nation is not capable of quickly moving away from fossil fuels, 
which provides that majority of the energy we use. We need fossil 
energy to help us move forward, and we should not pretend otherwise.
  While I believe that our country will continue using fossil fuels for 
many decades, it is my hope that we will also continually seek better 
ways for using these resources.
  We need to find more efficient ways of burning coal that emit fewer 
pollutants and protect public health. We need to find more 
environmentally friendly ways to extract natural gas and oil. And we 
need to find ways to design and build carbon capture and sequestration 
facilities that will allow us to reduce the impacts of using fossil 
fuels on the climate.
  This is the type of work that fossil energy research and development 
goes towards, and work that I believe we must continue to support. 
Without it, we are only putting our country at a disadvantage.
  In Morgantown, WV, the National Energy Technology Laboratory or NETL 
is doing this work and pioneering fossil energy research and 
development activities that are lighting a pathway for a new era of 
energy use that is critical to West Virginia and our nation.
  Unfortunately, the Energy and Water Appropriations bill slashes 
fossil energy funding by 25 percent in just 1 year. In Fiscal Year 2011 
the overall fossil energy Budget was $586 million. The President only 
requested $452.9 million for Fiscal Year 2012 and this bill only 
contains $445.5 million.
  In comparison, the overall Energy and Water bill cuts spending by 
less than 1 percent. The nuclear section of this bill cuts funding by 
20 percent and

[[Page 17873]]

the renewable section of this bill remains flat--not facing any cut 
this year.
  I recognize that in this budgetary climate cuts may be inevitable to 
many programs. But I firmly believe that in the Department of Energy 
budget no one account can be asked to shoulder that burden alone. But 
if cuts must be made they should be done in fair and reasonable way, 
when compared to funding for other energy programs.
  Unfortunately, the fossil energy cuts in this bill are neither fair 
nor reasonable. The cuts to fossil energy in this bill are 
disproportionate compared to funding levels for other areas of 
research.
  To correct this situation, I have introduced an amendment that would 
restore $30 million to the fossil energy account, $10 million for 
natural gas, $10 million for unconventional fossil fuels and $10 
million for advanced energy systems in coal areas.
  Again, I understand the budgetary times that we are facing in 
Washington. I understand that cuts have to be made. But what I strongly 
disagree with is the idea that fossil energy must shoulder more than 
its fair share of cuts.
  Therefore, I ask my colleagues to join with me to restore a portion 
of funding for the fossil energy program.

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