[House Report 115-556]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


115th Congress      }                                       {      Report
                           HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session         }                                       {     115-556

======================================================================



 
        DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE ACT OF 2017

                                _______
                                

 February 13, 2018.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

     Mr. Smith of Texas, from the Committee on Science, Space, and 
                  Technology, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 4376]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, to whom 
was referred the bill (H.R. 4376) to direct the Secretary of 
Energy to carry out certain upgrades to research equipment and 
the construction of a research user facility, and for other 
purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 
without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Committee Statement and Views....................................     2
Section-by-Section...............................................     6
Explanation of Amendments........................................     6
Committee Consideration..........................................     6
Application of Law to the Legislative Branch.....................     6
Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the 
  Committee......................................................     6
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............     7
Duplication of Federal Programs..................................     7
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings..............................     7
Federal Advisory Committee Act...................................     7
Unfunded Mandate Statement.......................................     7
Earmark Identification...........................................     7
Committee Estimate...............................................     7
Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate...     8

                     Committee Statement and Views


                          PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    The purpose of H.R. 4376, the ``Department of Energy 
Research Infrastructure Act of 2017,'' is to provide for 
technological innovation through the prioritization of upgrades 
of key user facilities at Department of Energy (DOE) national 
labs from the existing Federal investment in basic research and 
fundamental scientific discovery by the DOE Office of Science.
    The bill authorizes an upgrade to the Advanced Light Source 
(ALS-U) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the Linac 
Coherent Light Source II High Energy Upgrade (LCLS-II-HE) at 
the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center National Laboratory, and 
the construction of the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) 
at Michigan State University.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    DOE is the leading federal sponsor of research in the 
physical sciences, and operates world-class, open-access user 
facilities around the country at the DOE national laboratories. 
These facilities include the supercomputers, x-ray light 
sources, photon sources, and neutron sources necessary to 
conduct ground-breaking basic research, and host approximately 
30,000 researchers annually from around the world.
    The Committee recognizes that these best-in-the-world 
science facilities uniquely enable research conducted through 
the DOE Office of Science and other federal sponsors of basic 
research, and facilitate revolutionary discoveries about the 
atomic structure, properties, and dynamics of materials. The 
next transformative breakthroughs in innovative energy 
technologies will likely arise from a strong foundation in 
basic research, particularly in the study of and development of 
unique materials, for which the facilities authorized in this 
bill provide critical capabilities.
    This legislation relies on the assessments of the 
Department and the scientific community, primarily through the 
long-range planning function of the DOE Office of Science Basic 
Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (BESAC) and the Nuclear 
Science Advisory Committee (NSAC). Both advisory committees, 
chartered under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and 
comprised of representatives from universities, national 
laboratories, and industries involved in relevant areas of 
research, provide official technical advice to the Department 
and other federal agencies on the national program priorities 
for basic energy sciences and nuclear science research.
    Based on the recommendations provided in the most recent 
reports issued from each advisory committee, H.R. 4376 
authorizes the completion of upgrades and construction of 
scientific user facilities necessary to undertake the next 
generation of transformative research in these areas. Under 
this legislation, the Secretary of Energy is directed to 
provide for an upgrade to the ALS at Lawrence Berkeley National 
Laboratory (LBNL) and a high energy upgrade to the LCLS-II at 
Stanford Linear Accelerator Center National Laboratory (SLAC) 
under the Basic Energy Sciences (BES) program within the DOE 
Office of Science. The Secretary is also directed to complete 
the construction of FRIB, located at Michigan State University, 
under the Office of Nuclear Physics (NP) within the DOE Office 
of Science.
    The ALS is a specialized particle accelerator that 
generates bright beams of x-ray light for scientific research. 
Electron bunches travel at nearly the speed of light in a 
circular path, emitting ultraviolet and x-ray light in the 
process. The light is directed through about 40 beamlines to 
numerous experimental end-stations, where scientists conduct 
research in a wide variety of fields, including materials 
science, biology, chemistry, physics, and the environmental 
sciences. The ALS-U will employ new technology to produce 
highly focused beams of soft x-ray light that are up to 1000 
times brighter than current capability. Soft x-rays, like those 
produced at the ALS, are optimal for probing the electronic 
structure of chemicals and materials.
    LCLS-II is the world's first hard x-ray free-electron 
laser. Scientists use its strobe-like pulses to take crisp 
pictures of atomic motions, watch chemical reactions unfold, 
probe the properties of materials and explore fundamental 
processes in living things. The LCLS-II-HE will build on the 
success of LCLS-II to ensure that the U.S. maintains a world-
leading capability for advanced research in chemistry, 
materials, biology and energy. LCLS-II-HE will provide a major 
jump in capability--moving from 120 pulses per second to 1 
million pulses per second, and will enable researchers to 
perform experiments in a wide range of fields that are now 
impossible.
    The Department's longstanding support and prioritization of 
both the ALS upgrade and the high energy upgrade to LCLS-II is 
documented in a publication of the Office of Science titled, 
``Facilities for the Future of Science: A Twenty-Year 
Outlook,'' published November 2003, and its publication of 
``Four Years Later: An Interim Report on Facilities for the 
Future of Science: A Twenty-Year Outlook,'' published August 
2007. In June 2016, the BESAC released a report titled, 
``Report on Facility Upgrades,'' which identified the ALS-U and 
the LCLS-II-HE as two of the five priority upgrade projects 
within BES. In this report, the BESAC determined that the ALS-U 
and the LCLS-II-HE are absolutely central to U.S. contributions 
to world leading science and that both projects are ready to 
proceed with construction.
    DOE nuclear physics research programs support the 
experimental and theoretical research needed to discover, 
explore, and understand all forms of nuclear matter. Within the 
area of low energy nuclear physics research, FRIB will advance 
the understanding of rare nuclear isotopes and the evolution of 
the cosmos. FRIB, which is currently under construction, is a 
one-of-a-kind, linear accelerator user facility that will use 
fast, stopped, and reaccelerated rare isotope beams to allow 
researchers to study a variety of rare isotopes and their 
properties.
    FRIB will expand the foundational understanding of nuclear 
structure, the atomic interactions of nuclear species, and the 
origin of elements, and will enable critical nuclear science 
research across a wide breadth of fields, ranging from medicine 
to astrophysics.
    The Department's longstanding support of the construction 
of a rare isotope accelerator is documented in a publication of 
NSAC titled, ``Opportunities in Nuclear Science, A Long-Range 
Plan for the Next Decade,'' published April 2002. In December 
2007, NSAC recommended the construction of FRIB in its 
publication of ``The Frontiers of Nuclear Science, A Long Range 
Plan,'' and in October 2015, NSAC listed the completion of FRIB 
construction as one of the committee's highest priorities in 
its publication titled, ``Reaching for the Horizon: The 2015 
Long Range Plan for Nuclear Science.''
    Further, this legislation requires that, to the maximum 
extent practicable, the Secretary of Energy shall ensure that 
the start of full operations of the FRIB occurs before June 30, 
2022, the start of full operations of the LCLS-II-HE occurs 
before December 31, 2025, and the start of full operations of 
ALS-U occurs before December 31, 2026.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    On November 18, 2015, the Energy Subcommittee held a 
hearing titled, ``Recommendations of the Commission to Review 
the Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories.'' 
Witnesses were: Mr. TJ Glauthier, Co-Chair, Commission to 
Review the Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories; 
Dr. Jared L. Cohon, Co-Chair, Commission to Review the 
Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories; Dr. Peter 
Littlewood, Director, Argonne National Laboratory.
    On March 22, 2016, the Committee held a hearing titled, 
``An Overview of the Budget Proposal for the Department of 
Energy for Fiscal Year 2017.'' The witness was The Honorable 
Ernest Moniz, Secretary of Energy, U.S. Department of Energy.
    On June 15, 2016, the Energy Subcommittee held a hearing 
titled, ``Innovation in Solar Fuels, Electricity Storage, and 
Advanced Materials.'' Witnesses were: Dr. Nate Lewis, 
Professor, California Institute of Technology; Dr. Daniel 
Scherson, Professor, Case Western Reserve University; Dr. 
Collin Broholm, Professor, Johns Hopkins University; Dr. Daniel 
Hallinan Jr., Assistant Professor, Florida A&M University--
Florida State University College of Engineering.
    On June 28, 2017, the Energy Subcommittee and the Research 
and Technology Subcommittee held a hearing titled, ``Material 
Science: Building the Future.'' Witnesses were: Dr. Matthew 
Tirrell, Deputy Laboratory Director for Science and Chief 
Research Officer, Argonne National Laboratory; Dr. Laurie 
Locascio, Acting Associate Director for Laboratory Programs and 
Director, Material Measurement Laboratory, National Institute 
of Standards and Technology; Dr. Adam Schwartz, Director, Ames 
Laboratory; Dr. Fred Higgs, John and Ann Doerr Professor of 
Mechanical Engineering, Rice University.
    On July 19, 2017, the Committee held a hearing titled, 
``Energy Innovation: Letting Technology Lead.'' Witnesses were: 
Dr. Jacob DeWitte, President and CEO, Oklo; Dr. Gaurav N. Sant, 
Associate Professor and Henry Samueli Fellow, Department of 
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Henry Samueli School of 
Engineering and Applied Science, University of California, Los 
Angeles; Dr. Venky Narayanamurti, Benjamin Peirce Research 
Professor of Technology and Public Policy, John A. Paulson 
School of Engineering and Applied Science, Harvard University; 
Mr. Kiran Kumaraswamy, Market Development Director, AES Energy 
Storage.
    On November 13, 2017, Energy Subcommittee Vice Chair 
Stephen Knight introduced H.R. 4376, which was referred solely 
to the Committee.
    On November 15, 2017, the Committee on Science, Space, and 
Technology approved and ordered reported H.R. 4376 by voice 
vote.

                            COMMITTEE VIEWS

Advanced Light Source upgrade

    H.R. 4376 authorizes a seven-year upgrade to the ALS 
described in the publication approved by the BESAC on June 9, 
2016, titled, ``Report on Facility Upgrades.'' This includes 
the development of a multi-bend achromat lattice to produce a 
high flux of coherent x-rays within the soft x-ray energy 
region and a suite of beamlines optimized for this source. The 
Committee concurs with the assessment of the Department and the 
most recent BESAC report that the completion of this upgrade is 
essential to maintaining world-leading science here in the 
United States.
    The ALS upgrade authorized in this legislation will utilize 
new advances in accelerator technologies to produce soft x-ray 
beams that are several orders of magnitude brighter than the 
current ALS beamlines. In order to ensure the on-schedule, on-
budget construction of this project, the Committee included a 
timeline and sufficient annual authorizations in this 
legislation requiring the Department to complete the ALS 
upgrade by the close of 2026.

Linac Coherent Light Source

    H.R. 4376 also authorizes the LCLS-II-HE six-year upgrade 
described in the June 9, 2016, BESAC ``Report on Facility 
Upgrades,'' including the development of experimental 
capabilities for high energy x-rays to reveal fundamental 
scientific discoveries. The Committee concurs with the 
assessment of the Department and this most recent BESAC report 
that the completion of this upgrade is essential to maintaining 
world-leading science here in the United States.
    The LCLS-II-HE upgrade authorized in this legislation will 
provide researchers with the imaging capability necessary to 
advance discoveries in chemistry, materials science, biology, 
and energy. In order to ensure the on-schedule, on-budget 
construction of this project, the Committee included a timeline 
and sufficient annual authorizations in this legislation 
requiring the Department to complete the LCLS-II-HE upgrade by 
the close of 2025.

Facility for Rare Isotope Beams

    Finally, H.R. 4376 authorizes completion of the FRIB to 
advance the understanding of rare nuclear isotopes and the 
evolution of the cosmos. This facility could also potentially 
be used to produce medical isotopes for diagnostic and 
therapeutic needs. While construction of the FRIB began in 
fiscal year 2014 and is already over 70 percent complete, the 
Committee believes that an authorization of specific annual 
funding for the remaining construction and necessary 
instrumentation is required to ensure this vital project is 
completed on time and on budget by June, 2022.
    The Committee also acknowledges the essential support for 
fundamental nuclear science from DOE NP, including the Nuclear 
Theory subprogram which increases the knowledge base that will 
ultimately identify new frontiers for future experiments in 
nuclear science. The Committee also encourages NP to continue 
its research efforts to explore novel concepts and rare decay 
processes relevant for the production of critical isotopes that 
support medical applications.

                           Section-by-Section


Sec. 1. Short title

    Department of Energy Research Infrastructure Act of 2017.

Sec. 2. Advanced Light Source upgrade

    This section authorizes the ALS-U over seven years. This 
upgrade will ensure that DOE can maintain ALS's status as a 
world class soft x-ray facility and allow scientists to study 
the structure and behavior of materials at extremely small 
scales.

Sec. 3. Linac Coherent Light Source II High Energy upgrade

    This section authorizes the LCLS-II-HE over six years. This 
upgrade will provide a major jump in imaging capability and 
will enable researchers to perform experiments in chemistry, 
materials, biology and energy that are now impossible.

Sec. 4. Facility for Rare Isotope Beams

    This section authorizes the completion of construction of 
FRIB over five years. This facility will enable the study of a 
variety of rare isotopes and their properties, in order to 
expand our understanding of nuclear structure, the atomic 
interactions of nuclear species, and the origin of elements.

                       Explanation of Amendments

    There were no amendments to this bill.

                        Committee Consideration

    On November 15, 2017, the Committee met in open session and 
ordered reported favorably the bill, H.R. 4376, by voice vote, 
a quorum being present.

              Application of Law to the Legislative Branch

    Section 102(b)(3) of Public Law 104-1 requires a 
description of the application of this bill to the legislative 
branch where the bill relates to the terms and conditions of 
employment or access to public services and accommodations. 
This bill authorizes an upgrade to the ALS-U at LBNL, the LCLS-
II-HE at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center National 
Accelerator Laboratory, and the construction of the FRIB at 
Michigan State University. As such, this bill does not relate 
to employment or access to public services and accommodations.

  Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the Committee

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause 
(2)(b)(1) of rule X of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives, the Committee's oversight findings and 
recommendations are reflected in the descriptive portions of 
this report.

         Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives

    H.R. 4367 would provide for technological innovation 
through the prioritization of Federal investment in basic 
research and fundamental scientific discovery through the 
upgrade of key user facilities at DOE national labs.

                    Duplication of Federal Programs

    No provision of H.R. 4376 establishes or reauthorizes a 
program of the Federal Government known to be duplicative of 
another Federal program, a program that was included in any 
report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress 
pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program 
related to a program identified in the most recent Catalog of 
Federal Domestic Assistance.

                  Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings

    The Committee estimates that enacting H.R. 4376 does not 
direct the completion of any specific rule makings within the 
meaning of 5 U.S.C. 551.

                     Federal Advisory Committee Act

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not establish 
or authorize the establishment of an advisory committee within 
the definition of 5 U.S.C. App., Section 5(b).

                       Unfunded Mandate Statement

    Section 423 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment 
Control Act (as amended by Section 101(a)(2) of the Unfunded 
Mandate Reform Act, P.L. 104-4) requires a statement as to 
whether the provisions of the reported include unfunded 
mandates. In compliance with this requirement the Committee has 
received a letter from the Congressional Budget Office included 
herein.

                         Earmark Identification

    H.R. 4376 does not include any congressional earmarks, 
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in 
clause 9 of rule XXI.

                           Committee Estimate

    Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the 
Committee of the costs that would be incurred in carrying out 
H.R. 4376. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) of that rule provides 
that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has 
included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the 
bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act.

     Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 
308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and with respect 
to requirements of clause (3)(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives and section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received 
the following cost estimate for H.R. 4376 from the Director of 
Congressional Budget Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                 Washington, DC, December 18, 2017.
Hon. Lamar Smith,
Chairman, Committee on Science, Space, and Technology,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 4376, the 
Department of Energy Research Infrastructure Act of 2017.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Janani 
Shankaran.
            Sincerely,
                                                Keith Hall,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 4376--Department of Energy Research Infrastructure Act of 2017

    Summary: H.R. 4376 would authorize the appropriation of 
funds to support the upgrade and construction of research 
equipment and facilities administered by the Department of 
Energy's (DOE's) Office of Science. CBO estimates that 
implementing H.R. 4376 would cost $836 million over the 2018-
2022 period, assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts.
    Enacting H.R 4376 would not affect direct spending or 
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 4376 would not increase 
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four 
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
    H.R. 4376 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA).
    Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated 
budgetary effect of H.R. 4376 is shown in the following table. 
The cost of this legislation falls within budget function 250 
(general science, space, and technology).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
                                                    ------------------------------------------------------------
                                                       2018      2019      2020      2021      2022    2018-2022
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 INCREASES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION
 
Advanced Light Source Upgrade:
    Authorization Level............................        20        50        80        80        52        282
    Estimated Outlays..............................        11        34        62        76        65        247
Linac Coherent Light Source II Upgrade:a
    Authorization Level............................         0        55        80        80        54        269
    Estimated Outlays..............................         0        30        61        76        66        233
Facility for Rare Isotope Beams:b
    Authorization Level............................         2       103       104       105       106        420
    Estimated Outlays..............................         1        57        88       104       105        357
    Total:
        Authorization Level........................        22       208       264       265       212        971
        Estimated Outlays..........................        12       121       211       256       236        836
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Numbers may not add up to totals because of rounding.
aH.R. 4376 would authorize the appropriation of $20 million in 2018 for upgrades to the Linac Coherent Light
  Source II. On an annualized basis, Public Law 115-90 provided $188 million in 2018 for this project. As a
  result, CBO estimates that H.R. 4376 would not authorize an increase in spending subject to appropriation in
  2018.
bH.R. 4376 would authorize the appropriation of $101 million in 2018 for construction of the Facility for Rare
  Isotope Beams. On an annualized basis, Public Law 115-90 provided $99 million in 2018 for this project. As a
  result, CBO estimates that H.R. 4376 would authorize an increase in spending subject to appropriation in 2018
  by $2 million, the difference between the authorized amount and annualized appropriated amount.

                           BASIS OF ESTIMATE

Spending subject to appropriation

    Under current law, DOE's Office of Science supports basic 
research in the physical sciences and operates a system of 
national scientific user facilities. The office received an 
appropriation of $5.4 billion in 2017 and the same amount on an 
annualized basis for 2018; that amount includes funding for 
construction and upgrades of equipment and research facilities. 
Under current law, no specific sums are authorized to be 
appropriated to DOE for those purposes after 2018.
    H.R. 4376 would authorize appropriations totaling $971 
million over the 2018-2022 period for the following specific 
projects:
           $282 million for upgrades to the Advanced 
        Light Source;
           $269 million for upgrades to the Linac 
        Coherent Light Source II; and
           $420 million for construction of the 
        Facility for Rare Isotope Beams.
    The bill also would authorize the appropriation of $53 
million in 2023 and $6 million in 2024 for those projects.
    According to DOE, the upgrade of the Advanced Light Source 
is in the design phase, and the upgrade of the Linac Coherent 
Light Source II and construction of the Facility for Rare 
Isotope Beams are nearing completion. In 2017, the agency spent 
$300 million for those two projects.
    Based on historical spending patterns, CBO estimates that 
if the authorized amounts are appropriated, implementing H.R. 
4376 would cost $836 million over the 2018-2022 period and $194 
million after 2022.
    Pay-As-You-Go considerations: None.
    Increase in long-term direct spending and deficits: CBO 
estimates that enacting H.R. 4376 would not increase net direct 
spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 
10-year periods beginning in 2028.
    Mandates: H.R. 4376 contains no intergovernmental or 
private-sector mandates as defined in UMRA.
    Estimate prepared by: Federal costs: Janani Shankaran; 
Mandates: Jon Sperl.
    Estimate approved by: H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.