[House Report 115-697] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] 115th Congress } { Report HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session } { 115-697 ====================================================================== ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT APPROPRIATIONS BILL, 2019 _______ May 21, 2018.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed _______ Mr. Simpson, from the Committee on Appropriations, submitted the following R E P O R T together with MINORITY VIEWS [To accompany H.R. 5895] The Committee on Appropriations submits the following report in explanation of the accompanying bill making appropriations for energy and water development for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2019, and for other purposes. INDEX TO BILL AND REPORT Page Number Bill Report Introduction............................................... 5 I. Department of Defense--Civil: 2 10 Corps of Engineers--Civil.......................... 2 10 Investigations............................. 2 18 Construction............................... 3 23 Mississippi River and Tributaries.......... 4 31 Operation and Maintenance.................. 5 34 Regulatory Program......................... 6 58 Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program................................ 7 59 Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies...... 7 59 Expenses................................... 7 60 Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works)..................... 8 61 General Provisions................................. 9 61 II. Department of the Interior: 13 62 Central Utah Project............................... 13 62 Central Utah Project Completion Account.... 13 62 Bureau of Reclamation: 14 62 Water and Related Resources................ 14 64 Central Valley Project Restoration Fund.... 15 75 California Bay-Delta Restoration........... 16 76 Policy and Administration.................. 16 76 General Provisions................................. 17 77 III. Department of Energy: 21 77 Introduction....................................... 77 Committee Recommendations.......................... 82 Energy Programs: 21 82 Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy..... 21 82 Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response..................... 21 88 Electricity Delivery....................... 21 89 Nuclear Energy............................. 22 91 Fossil Energy Research and Development..... 23 93 Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves..... 24 96 Strategic Petroleum Reserve................ 24 96 SPR Petroleum Account...................... 25 97 Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve......... 25 97 Energy Information Administration.......... 25 97 Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup.......... 25 98 Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund................... 26 98 Science.................................... 26 98 Nuclear Waste Disposal..................... 27 102 Advanced Research Projects Agency--Energy.. 29 103 Title 17 Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program...................... 30 103 Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program........................... 31 104 Tribal Energy Loan Guarantee Program....... 31 104 Departmental Administration................ 31 104 Office of the Inspector General............ 32 106 Atomic Energy Defense Activities: 32 106 National Nuclear Security Administration: 32 106 Weapons Activities......................... 32 107 Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation........... 33 113 Naval Reactors............................. 33 115 Federal Salaries and Expenses.............. 34 116 Environmental and Other Defense Activities......... 34 116 Defense Environmental Cleanup.............. 34 116 Other Defense Activities................... 35 119 Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal............. 35 119 Power Marketing Administrations: 36 119 Bonneville Power Administration............ 36 120 Southeastern Power Administration.......... 36 121 Southwestern Power Administration.......... 36 121 Western Area Power Administration.......... 39 121 Falcon and Amistad Operating and Maintenance Fund....................... 40 122 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission............... 42 122 Committee Recommendation........................... 123 General Provisions................................. 43 158 IV. Independent Agencies: 51 159 Appalachian Regional Commission.................... 51 159 Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board............ 52 159 Delta Regional Authority........................... 52 160 Denali Commission.................................. 52 160 Northern Border Regional Commission................ 53 160 Southeast Crescent Regional Commission............. 54 161 Nuclear Regulatory Commission...................... 55 161 Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board............... 56 164 General Provisions................................. 56 164 V. General Provisions 58 165 House of Representatives Report Requirements............... 165 Minority Views............................................. 195 SUMMARY OF ESTIMATES AND RECOMMENDATIONS The Committee has considered budget estimates, which are contained in the Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2019. The following table summarizes appropriations for fiscal year 2018, the budget estimates, and amounts recommended in the bill for fiscal year 2019. [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] INTRODUCTION The Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2019 totals $44,700,000,000, $1,500,000,000 above the amount appropriated in fiscal year 2018 and $8,173,568,000 above the budget request. Total defense funding is $22,300,000,000, $500,000,000 above the amount appropriated in fiscal year 2018 and $408,100,000 above the budget request. Total non-defense funding is $22,400,000,000, $1,000,000,000 above the amount appropriated in fiscal year 2018 and $7,765,468,000 above the budget request. Title I of the bill provides $7,278,000,000 for the Civil Works programs of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, $451,000,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $2,493,417,000 above the budget request. Total funding for activities eligible for reimbursement from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund is estimated at $1,600,000,000, which is an increase of $200,000,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $635,000,000 above the budget request. The bill makes use of all estimated annual revenues from the Inland Waterways Trust Fund. Title II provides $1,555,000,000 for the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Reclamation, $75,000,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $497,992,000 above the budget request. The Committee recommends $1,540,000,000 for the Bureau of Reclamation, $70,500,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $492,975,000 above the budget request. The Committee recommends $15,000,000 for the Central Utah Project, $4,500,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $7,017,000 above the budget request. Title III provides $35,494,251,000 for the Department of Energy, $974,202,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $5,348,180,000 above the budget request. Funding for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), which includes nuclear weapons activities, defense nuclear nonproliferation, naval reactors, and federal salaries and expenses, is $15,313,147,000, $644,195,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $222,097,000 above the budget request. Funding for energy programs within the Department of Energy, which includes basic science research and the applied energy programs, is $13,421,584,000, $503,535,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $4,909,080,000 above the budget request. Environmental management activities--non-defense environmental cleanup, uranium enrichment decontamination and decommissioning, and defense environmental cleanup--are funded at $6,869,220,000, $257,228,000 below fiscal year 2018 and $267,854,000 above the budget request. The net amount appropriated for the Power Marketing Administrations is provided at the requested levels. Title IV provides $423,757,000 for several Independent Agencies, $32,302,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $70,979,000 above the budget request. Net funding for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is $191,664,000, $60,059,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $36,379,000 above the budget request. Overview of the Recommendation The Committee recommendation prioritizes the most critical inherently federal responsibilities of this bill: the national defense, the maintenance of our nation's waterways, and ensuring the resilience and security of our electricity infrastructure. Strong support is included for basic science programs, which provide the foundation for the new energy technologies that are vital to maintaining our global competitiveness and ensuring our country's long-term prosperity, but that are often too high-risk to receive the attention of the private sector. The recommendation provides targeted resources for applied energy research and development activities to improve and extend the performance of existing energy sources and accelerate the adoption of new technologies. The recommendation also recognizes the importance of the federal government's responsibility to dispose of nuclear waste and clean up the legacy of five decades of nuclear weapons production and government-sponsored nuclear energy research. National Defense Programs As in previous years, the Committee considers the national defense programs run by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) to be the Department of Energy's top priority. The recommendation strongly supports the Department's proposals to modernize the nuclear weapons stockpile, increase investment in the NNSA's infrastructure, prevent the proliferation of nuclear materials, and provide for the needs of the naval nuclear propulsion program. Investments in Infrastructure The water resource infrastructure funded by the recommendation is a critical component of ensuring a robust national economy and of supporting American competitiveness in international markets. The Corps is responsible for keeping our federal waterways open for business. The Corps also has been instrumental in reducing the risk of flooding for public safety, businesses, and much of this country's food-producing lands. The Bureau of Reclamation supplies reliable water to approximately ten percent of the country's population and to much of its fertile agricultural lands. Both agencies make significant contributions to national electricity production through hydropower facilities. The U.S. marine transportation industry supports $2,000,000,000,000 in commerce and creates employment for more than 13 million people. As the agency responsible for our nation's federal waterways, the Corps maintains 1,067 harbors and 25,000 miles of commercial channels serving 40 states. The maintenance of these commercial waterways is directly tied to the ability of this country to ship its manufactured and bulk products, as well as to compete with the ports of neighboring countries for the business of ships arriving from around the world. As a primary supporter of America's waterway infrastructure, the Corps is ensuring that the nation has the tools to maintain a competitive edge in the global market. This recommendation makes key changes to the budget request to ensure that the Corps has the resources to continue to support America's shipping infrastructure. The flood protection infrastructure that the Corps builds or maintains reduces the risk of flooding to people, businesses, and other public infrastructure investments. In fact, the average annual damages prevented by Corps projects over fiscal years 2007-2016 was $67,600,000,000. Between 1928 and 2016, each inflation-adjusted dollar invested in these projects prevented $8.91 in damages. The properties and investments protected by the Corps infrastructure would often be flooded without that infrastructure, destroying homes, businesses, and many valuable acres of cropland. The Bureau of Reclamation's water infrastructure is a critical component of the agricultural productivity of this country. These facilities deliver water to one of every five western farmers resulting in approximately 10 million acres of irrigated land that produces 60 percent of the nation's vegetables and 25 percent of its fruits and nuts. Additionally, these facilities deliver water to more than 31 million people for municipal, rural, and industrial uses. Without these dams and water supply facilities, American agricultural producers in the West would not be able to access reliable, safe water for their families and their businesses and many municipal and industrial users would face critical water shortages. The Corps and Reclamation are the nation's largest and second largest producers of hydropower, respectively. Combined these federal hydropower facilities generate approximately 115 billion kilowatt-hours annually. Gross revenues from the sale of this power reach nearly $6,000,000,000 annually. National Energy Policy The Department of Energy and its National Laboratory system have helped to lay the foundation for the technological advances driving the energy market today. Production breakthroughs for every energy generation source can trace their origins back to research and development supported by the Department. As the energy market continues to change, the Department's support for research and development in all energy sources remains critical. The Committee provides funding in support of an ``all of the above'' energy strategy designed to take advantage and utilize all sources of American-made energy. Funding for fossil and nuclear sources, which provide 83 percent of all electricity generated in the nation, is targeted to ensure the safe and efficient use of the nation's critical base load energy generation sources. Funding for renewable energy sources, which provide 17 percent of the nation's electricity, supports continued investments in research and development to advance technological innovations. This strategy provides the correct balance to enable full use of our nation's abundant fossil resources while laying the foundation for developing future energy sources. The success of these innovations depends on a reliable and resilient electric grid infrastructure. The nation's electric grid was built to handle a different energy reality than the one we face today. Weather events, cyberattacks, and an increasing diversity of energy sources must be addressed to guarantee the continued operation of the electric grid. The Committee provides strong support to ensure the nation's electric grid remains secure. The Committee continues its long-standing support for the investment of taxpayer funds across the spectrum of all energy technologies. A national energy policy can only be successful if it maintains stability while planning for long-term strategic goals of energy security, independence, and prosperity for the nation. The Committee makes strategic choices, recommending a balanced approach to advancing research and development in all energy technologies and supporting a robust electric grid. Congressional Direction Program, Project, or Activity.--The term ``program, project, or activity'' shall include the most specific level of budget items identified in the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2019 and the Committee report accompanying this Act. Performance Measures.--The Committee directs each of the agencies funded by this Act to comply with title 31 of the United States Code, including the development of their organizational priority goals and outcomes such as performance outcome measures, output measures, efficiency measures, and customer service measures. Offsetting Collections.--The Committee directs each of the agencies funded by this Act to continue to report any funds derived by the agency from non-federal sources, including user charges and fines that are authorized by law, to be retained and used by the agency or credited as an offset in annual budget submissions. Regional Councils.--The Committee encourages all federal agencies to consider including regional councils and councils of government as eligible entities in competitions for federal funding when local governments or non-profit agencies are eligible. Digital Accountability and Transparency Act.--The Committee supports the requirements of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 as identified in the budget request. Committee Oversight Initiatives The highest priority mission of any federal agency is to be an effective steward of taxpayer dollars. Any waste, fraud, or abuse of taxpayer dollars is unacceptable. The Committee uses hearings, reviews by the Government Accountability Office, the Committee on Appropriations' Surveys and Investigations staff, and its annual appropriations Act, including the accompanying report, to promote strong oversight of the agencies under its jurisdiction, with an emphasis on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the Department of Energy. The recommendation continues the Committee's responsibility to conduct in-depth oversight into all activities funded in this bill. Each agency shall designate a specific point of contact to track each report required in the bill and ensure its timely production and delivery. A summary of the major oversight efforts in the bill is provided below. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Agency/Account Requirement ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Energy and Water....................... Direction on performance measures Army Corps of Engineers................ Guidance on budget structure Army Corps of Engineers................ Guidance on apportionment Army Corps of Engineers................ Direction on Principles and Guidelines Army Corps of Engineers................ Direction on 2019 work plan submission Army Corps of Engineers................ Direction on new starts Army Corps of Engineers................ Direction on work related to Asian Carp Army Corps of Engineers/Investigations. Guidance on specific studies Army Corps of Engineers/Investigations. Guidance on allocating additional funding Army Corps of Engineers/Construction... Guidance on allocating additional funding Army Corps of Engineers/Construction... Direction on management of the Continuing Authorities Program Army Corps of Engineers/Construction... Direction on funding of pilot projects Army Corps of Engineers/Mississippi Guidance on allocating River and Tributaries. additional funding Army Corps of Engineers/Operation and Guidance on specific projects Maintenance. Army Corps of Engineers/Operation and Guidance on allocating Maintenance. additional funding Army Corps of Engineers/Operation and Direction on levee safety Maintenance. initiatives Army Corps of Engineers/Operation and Briefing on certain Maintenance. nonoperational locks Army Corps of Engineers/FUSRAP......... Guidance on investigation and study at former Sylvania site Army Corps of Engineers/Expenses....... Direction on alternative financing Army Corps of Engineers/General Reprogramming requirements Provisions. Army Corps of Engineers/General Restriction on use of Provisions. continuing contracts Army Corps of Engineers/General Restriction on requiring Provisions. permits for the discharge of dredged or fill material for certain agricultural activities Army Corps of Engineers/General Direction on a rule regarding Provisions. federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act Army Corps of Engineers/General Restriction on funding for a Provisions. new hopper dredge Bureau of Reclamation.................. Direction on reconsultation activities under the Endangered Species Act Bureau of Reclamation/Water and Related Guidance on allocating Resources. additional funding Bureau of Reclamation/General Reprogramming requirements Provisions. Department of Energy................... Guidance on research and development policy Department of Energy................... Guidance on Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability reorganization Department of Energy................... Direction on Working Capital Fund Department of Energy................... Report on alleviation of poverty Department of Energy................... Direction on workplace diversity Department of Energy................... Direction on Public Access Plan Department of Energy................... GAO investigation of improper payment reporting Department of Energy................... Plan for GAO High Risk List removal Department of Energy................... Direction on commonly recycled paper Department of Energy................... Direction on educational activities Department of Energy................... Report on General Plant Projects Department of Energy................... Direction on budget requests for General Plant Projects Department of Energy................... Direction on reprogrammings and transfers Department of Energy/Energy Efficiency. Direction on a zero emissions energy credit report Department of Energy/Energy Efficiency. Guidance on Energy Star Department of Energy/Energy Efficiency. Report on hyperloop transportation systems Department of Energy/Energy Efficiency. Direction on the distribution of Weatherization Assistance Program funds Department of Energy/Electricity Report on battery technologies Delivery. Department of Energy/Electricity Guidance on the Grid Delivery. Modernization Laboratory Consortium Department of Energy/Electricity Report on transmission Delivery. congestion management Department of Energy/Nuclear........... Report on technology use in nuclear waste remediation Department of Energy/Fossil............ Direction on coal research and development Department of Energy/Fossil............ Direction on NETL sites Department of Energy/Fossil............ Report on the Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Program Department of Energy/Fossil............ Direction on crude oil by rail Department of Energy/UED&D............. Prohibition on uranium bartering for cleanup Department of Energy/Science........... Report on SBIR and STTR grants Department of Energy/Science........... Report on exascale deployment plan Department of Energy/Nuclear Waste Direction on Yucca Mountain Disposal. licensing process Department of Energy/ARPA-E............ Direction on disbursement of funds Department of Energy/Departmental Direction on scructure of Administration. future budget requests Department of Energy/Departmental Study on available resources Administration. Department of Energy/Departmental Direction on radium Administration. contamination NNSA................................... Prohibition on Institutional Plant Projects NNSA................................... Report on certain personnel costs NNSA/Weapons........................... Guidance on budget requests for new nuclear weapons NNSA/Weapons........................... Report on plutonium infrastructure NNSA/Weapons........................... Report on low-yield warhead NNSA/Weapons........................... Report on comparative warhead program costs NNSA/Weapons........................... Direction on MIE project reporting NNSA/Weapons........................... Direction on full cost recovery for ICF NNSA/Weapons........................... Direction on budgeting for high performance computing NNSA/Weapons........................... Direction on incremental facility operating costs NNSA/Weapons........................... Plan to expedite Mobile Guard Transporter NNSA/Nonproliferation.................. Direction on new nonproliferation projects in Russia NNSA/Nonproliferation.................. Direction on nonproliferation R&D budget structure NNSA/Nonproliferation.................. Prohibition on funding for ATR and HFIR conversion NNSA/Federal Salaries.................. Direction on personnel and potential consolidation Department of Energy/Defense Cleanup... Requirement for construction project data sheet submission Department of Energy/Defense Cleanup... Report on tank waste demonstration project Department of Energy/Defense Cleanup... Direction on nuclear quality assurance programs Department of Energy/Defense Cleanup... Direction on resuming construction project activities Department of Energy/Defense Cleanup... Direction on Waste Treatment Plant budget structure Department of Energy/Defense Cleanup... Guidance on cost sharing arrangements at Savannah River Department of Energy/Defense Cleanup... Reporting on security system upgrade project details Department of Energy/Other Defense Direction on nuclear facilities Activities. seismic research activities Department of Energy/Power Marketing Guidance on organizational Administrations. reporting Department of Energy/Federal Energy Report on electric transmission Regulatory Commission. system resiliency Department of Energy/General Provisions Reprogramming requirements Department of Energy/General Provisions Requirement for oversight of high hazard nuclear facilities construction Department of Energy/General Provisions Prohibition on funds without independent cost estimates Department of Energy/General Provisions Restriction of certain activities in the Russian Federation Department of Energy/General Provisions Guidance on Strategic Petroleum Reserve activities Department of Energy/General Provisions Prohibition on use of MOX funds and notification requirements Department of Energy/General Provisions Requirements for releases from Strategic Petroleum Reserve Department of Energy/General Provisions Report on spent nuclear fuel Nuclear Regulatory Commission.......... Guidance on reporting of salaries and expenses Nuclear Regulatory Commission.......... Guidance on regulatory framework Nuclear Regulatory Commission.......... Report on accident tolerant fuel Nuclear Regulatory Commission.......... Report on transition to digital systems Nuclear Regulatory Commission.......... Direction on rulemaking process and activities Nuclear Regulatory Commission.......... Report on licensing goals and right-sizing commitments Independent Agencies/General Provisions Requirement for NRC to comply with Congressional requests Independent Agencies/General Provisions Reprogramming requirements for the NRC General Provisions..................... Prohibition on funds to influence congressional action General Provisions..................... Consolidation of transfer authorities General Provisions..................... Prohibition of funds in contravention of Executive Order 12898 General Provisions..................... Prohibition of funds for computer networks that don't block pornography General Provisions..................... Prohibition of funds to further implement EO 13547 General Provisions..................... Prohibition of funds related to operation of certain hydroelectric dams General Provisions..................... Prohibition of funds to remove or close federally owned or operated dams General Provisions..................... Prohibition of funds to close Yucca Mountain application ------------------------------------------------------------------------ TITLE I--CORPS OF ENGINEERS--CIVIL DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY Corps of Engineers--Civil INTRODUCTION The Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act funds the Civil Works missions of the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). This program is responsible for activities in support of coastal and inland navigation, flood and coastal storm damage reduction, environmental protection and restoration, hydropower, recreation, water supply, and disaster preparedness and response. The Corps also performs regulatory oversight of navigable waters. Approximately 22,000 civilians and almost 300 military personnel located in eight Division offices and 38 District offices work to carry out the Civil Works program. BUDGET STRUCTURE CHANGES The fiscal year 2019 budget request for the Corps of Engineers proposed numerous structure changes, including creation of two new accounts (Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund and Inland Waterways Trust Fund) and the shifting of a variety of studies and projects from one account to another. The Committee rejects all such proposed changes and instead funds all activities in the accounts in which funding has traditionally been provided. All projects remain at the funding levels included in the budget request, just in different accounts than proposed. In particular:Projects proposed for funding in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund account in the budget request have been transferred to the Construction, Mississippi River and Tributaries, and Operation and Maintenance accounts, as appropriate; Projects proposed for funding in the Inland Waterways Trust Fund account in the budget request have been transferred to the Construction account; Dredged material management plans, proposed in the Investigations account in the budget request, have been transferred to the Operation and Maintenance account; Dam safety modification studies, proposed in the Investigations account in the budget request, have been transferred to the Dam Safety and Seepage/ Stability Correction Program within the Construction account; Dam Safety and Seepage/Stability Correction Program management costs, proposed in the Expenses account in the budget request, have been transferred to the Program within the Construction account; and Sand mitigation projects, proposed in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund account in the budget request, have been transferred to the Construction account. Additionally, the Poplar Island, Maryland, beneficial use of dredged material project has been re-categorized as within the environmental restoration business line as is appropriate and as was the case in previous years. For any fiscal year, if the Corps proposes budget structure changes, the proposal shall be accompanied by a display of the funding request in the traditional budget structure. APPORTIONMENT UNDER A CONTINUING RESOLUTION For the purposes of the continuing resolutions to start fiscal year 2018, the Office of Management and Budget changed the long-standing policy by which funding is apportioned to the Civil Works program of the Corps of Engineers. Under the new policy, funding within an individual account was apportioned separately for amounts from the general fund of the Treasury and from various trust funds. The Committee has long intended the Corps to have the flexibility to address projects most in need of funding under a continuing resolution. The creation of artificial accounting distinctions has the potential to cause serious impediments to the efficient and effective implementation of the Civil Works program. For example, work on many navigation projects is limited by environmental or other regulatory windows. Further limitations imposed by separately apportioning Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund monies could cause serious disruptions to the economic activity that depends on these navigation channels. For these reasons, the Committee rejects the change in apportionment policy and directs the Administration to follow the previous policy during any continuing resolutions that may occur in future fiscal years. DEEP-DRAFT NAVIGATION The Committee remains mindful of the evolving infrastructure needs of the nation's ports. Meeting these needs--including deeper drafts to accommodate the move towards larger ships--will be essential if the nation is to remain competitive in international markets and to continue advancing economic development and job creation domestically. Investigations and construction of port projects, including the deepening of existing projects, are cost-shared between the federal government and non-federal sponsors, often local or regional port authorities. The operation and maintenance of these projects are federal responsibilities and are funded as reimbursements from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF), which is supported by an ad valorem tax on the value of imported and domestic cargo. Expenditures from the trust fund are subject to annual appropriations. The balance in the HMTF at the beginning of fiscal year 2019 is estimated to be approximately $9,416,000,000. The Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) of 2014 included target annual appropriations levels for use of HMTF receipts and the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2016 amended those levels. The Committee remains committed to providing the maximum practicable amount of funding for HMTF- reimbursable activities consistent with annual allocations and after evaluating funding requirements for other priority activities within the Civil Works program. For fiscal year 2019, the Committee provides an estimated $1,600,000,000 for HMTF-related activities, $200,000,000 more than fiscal year 2018, $635,000,000 above the budget request, and $160,000,000 above the annual target. This funding will enable the Corps to make significant progress on the backlog of dredging needs. INLAND WATERWAYS SYSTEM The nation's inland waterways system--consisting of approximately 12,000 miles of commercially navigable channels and 239 lock chambers--also is essential to supporting the national economy. Freight transported on the inland waterways system includes a significant portion of the nation's grain exports, domestic petroleum and petroleum products, and coal used in electricity generation. Much of the physical infrastructure of the system is aging, however, and in need of improvements. For example, commercial navigation locks typically have a design life of 50 years, yet nearly 60 percent of these locks in the United States are more than 50 years old, with the average age at almost 60 years old. Capital improvements to the inland waterways system generally are funded 50 percent from the General Treasury and 50 percent from the Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF), while operation and maintenance costs are funded 100 percent from the General Treasury. The IWTF is supported by a tax on barge fuel. In recent years, the increasing rehabilitation and reconstruction needs and the escalating costs of those projects have far outstripped available revenues in the IWTF. Two statutory changes enacted in fiscal year 2015, however, will lead to the availability of additional revenues to stand as the required cost-share for some additional work on the inland waterways system. These changes were the reduction in the portion of the costs of the Olmsted Locks and Dam project that is to be derived from the IWTF to 15 percent and the increase in the fuel tax to $0.29 per gallon from $0.20 per gallon. The Corps is directed to take the preparatory steps necessary to ensure that new construction projects can be initiated as soon as can be supported under the larger capital program (i.e., as ongoing projects approach completion). For fiscal year 2019, the Committee provides appropriations making use of all estimated annual revenues from the IWTF. The final program level will depend on project-specific allocations to be made by the Corps. The Committee also allocates $50,000,000 above the budget request for additional operation and maintenance activities on the inland waterways. PRINCIPLES AND REQUIREMENTS Concerns persist that the effort to update the Water Resources Principles and Guidelines did not proceed consistent with the language or intent of section 2031 of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007. No funds provided to the Corps of Engineers shall be used to develop or implement rules or guidance to support implementation of the final Principles and Requirements for Federal Investments in Water Resources released in March 2013 or the final Interagency Guidelines released in December 2014. The Corps shall continue to use the document dated March 10, 1983, and entitled ``Economic and Environmental Principles and Guidelines for Water and Related Land Resources Implementation Studies'' during the fiscal year period covered by the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act for 2019. FORMAT OF FUNDING PRIORITIES Traditionally, the President requested and the Congress appropriated funds for the Civil Works program on a project- level basis. Taken together, however, these funding decisions indicated programmatic priorities and policy preferences. As with non-project-based programs, the Congress at times disagreed with the priorities stated in the President's budget request and made its priorities known in appropriations bills. Final federal government priorities were established in Acts passed by both chambers of the Congress and signed by the President. Since the 112th Congress, congressional earmarks, as defined in House rule XXI, have been prohibited. That definition encompasses project-level funding not requested by the President. As a result, the Committee reviewed the historical format of appropriations for the Corps to see if there was a more transparent way to highlight programmatic priorities without abandoning congressional oversight responsibilities. The fiscal year 2012 Act included a modification to the format used in previous years, and that format is continued for fiscal year 2019. As in previous years, the Committee lists in report tables the studies, projects, and activities within each account requested by the President along with the Committee-recommended funding level. To advance its programmatic priorities, the Committee has included additional funding for certain categories of projects. Project-specific allocations within these categories will be determined by the Corps based on further direction provided in this report. ADDITIONAL FUNDING The recommendation includes funding in addition to the budget request to ensure continued improvements to our national economy, public safety, and environmental health that result from water resources projects. This funding is for additional work that either was not included in the budget request or was inadequately budgeted. The executive branch retains complete discretion over project-specific allocation decisions within the additional funds provided, subject to only the direction here and under the heading ``Additional Funding'' or ``Additional Funding for Ongoing Work'' within each of the Investigations, Construction, Mississippi River and Tributaries, and Operation and Maintenance accounts. A study or project may not be excluded from consideration for funding for being ``inconsistent with Administration policy.'' The Administration is reminded that these funds are in addition to the budget request, and Administration budget metrics shall not be a reason to disqualify a study or project from being funded. Voluntary funding in excess of legally required cost shares for studies and projects is acceptable, but shall not be used as a criterion for allocating the additional funding provided or for the selection of new starts. It is expected that all of the additional funding provided will be allocated to specific programs, projects, or activities. The focus of the allocation process shall favor the obligation, rather than expenditure, of funds. The Corps shall evaluate all studies and projects only within accounts and categories consistent with previous congressional funding. When allocating the additional funding provided in this Act, the Corps shall consider eligibility and implementation decisions under Public Law 115-123 so as to maximize the reduction of risk to public safety and infrastructure and the reduction of future damages from floods and storms nationwide. A project or study shall be eligible for additional funding within the Investigations, Construction, and Mississippi River and Tributaries accounts if: (1) it has received funding, other than through a reprogramming, in at least one of the previous three fiscal years; (2) it was previously funded and could reach a significant milestone, complete a discrete element of work, or produce significant outputs in fiscal year 2019; or (3) as appropriate, it is selected as one of the new starts allowed in accordance with this Act and the additional direction provided below. Projects with executed Advanced Project Partnership Agreements, or similar agreements, shall be eligible for additional funding provided in this bill. None of the additional funding in any account may be used for any item where funding was specifically denied or for projects in the Continuing Authorities Program. Funds shall be allocated consistent with statutory cost share requirements. Work Plan.--Not later than 60 days after the enactment of this Act, the Corps shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a work plan including the following information: (1) a detailed description of the process and criteria used to evaluate studies and projects; (2) delineation of how these funds are to be allocated; (3) a summary of the work to be accomplished with each allocation, including phase of work; and (4) a list of all studies and projects that were considered eligible for funding but did not receive funding, including an explanation of whether the study or project could have used funds in fiscal year 2019 and the specific reasons each study or project was considered as being less competitive for an allocation of funds. New Starts.--The recommendation includes six new starts in the Investigations account and five new starts in the Construction account to be distributed across the authorized mission areas of the Corps. Of the new starts in Investigations, two shall be for navigation studies, one shall be for a flood and storm damage reduction study, one shall be for an environmental restoration study, and two shall be for navigation, flood and storm damage reduction, environmental restoration, or multi-purpose studies. Of the new construction starts, one shall be for a navigation project; one shall be for a flood and storm damage reduction project; one shall be for an additional navigation or flood and storm damage reduction project; one shall be for an environmental restoration project; and one shall be for a navigation, flood and storm damage reduction, environmental restoration, or multi-purpose project. No funding shall be used to initiate new programs, projects, or activities in the Mississippi River and Tributaries or Operation and Maintenance accounts. The Corps is directed to propose a single group of new starts as a part of the work plan. None of the funds may be used for any item for which the Committee has specifically denied funding. The Corps may not change or substitute the new starts selected once the work plan has been provided to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress. Each new start shall be funded from the appropriate additional funding line item. Any project for which the new start requirements are not met by the end of fiscal year 2019 shall be treated as if the project had not been selected as a new start; such a project shall be required to compete again for new start funding in future years. As all new starts are to be chosen by the Corps, all shall be considered of equal importance, and the expectation is that future budget submissions will include appropriate funding for all new starts selected. There continues to be confusion regarding the executive branch's policies and guidelines regarding which studies and projects require new start designations. Therefore, the Corps is directed to notify the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress at least 7 days prior to execution of an agreement for construction of any project except environmental infrastructure projects and projects under the Continuing Authorities Program. Additionally, the Committee reiterates and clarifies previous congressional direction as follows. Neither study nor construction activities related to individual projects authorized under section 1037 of the WRRDA of 2014 shall require a new start or new investment decision; these activities shall be considered ongoing work. No new start or new investment decision shall be required when moving from feasibility to preconstruction engineering and design (PED). A new start designation shall be required to initiate construction of individually-authorized projects funded within programmatic line items. No new start or new investment decision shall be required to initiate work on a separable element of a project when construction of one or more separable elements of that project was initiated previously; it shall be considered ongoing work. A new construction start shall not be required for work undertaken to correct a design deficiency on an existing federal project; it shall be considered ongoing work. In addition to the priority factors used to allocate all additional funding provided in the Investigations account, the Corps should give careful consideration to the out-year budget impacts of the studies selected and to whether there appears to be an identifiable local sponsor that will be ready and able to provide, in a timely manner, the necessary cost share for the feasibility and PED phases. The Corps is reminded that the flood and storm damage reduction and the environmental restoration mission areas can include instances where non- federal sponsors are seeking assistance with flood control and unauthorized discharges from permitted wastewater treatment facilities and that the navigation mission area includes work in remote and subsistence harbor areas. In addition to the priority factors used to allocate all additional funding provided in the Construction account, the Corps also shall consider the out-year budget impacts of the selected new starts; and the cost sharing sponsor's ability and willingness to promptly provide the cash contribution (if any), as well as required lands, easements, rights-of-way, relocations, and disposal areas. When considering new construction starts, only those that can execute a project cost sharing agreement not later than August 31, 2019, shall be chosen. To ensure that the new construction starts are affordable and will not unduly delay completion of any ongoing projects, the Secretary is required to submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a realistic out-year budget scenario prior to issuing a work allowance for a new start. It is understood that specific budget decisions are made on an annual basis and that this scenario is neither a request for nor a guarantee of future funding for any project. Nonetheless, this scenario shall include an estimate of annual funding for each new start utilizing a realistic funding scenario through completion of the project, as well as the specific impacts of that estimated funding on the ability of the Corps to make continued progress on each previously funded construction project (including impacts to the optimum timeline and funding requirements of the ongoing projects) and on the ability to consider initiating new projects in the future. The scenario shall assume a Construction account funding level at the average of the past three budget requests. ASIAN CARP The Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, shall make every effort to submit to Congress the Report of the Chief of Engineers for the Brandon Road feasibility study according to the original published schedule of February 2019. The Corps is directed to provide quarterly updates to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress on the progress and status of efforts to prevent the further spread of Asian carp as well as the location and density of carp populations, including the use of emergency procedures. The Corps shall continue to collaborate with the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the State of Illinois, and members of the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee to identify and evaluate whether navigation protocols would be beneficial or effective in reducing the risk of vessels inadvertently carrying aquatic invasive species, including Asian carp, through the Brandon Road Lock and Dam in Joliet, Illinois. Any findings of such an evaluation shall be included in the quarterly briefings to the Committees. The Corps is further directed to implement protocols shown to be effective at reducing the risk of entrainment without jeopardizing the safety of vessels and crews. The Corps and other federal and state agencies are conducting ongoing research on potential solutions. AGING WATERWAY INFRASTRUCTURE The Committee recognizes the extraordinary implications to the local, regional, and national economy, as well as national security due to aging waterway infrastructure. The Committee urges the Corps to complete feasibility studies for ongoing deep draft lock modernization or replacement projects. In these studies, the Corps is encouraged to include national and regional economic analyses, taking into account the unique movement of the commodities and the value-added in the supply chain. CONGRESSIONAL DIRECTION AND REPROGRAMMING To ensure that the expenditure of funds in fiscal year 2019 is consistent with congressional direction, to minimize the movement of funds, and to improve overall budget execution, the bill carries a legislative provision outlining the circumstances under which the Corps may reprogram funds. COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION The Committee recommends $7,278,000,000 for the Corps, $451,000,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $2,493,417,000 above the budget request. A table summarizing the fiscal year 2018 enacted appropriation, the fiscal year 2019 budget request, and the Committee-recommended levels is provided below: (Dollars in thousands) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FY 2018 FY 2019 Account enacted request Cmte. rec. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Investigations.................................................. $123,000 $82,000 $128,000 Construction.................................................... 2,085,000 871,733 2,323,000 Mississippi River and tributaries............................... 425,000 244,735 430,000 Operation and maintenance....................................... 3,630,000 2,076,733 3,820,000 Regulatory program.............................................. 200,000 200,000 200,000 FUSRAP.......................................................... 139,000 120,000 150,000 Flood control and coastal emergencies........................... 35,000 27,000 35,000 Expenses........................................................ 185,000 187,000 187,000 Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works... 5,000 5,000 5,000 Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund................................... - - - 965,132 - - - Inland Waterways Trust Fund..................................... - - - 5,250 - - - ----------------------------------------------- Total, Corps of Engineers--Civil........................ 6,827,000 4,784,583 7,278,000 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INVESTIGATIONS Appropriation, 2018................................... $123,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 82,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 128,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +5,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +46,000,000 This appropriation funds studies to determine the need for, the engineering and economic feasibility of, and the environmental and social suitability of solutions to water and related land resource problems; preconstruction engineering and design; data collection; interagency coordination; and research. The budget request for this account and the approved Committee allowance are shown on the following table: [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] Passaic River Basin Mainstem, New Jersey.--The Committee is aware that flooding has long been a problem in the Passaic River Basin. The Committee encourages the Corps to continue to work in coordination with the non-federal sponsor on plans to reduce flooding in the basin, including the reevaluation of the Passaic River Basin Mainstem project. The Corps is directed to brief the Committee not later than 30 days after the enactment of this Act on the current status of this project. Peckman River, New Jersey.--The Committee is aware of repeated delays with the Peckman River Feasibility Study. The Corps is directed to provide to the Committee quarterly briefings on the current schedule to bring this study to completion, with the first briefing to occur not later than 30 days after the enactment of this Act. Rahway River Basin (Upper Basin), New Jersey.--The Committee is aware of extended delays with the Rahway River Basin Flood Risk Management Feasibility Study where flooding is of acute concern to the affected communities. The Committee encourages the Corps to continue to work with the non-federal sponsor on plans to reduce flooding caused by the Rahway River in affected areas. The Corps is directed to provide to the Committee quarterly briefings on the current schedule to bring this study to completion, with the first briefing to occur not later than 30 days after the enactment of this Act. Chacon Creek, Texas.--The Corps has multiple authorities to provide technical assistance to non-federal entities. The Committee encourages the Corps to review these authorities to identify opportunities to help advance the Chacon Creek, Texas, project, for which the Corps executed a feasibility cost sharing agreement in 2004. Additional Funding.--The Corps is expected to allocate the additional funding provided in this account primarily to specific feasibility and PED phases, rather than to Remaining Items line items as has been the case in previous work plans. When allocating the additional funding provided in this account, the Corps shall consider giving priority to completing or accelerating ongoing studies or to initiating new studies that will enhance the nation's economic development, job growth, and international competitiveness; are for projects located in areas that have suffered recent natural disasters; are for projects that protect life and property; or are for projects to address legal requirements. The Corps shall use these funds for additional work in both the feasibility and PED phases. The agreement includes sufficient additional funding to undertake a significant amount of feasibility and PED work. The Administration is reminded that a project study is not complete until the PED phase is complete. The Corps is reminded that environmental restoration can include projects that address degraded conditions due to prior flood protection work. Research and Development.--Within available funds, the Corps is encouraged to advance flood and coastal systems research and development, as well as work to evaluate conservation methods to restore riverine ecosystems, to identify effective oyster reef restoration strategies, and to support collaborative research into coastal resilience. Disposition of Completed Projects.--The Committee supports the budget request for disposition studies pursuant to facilities that closed as a result of Public Law 113-121. The Corps is directed to provide to the Committee copies of disposition studies upon completion. For Corps facilities that are deemed as excess, the Committee supports the disposal of those facilities through the appropriate General Services Administration process. Water Resources Priorities Study.--No funding shall be used for this study. Impacts on Oyster Reefs.--The Committee supports Corps efforts, when conducting or reviewing environmental assessments or environmental impact statements for navigation or coastal restoration projects in areas where oyster reefs exist, to consider water quality and salinity impacts on those reefs and, when appropriate, to mitigate any negative impacts. Upper Mississippi River-Illinois Waterway System.-- Beginning in 2005, more than $59,000,000 in appropriated funds have been allocated for preconstruction engineering and design of improved locks and ecosystem restoration throughout the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers for measures authorized in Title VIII of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007. Unfortunately, the Corps has determined that a Level 3 Economic Re-Evaluation Report (ERR) shall occur before PED can continue. While the Committee disagrees with this conclusion, if the Corps decides to fund such an ERR, the Committee encourages the Corps to complete it not later than January 1, 2020, so that PED can resume in a timely fashion. Upper Des Plaines River and Tributaries Project.--The Committee is aware that the project area was flooded with record high crests overflowing the Des Plaines River last summer, resulting in damage to more than 3,200 residences. The Committee urges the Corps to cooperate with the non-federal sponsor as it prepares advance work on a number of flood features under Section 204 of the Water Resources Development Act of 1986, as amended. Lake Cypress, Florida.--The Committee is aware that high rain totals have created a significant sediment flow through the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes resulting in a shoal that has expanded in recent years, located at the end of the C-35 canal in Lake Cypress, Florida. The Committee encourages the Corps to cooperate with state and local officials on this issue. Flood Control and Wastewater Treatment Facilities.--In fiscal year 2017, the Corps was directed to provide a briefing regarding activities to address concerns about flooding and wastewater treatment facilities. The Committee may have additional direction after that briefing occurs. Public Law 115-123.--The Corps is encouraged to expedite the completion of investigations undertaken with funds provided pursuant to Public Law 115-123. Section 1143 Study.--The Corps is encouraged to include in future budget submissions the study of sediment sources authorized in section 1143 of Public Law 114-322. CONSTRUCTION Appropriation, 2018................................... $2,085,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 871,733,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 2,323,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +238,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +1,451,267,000 This appropriation funds construction, major rehabilitation, and related activities for water resource projects whose principal purpose is to provide commercial navigation, flood and storm damage reduction, or aquatic ecosystem restoration benefits to the nation. Portions of this account are funded from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund and the Inland Waterways Trust Fund. The budget request for this account and the approved Committee allowance are shown on the following table: [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] Murrieta Creek, California.--The Committee is aware that the Corps has been working on a Validation Report to detail a re-scoped project for a more cost-effective flood protection solution while it proceeds with construction. The Committee urges the Corps to finish the Report, as the Corps turns over the completed elements of the project to the local sponsor and constructs Phase IIB of the project. Success Dam, California.--In the past, the Committee has raised the importance of the Corps moving expeditiously on the project to increase the reservoir capacity and complete the necessary safety reviews of the dam. In a memo dated January 17, 2018, the Dam Senior Oversight Group concluded the Success Reservoir Enlargement Project has negligible risk on the current reservoir infrastructure and approved the project to proceed. The Committee commends the Corps for its work on this project and continues to strongly urge the Corps expeditiously move ahead with the enlargement project, as detailed in House Report 114-91. South Florida Ecosystem Restoration, Florida.--As in previous years, the Committee provides funding for all study and construction authorities related to Everglades restoration under the line item titled ``South Florida Ecosystem Restoration, Florida''. This single line item allows the Corps flexibility in implementing the numerous activities underway in any given fiscal year. Chesapeake Bay Oyster Recovery, Maryland and Virginia.--The Committee urges the Corps to consider species selection for disease resistance and survivability as part of oyster recovery in the Chesapeake Bay and to support development of substrate as a substitute for oyster shell, including competitively awarded contracts for research and development, as appropriate. New Jersey and New York Harbor Deepening Project.--The Committee is encouraged by the work of the Corps and its local partners to bring the construction of the New Jersey and New York Harbor Deepening Project to completion. This project of national significance is an example of how the Corps and its partners can work together to enhance our national economy. Cano Martin Pena, Puerto Rico.--The Committee maintains its interest in the Cano Martin Pena environmental restoration project in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and notes the environmental degradation and persistent flooding that disadvantages communities abutting the channel, as evidenced by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. The Corps is encouraged to include appropriate funding for this project in future budget requests. The Corps is directed to report to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 90 days after enactment of this Act on the status of this project. Additional Funding.--The agreement includes additional funds for projects and activities to enhance the nation's economic growth and international competitiveness. Of the additional funds provided in this account, the Corps shall allocate not less than $5,495,000 to projects with riverfront development components. Of the additional funding provided in this account for flood and storm damage reduction and flood control, the Corps shall allocate not less than $18,000,000 to additional nonstructural flood control projects. Of the additional funds provided in this account for flood and storm damage reduction, navigation, and other authorized project purposes, the Corps shall allocate not less than $15,000,000 to authorized reimbursements for projects with executed project cooperation agreements and that have completed construction or where non-federal sponsors intend to use the funds for additional water resources development activities. Of the additional funding provided in this account for flood and storm damage reduction and flood control, the Corps shall allocate not less than $11,650,000 to continue construction of projects that principally include improvements to rainfall drainage systems that address flood damages. Of the additional funding provided in this account for flood and storm damage reduction and flood control, the Corps shall allocate not less than $10,000,000 to ongoing projects where ongoing construction would benefit from additional funds to avoid induced flooding during construction. The Corps is reminded that dam safety projects authorized under section 5003 of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007 are eligible to compete for the additional funding provided in this account. Public Law 115-123 included funding within the Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies account to restore authorized shore protection projects to full project profile. That funding is expected to address most of the current year capability. Therefore, to ensure funding is not directed to where it cannot be used, the agreement includes $60,000,000 for construction of shore protection projects. The Corps is reminded that if additional work can be done, these projects are also eligible to compete for additional funding for flood and storm damage reduction. When allocating the additional funding provided in this account, the Corps is encouraged to evaluate authorized reimbursements in the same manner as if the projects were being evaluated for new or ongoing construction and shall consider giving priority to the following: benefits of the funded work to the national economy; extent to which the work will enhance national, regional, or local economic development; number of jobs created directly and supported in the supply chain by the funded activity; significance to national security, including the strategic significance of commodities; ability to obligate the funds allocated within the fiscal year, including consideration of the ability of the non- federal sponsor to provide any required cost share; ability to complete the project, separable element, or project phase with the funds allocated; legal requirements, including responsibilities to Tribes; for flood and storm damage reduction projects (including authorized nonstructural measures and periodic beach renourishments), population, economic activity, or public infrastructure at risk, as appropriate; and the severity of risk of flooding or the frequency with which an area has experienced flooding; for shore protection projects, projects in areas that have suffered severe beach erosion requiring additional sand placement outside of the normal beach renourishment cycle or in which the normal beach renourishment cycle has been delayed; for navigation projects, the number of jobs or level of economic activity to be supported by completion of the project, separable element, or project phase; for projects cost shared with the Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF), the economic impact on the local, regional, and national economy if the project is not funded, as well as discrete elements of work that can be completed within the funding provided in this line item; for other authorized project purposes and environmental restoration or compliance projects, to include the beneficial use of dredged material; and for environmental infrastructure projects, projects with the greater economic impact, projects in rural communities, projects in communities with significant shoreline and instances of runoff, projects in or that benefit counties or parishes with high poverty rates, projects in financially distressed municipalities, projects that improve stormwater capture capabilities, and projects that will provide substantial benefits to water quality improvements. The agreement provides funds making use of all estimated annual revenues in the IWTF. The Corps shall allocate all funds provided in the IWTF Revenues line item along with the statutory cost share from funds provided in the Navigation line item prior to allocating the remainder of funds in the Navigation line item. Aquatic Plant Control Program.--Of the funding provided, $5,000,000 is for watercraft inspection stations, as authorized by section 1039 of the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014, and $1,000,000 is for related monitoring. Continuing Authorities Program (CAP).--The Committee continues to support all sections of the Continuing Authorities Program. Funding is provided for eight CAP sections at a total of $72,000,000. This program provides a useful tool for the Corps to undertake small localized projects without the lengthy study and authorization process typical of larger Corps projects. The management of the Continuing Authorities Program should continue consistent with direction provided in previous fiscal years. Dam Safety and Seepage/Stability Correction Program.--The Committee rejects the budget request proposal regarding Herbert Hoover Dike, which would make funds provided in this program available only if the State of Florida commits certain funds. Consistent with long-standing congressional direction, the Corps may not require funding in excess of legally required cost shares for studies and projects as a criterion for funding decisions. The Corps shall apply these funds to the highest priority projects. Beneficial Use of Dredged Material Pilot Program.--The Committee supports implementation of the pilot program authorized in section 1122 of the WIIN Act. To date, the Corps has not identified how these pilots would be funded, however. Therefore, the Corps is directed to fund these pilots, if otherwise competitive, under the CAP section 204 line item and the applicable additional funding line items in this account. The Corps shall not use Operation and Maintenance funds provided or allocated to the projects from which the dredged material is generated for costs beyond the costs of the Federal Standard. The Corps shall brief the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 60 days after the enactment of this Act on the selection of pilot projects, as well as the planned activities and cost estimates for each selected pilot project. Public Law 115-123.--The Corps is encouraged to expedite the completion of projects undertaken with funds provided pursuant to Public Law 115-123. Public Law 115-123 (LERRDs).--The Corps has authority to perform acquisition of required lands, easements, rights-of- ways, relocations, and disposal areas (LERRDs) on behalf of a non-federal sponsor under certain circumstances. The Committee encourages the Corps to evaluate such requests from non-federal sponsors of projects funded under Public Law 115-123. MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES Appropriation, 2018................................... $425,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 244,735,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 430,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +5,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +185,265,000 This appropriation funds planning, construction, and operation and maintenance activities associated with projects to reduce flood damage in the lower Mississippi River alluvial valley below Cape Girardeau, Missouri. The budget request for this account and the approved Committee allowance are shown on the following table: [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] Lower Mississippi River Main Stem.--The budget request proposes to consolidate several activities across multiple states into one line item. The Committee does not support this change and instead continues to fund these activities as separate line items. Additional Funding for Ongoing Work.--When allocating the additional funding provided in this account, the Corps shall consider giving priority to completing or accelerating ongoing work that will enhance the nation's economic development, job growth, and international competitiveness, or are for studies or projects located in areas that have suffered recent natural disasters. While this funding is shown under remaining items, the Corps shall use these funds in investigations, construction, and operation and maintenance, as applicable. Mississippi River Commission.--No funding is provided for this new line item. The Corps is directed to continue funding the costs of the commission from within the funds provided for activities within the Mississippi River and Tributaries project. OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE Appropriation, 2018................................... $3,630,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 2,076,733,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 3,820,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +190,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +1,743,267,000 This appropriation funds operation, maintenance, and related activities at water resource projects the Corps operates and maintains. Work to be accomplished consists of dredging, repair, and operation of structures and other facilities as authorized in various River and Harbor, Flood Control, and Water Resources Development Acts. Related activities include aquatic plant control, monitoring of completed projects, removal of sunken vessels, and the collection of domestic, waterborne commerce statistics. Portions of this account are financed through the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund. The budget request for this account and the approved Committee allowance are shown on the following table: [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] Los Angeles County Drainage Area (LACDA), California.--The Corps shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 120 days after enactment of this Act a report on the outstanding maintenance and repair needs within the Corps-maintained portion of the LACDA system. The report shall identify opportunities for local agency maintenance and collaboration of the Corps-maintained portion of the LACDA system to more effectively utilize budgeted funds in a manner that reduces flood risk, increases stormwater capture, and enables a more sustainable local source of water. Waco Lake, Texas.--In fiscal year 2018, the Committee encouraged the Corps to work with local officials to determine whether issues at the Corps project are the cause of damages to the public road and what authorities and funding sources may be available to assist the local community in repairing the road. The Corps is directed to provide this information to the Committee not later than 45 days after the enactment of this Act. Additional Funding for Ongoing Work.--When allocating the additional funding provided in this account, the Corps shall consider giving priority to the following: ability to complete ongoing work maintaining authorized depths and widths of harbors and shipping channels, including where contaminated sediments are present; ability to address critical maintenance backlog; presence of the U.S. Coast Guard; extent to which the work will enhance national, regional, or local economic development, including domestic manufacturing capacity; extent to which the work will promote job growth or international competitiveness; number of jobs created directly by the funded activity; ability to obligate the funds allocated within the fiscal year; ability to complete the project, separable element, project phase, or useful increment of work within the funds allocated; addressing hazardous barriers to navigation due to shallow channels; risk of imminent failure or closure of the facility; and for harbor maintenance activities, total tonnage handled; total exports; total imports; dollar value of cargo handled; energy infrastructure and national security needs served; designation as strategic seaports; lack of alternative means of freight movement; and savings over alternative means of freight movement. Additional funding provided for donor and energy transfer ports shall be allocated in accordance with 33 U.S.C. 2238c. The Corps is encouraged to include funding for this program in future budget requests. Aquatic Nuisance Research Program.--Within available funds, the Corps is encouraged to support research that will identify and develop improved strategies for early detection, prevention, and management techniques and procedures to reduce the occurrence and impacts of harmful algal blooms in our nation's water resources. Monitoring of Completed Navigation Projects.--The Committee supports Corps efforts to improve aging critical infrastructure projects, including post-tensioned anchorages at its locks and dams. The Committee understands the Corps is exploring non- destructive testing methods of inspection that are safer and less costly, and encourages the Corps to continue to evaluate the need for and benefit of such methods. The Corps is encouraged to also consider the need for additional work on the validation of technologies such as protective coatings. Funding in addition to the budget request is included to support continued efforts related to structural health monitoring, asset management, and non-destructive testing, as appropriate. The Corps is directed to brief the Committee not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act on its planned activities in each area, future funding requirements of ongoing efforts, and the scope and effectiveness of programs at various annual funding levels. Water Operations Technical Support (WOTS).--Of the funding provided, $5,000,000 is included to continue research into atmospheric rivers first funded in fiscal year 2015. An additional $2,500,000 is provided to expand this research effort to other locations, as appropriate. Prior to obligating funds for this expanded effort, however, the Corps shall brief the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress on the details of an expanded effort, including activities to be undertaken, total and annual cost estimates, expected transferability of tools developed or other results of the research, as well as the likelihood of additional investment being necessary. Emerging Harbor Projects.--The recommendation includes funding for individual projects defined as emerging harbor projects (in section 210(f)(2) of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 1986) that exceeds the funding levels envisioned in section 210(c)(3) and 210(d)(1)(B)(ii) of WRDA 1986. Great Lakes Navigation System.--The recommendation includes funding for individual projects within this System that exceeds the funding level envisioned in section 210(d)(1)(B)(ii) of WRDA 1986. Shoreline Management Policy.--The Committee is aware of concerns regarding the new shoreline management policy for Corps reservoirs within the South Atlantic Division. The Corps is encouraged to continue working with affected local communities and stakeholders to address these concerns, including the use of non-potable water from reservoirs. Hydropower.--The Committee recognizes that hydropower is an important resource for the energy requirements of our states and local communities. In some areas, such as the Summersville Dam in West Virginia, the Corps works with non-federal partners to provide reliable and affordable energy for the surrounding community. The Committee encourages the Corps to review options for expanded non-federal hydropower at appropriate sites throughout the nation. The Committee anticipates that this would include evaluations of seasonal pool levels and an assessment of the impact of expanding hydropower on safety and operations for the region. Recreational Access.--The Committee is concerned about reports of the Army Corps of Engineers closing recreational access points and resistance to enhanced recreational proposals including boat docks, handicap access ramps, and general land access points. Levee Safety.--The Committee notes that previous Water Resources Development Acts have provided authorization for the Corps to carry out certain levee safety initiatives. The Corps shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act a briefing on its efforts to implement these initiatives. Nonoperational locks.--The Committee has heard concerns about the status of the Walter F. George and George W. Andrews locks. The Corps is directed to brief the Committee not later than 60 days after the enactment of this Act on the operating status of these locks and what requirements are necessary to return these locks to fully operational status. REGULATORY PROGRAM Appropriation, 2018................................... $200,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 200,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 200,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - This appropriation provides funds to administer laws pertaining to the regulation of activities affecting U.S. waters, including wetlands, in accordance with the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act of 1899, the Clean Water Act, and the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972. Appropriated funds are used to review and process permit applications, ensure compliance on permitted sites, protect important aquatic resources, and support watershed planning efforts in sensitive environmental areas in cooperation with states and local communities. Public Safety Projects.--The Committee continues to hear that public safety infrastructure projects have been delayed due to excessive and repeated reviews. Many communities depend on these projects to protect their residents from natural disasters. Considering the risk to life and other damages that these disasters inflict upon communities, it is in the public interest to have local governments mitigate for this harm. Therefore, the Committee encourages the Corps to give the public safety aspects of a project sufficient and appropriate consideration when reviewing permit applications. Timelines.--The Committee is concerned with the disparity in permitting process timelines among the Corps districts, and even more so with those districts whose timelines continue to grow in length. The Committee urges the Corps to encourage timely permitting in its districts, examine best practices among those districts with the lowest permitting timelines, and implement the same across other districts with lagging and protracted timelines. Additionally, the Committee is concerned that infrastructure projects across the country are being impacted by unnecessary and unlimited delays in the section 401 water quality certification process. The Corps is encouraged to consider providing districts with additional guidance on this issue. Chehalis Basin Process.--The Committee is pleased with the Seattle District for working in a collaborative process with the Chehalis Basin Process in Washington state for flood protection in the nearby communities. The Committee encourages the District to continue in this effort and further, to sync the NEPA and SEPA processes to gain efficiencies and continue moving the process forward in a timely manner. Regional General Permits.--The Committee urges the Corps and the National Marine Fisheries Service to continue to evaluate appropriate mitigation options for Seattle District Regional General Permits that take into consideration improvements to existing structures. Permitting Consultations.--The Committee is aware of sometimes significant delays associated with consultation requests received by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) from the Army Corps of Engineers. The Committee urges the Corps to work with NMFS to improve this process. FORMERLY UTILIZED SITES REMEDIAL ACTION PROGRAM Appropriation, 2018................................... $139,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 120,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 150,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +11,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +30,000,000 This appropriation funds the cleanup of certain low-level radioactive materials and mixed wastes located at sites contaminated as a result of the nation's early efforts to develop atomic weapons. The Congress transferred the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) from the Department of Energy to the Corps in fiscal year 1998. In appropriating FUSRAP funds to the Corps, the Committee intended to transfer only the responsibility for administration and execution of cleanup activities at FUSRAP sites where the Department had not completed cleanup. The Committee did not transfer to the Corps ownership of and accountability for real property interests, which remain with the Department. The Committee expects the Department to continue to provide its institutional knowledge and expertise to ensure the success of this program and to serve the nation and the affected communities. The Committee continues to support the prioritization of sites, especially those that are nearing completion. Within the funds provided in accordance with the budget request, the Corps is directed to complete the Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study of the former Sylvania nuclear fuel site at Hicksville, New York, and, as appropriate, to proceed expeditiously to a Record of Decision and initiation of any necessary remediation in accordance with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). FLOOD CONTROL AND COASTAL EMERGENCIES Appropriation, 2018................................... $35,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 27,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 35,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. +8,000,000 This appropriation funds planning, training, and other measures that ensure the readiness of the Corps to respond to floods, hurricanes, and other natural disasters, and to support emergency operations in response to such natural disasters, including advance measures, flood fighting, emergency operations, the provision of potable water on an emergency basis, and the repair of certain flood and storm damage reduction projects. EXPENSES Appropriation, 2018................................... $185,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 187,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 187,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +2,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - This appropriation funds the executive direction and management of the Office of the Chief of Engineers, the Division Offices, and certain research and statistical functions of the Corps. Alternative financing.--The Committee remains supportive of public-private partnerships (P3) and other alternative financing mechanisms. In fiscal year 2018, the Corps was directed to submit to the Committee not later than 180 days after enactment of the Act a policy on how proposals for public-private partnerships will be considered by the Corps and how these partnerships will be incorporated into the budget policy and to discontinue certain such work until a policy is submitted. The Corps is reminded of the Committee's long- standing concerns that federal funding decisions not be biased by non-federal decisions to construct projects in advance of federal funding or to provide funding in excess of legally required cost shares. The Committee looks forward to reviewing the Corps' alternative financing policy once it has been submitted. The Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) is another alternative financing tool that has received strong support from many Members of Congress. The EPA's WIFIA program was initiated in fiscal year 2015, but to date, the Corps has not requested funding nor provided requested information on how a corresponding program for the Civil Works program would be implemented. Without such a plan, it is premature for the Committee to provide funding. Therefore, the Corps again is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a detailed plan for how WIFIA would be implemented, including an estimated schedule for when funding could be used to provide loans. Surplus Water.--The Committee urges the Corps to consider adoption of the alternative definition of ``surplus water'' excluding ``natural flows'' from stored water in the Missouri River mainstem reservoirs in its proposed rule entitled ``Use of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Reservoir Projects for Domestic, Municipal & Industrial Water Supply'' (82 F.R. 9555). Materials.--The Committee notes that the Corps worked to raise awareness of the potential for use of cross laminated timber in Corps projects and urges the Corps to continue activities to encourage the use of this innovative advanced wood product, as appropriate. OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE ARMY FOR CIVIL WORKS Appropriation, 2018................................... $5,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 5,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 5,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works oversees the Civil Works budget and policy, whereas the Corps' executive direction and management of the Civil Works program are funded from the Expenses account. The recommendation includes legislative language restricting the availability of 75 percent of the funding provided in this account until such time as at least 95 percent of the additional funding provided in each account has been allocated to specific programs, projects, or activities. This restriction shall not affect the roles and responsibilities established in previous fiscal years of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, the Corps headquarters, the Corps field operating agencies, or any other executive branch agency. The Committee relies on a timely and accessible executive branch in the course of fulfilling its constitutional role in the appropriations process. The requesting and receiving of basic, factual information, such as budget justification materials, is vital in order to maintain a transparent and open governing process. The Committee recognizes that some discussions internal to the executive branch are pre-decisional in nature and, therefore, not subject to disclosure. However, the access to facts, figures, and statistics that inform these decisions are not subject to this same sensitivity and are critical to the budget process. The Administration needs to ensure timely and complete responses to these inquiries. GENERAL PROVISIONS--CORPS OF ENGINEERS--CIVIL (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) The bill continues a provision that prohibits the obligation or expenditure of funds through a reprogramming of funds in this title except in certain circumstances. The bill continues a provision prohibiting the use of funds in this Act to carry out any contract that commits funds beyond the amounts appropriated for that program, project, or activity. The bill continues a provision authorizing the transfer of funds to the Fish and Wildlife Service to mitigate for fisheries lost due to Corps of Engineers projects. The bill includes a provision regarding certain dredged material disposal activities. The bill includes a provision regarding acquisitions. The bill includes a provision regarding reallocations at a project. The bill includes a provision prohibiting the use of funds to require permits for the discharge of dredged or fill material for certain agriculture activities. The bill includes a provision regarding a rule under the Clean Water Act. The bill contains a provision allowing the possession of firearms at water resources development projects under certain circumstances. The bill includes a provision prohibiting the obligation or expenditure of funds on a new hopper dredge. TITLE II--DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Central Utah Project CENTRAL UTAH PROJECT COMPLETION ACCOUNT Appropriation, 2018................................... $10,500,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 7,983,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 13,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +2,500,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +5,017,000 The Central Utah Project Completion Act (CUPCA) (titles II- VI of P.L. 102-575) provides for the completion of the Central Utah Project by the Central Utah Water Conservancy District. The Act also authorizes the appropriation of funds for fish, wildlife, and recreation mitigation and conservation; establishes an account in the Treasury for the deposit of these funds and of other contributions for mitigation and conservation activities; and establishes a Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission to administer funds in that account. The Act further assigns responsibilities for carrying out the Act to the Secretary of the Interior and prohibits delegation of those responsibilities to the Bureau of Reclamation. The Committee recommendation includes a total of $15,000,000 for the Central Utah Project Completion Account, which includes $12,703,325 for Central Utah Project construction, $898,000 for transfer to the Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Account for use by the Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission, and $1,398,675 for necessary expenses of the Secretary of the Interior. Bureau of Reclamation INTRODUCTION The mission of the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) is to manage, develop, and protect water and related resources in an environmentally and economically sound manner in the interest of the American public. Since its establishment by the Reclamation Act of 1902, the Bureau of Reclamation has developed water supply facilities that have contributed to sustained economic growth and an enhanced quality of life in the western states. Lands and communities served by Reclamation projects have been developed to meet agricultural, tribal, urban, and industrial needs. Reclamation continues to develop authorized facilities to store and convey new water supplies and is the largest supplier and manager of water in the 17 western states. Reclamation maintains 338 reservoirs with the capacity to store 245 million acre-feet of water. As Reclamation's large impoundments and appurtenant facilities reach their design life, the projected cost of operating, maintaining, and rehabilitating Reclamation infrastructure continues to grow, yet Reclamation has not budgeted funding sufficient to implement a comprehensive program to reduce its maintenance backlog. At the same time, Reclamation is increasingly relied upon to provide water supply to federally-recognized Indian Tribes through water settlements, rural communities through its Title I Rural Water Program, and municipalities through its Title XVI Water Reclamation and Reuse Program. Balancing these competing priorities will be challenging and requires active participation and leadership on the part of Reclamation and its technical staff. Reconsultation.--The Committee is aware that the Bureau of Reclamation initiated reconsultation on the biological opinions regarding the coordinated operations of the Central Valley Project and the California State Water Project. The Committee directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of Reclamation, in conjunction with the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the Secretary of Commerce, and the Administrator of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), to ensure completion of the biological opinions by May 31, 2020, consistent with Section 4004 of the WIIN Act. Furthermore, the Committee requests the Secretary of the Interior submit to Congress a timeline and plan for the deployment of resources and staff to ensure the biological opinions are completed by the above date, as well as regular subsequent updates until the biological opinions are finalized. In addition, given the complexities surrounding this issue, the Committee strongly encourages the Secretary of the Interior to work with the Secretary of Commerce to develop a joint biological opinion, to the extent practicable, to minimize conflicts between potential reasonable and prudent alternatives/measures imposed by a biological opinion issued by FWS and a biological opinion imposed by NMFS. In its notice of intent dated December 29, 2017, the Bureau of Reclamation stated the purpose of this reconsultation is ``to evaluate alternatives that maximize water deliveries and optimize marketable power generation consistent with applicable laws, contractual obligations, and agreements; and to augment operational flexibility by addressing the status of listed species.'' The Committee supports these objectives. FISCAL YEAR 2019 BUDGET REQUEST AND COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION The fiscal year 2019 budget request for the Bureau of Reclamation totals $1,049,025,000. The Committee recommendation totals $1,540,000,000, $70,500,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $490,975,000 above the budget request. A table summarizing the fiscal year 2018 enacted appropriation, the fiscal year 2019 budget request, and the Committee recommendation is provided below: (Dollars in thousands) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ FY 2018 FY 2019 Account enacted request Cmte rec. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Water and Related Resources...... $1,332,124 $891,017 $1,381,992 Central Valley Project 41,376 62,008 62,008 Restoration Fund................ California Bay-Delta Restoration. 37,000 35,000 35,000 Policy and Administration........ 59,000 61,000 61,000 -------------------------------------- Total, Bureau of Reclamation. 1,469,500 1,049,025 1,540,000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ WATER AND RELATED RESOURCES (INCLUDING TRANSFERS OF FUNDS) Appropriation, 2018................................... $1,332,124,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 891,017,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 1,381,992,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +49,868,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +490,975,000 The Water and Related Resources account supports the development, construction, management, and restoration of water and related natural resources in the 17 western states. The account includes funds for operating and maintaining existing facilities to obtain the greatest overall levels of benefits, to protect public safety, and to conduct studies on ways to improve the use of water and related natural resources. The budget request for this account and the approved Committee allowance are shown on the following table: [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] Central Valley Project, San Luis Unit, California.--The Committee is aware that Reclamation and the Western Area Power Administration are evaluating the possible construction of a transmission line to directly serve the San Luis Unit from the Central Valley Project system as an alternative to receiving service under the California Independent System Operator's Tariff. The agencies are encouraged to continue to work together and with the affected Central Valley Project water contractors to ensure the most efficient and cost-effective process for implementation. Salton Sea, California.--The Committee supports the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Department of the Interior and the California Natural Resources Agency to support management activities at the Salton Sea. Tualatin Project, Scoggins Dam, Oregon.--The Committee supports the budget request for preconstruction activities at Scoggins Dam under the Safety of Dams program. Consistent with existing authorities, the Committee encourages Reclamation to evaluate alternatives, including new or supplementary works, to address dam safety modifications and increased storage capacity provided that safety remains the paramount consideration. Considering the high risk associated with Scoggins Dam, the Committee urges Reclamation to work with local stakeholders and repayment contractors on this joint project, including feasibility and environmental review of the preferred alternative. The Committee has been told that a replacement structure downstream could significantly reduce project costs for both the federal government and local stakeholders. Reclamation may accept contributed funds from non-federal contractors to expedite completion of any level of review. Mni Wiconi Project, South Dakota.--Reclamation is directed to continue working with the Tribes and relevant federal agencies, such as the Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Indian Health Service, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, to coordinate use of all existing authorities and funding sources to finish needed community system upgrades and connections, as well as any transfers of those systems, as quickly as possible. The Administration is encouraged to include appropriate funding for upgrades in future budget requests. Yakima River Basin Water Enhancement Project Integrated Plan, Washington.--The Committee is aware of the Integrated Plan that has been developed by the Yakima River Basin Water Enhancement Project Working Group, including the Bureau of Reclamation, to address water storage and water supply needs for agriculture, fish, and municipalities within the Yakima River Basin in Central Washington. The Committee is supportive of the Plan and encourages the Bureau to move forward on implementing authorized components of the Plan. Additional Funding for Water and Related Resources Work.-- The recommendation includes funds in addition to the budget request for Water and Related Resources studies, projects, and activities. Priority in allocating these funds should be given to advance and complete ongoing work, including preconstruction activities and where environmental compliance has been completed; improve water supply reliability; improve water deliveries; enhance national, regional, or local economic development; promote job growth; advance tribal and nontribal water settlement studies and activities; or address critical backlog maintenance and rehabilitation activities. Of the additional funding provided under the heading ``Water Conservation and Delivery'', $134,000,000 shall be for water storage projects as authorized in section 4007 of Public Law 114-322. Not later than 45 days after the enactment of this Act, Reclamation shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a report delineating how these funds are to be distributed, in which phase the work is to be accomplished, and an explanation of the criteria and rankings used to justify each allocation. Reclamation is reminded that activities authorized under Indian Water Rights Settlements and under section 206 of Public Law 113-235 are eligible to compete for the additional funding provided under ``Water Conservation and Delivery''. Research and Development: Desalination and Water Purification Program.--Of the funding provided for this program, $12,000,000 shall be for desalination projects as authorized in section 4009(a) of Public Law 114-322. WaterSMART Program: Title XVI Water Reclamation & Reuse Program.--Of the funding provided for this program, $20,000,000 shall be for water recycling and reuse projects as authorized in section 4009(c) of Public Law 114-322. Hydroelectric Dams.--The Committee has heard concerns about potential impacts to rural communities from proposals to remove hydropower-producing dams. The Committee directs that where Reclamation has a role in funding, carrying out, or approving the removal of a hydropower-producing dam, Reclamation shall, prior to taking any such action, study the environmental and fiscal impact of dam removal on the county or counties where the dams are located. WIIN Act Studies.--The Committee encourages Reclamation to continue to make progress on studies authorized in the WIIN Act. CENTRAL VALLEY PROJECT RESTORATION FUND Appropriation, 2018................................... $41,376,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 62,008,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 62,008,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +20,632,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - This fund was established to carry out the provisions of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act and to provide funding for habitat restoration, improvement and acquisition, and other fish and wildlife restoration activities in the Central Valley area of California. Resources are derived from donations, revenues from voluntary water transfers and tiered water pricing, and Friant Division surcharges. The account also is financed through additional mitigation and restoration payments collected on an annual basis from project beneficiaries. Within available funds, the Committee provides funding for programs and activities according to the Administration's request. The Committee notes that the increase for this account in the budget request and recommendation is based on a three- year rolling average of collections, in accordance with the authorizing statute. Anadromous Fish Screen Program.--The Committee has heard concerns about a potential disconnect between funding levels requested and ultimately allocated for the Anadromous Fish Screen Program. Reclamation is directed to submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act, an account of the Anadromous Fish Screen Program funding level requested, allocated, and obligated, including specification of any administrative costs, from each funding source in each of the previous five fiscal years. The Committee encourages Reclamation to continue its focus on screening of the remaining high priority diversions from within funds made available under the Central Valley Project Restoration Fund in future budget requests. CALIFORNIA BAY-DELTA RESTORATION (INCLUDING TRANSFERS OF FUNDS) Appropriation, 2018................................... $37,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 35,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 35,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -2,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The California Bay-Delta Restoration account funds the federal share of water supply and reliability improvements, ecosystem improvements, and other activities being developed for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and associated watersheds by a state and federal partnership (CALFED). Federal participation in this program was initially authorized in the California Bay-Delta Environmental and Water Security Act enacted in 1996. POLICY AND ADMINISTRATION Appropriation, 2018................................... $59,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 61,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 61,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +2,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Policy and Administration account provides for the executive direction and management of all Reclamation activities, as performed by the Commissioner's office in Washington, D.C.; the Technical Service Center in Denver, Colorado; and in five regional offices. The Denver and regional offices charge individual projects or activities for direct beneficial services and related administrative and technical costs. These charges are covered under other appropriations. The Committee recommends that Reclamation work with all Reclamation states to ensure that counties and municipalities are aware of relevant programs and funding opportunities. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISION The bill includes an administrative provision allowing for the purchase of passenger motor vehicles. GENERAL PROVISIONS--DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR The bill continues a provision regarding the circumstances in which the Bureau of Reclamation may reprogram funds. The bill continues a provision regarding the San Luis Unit and Kesterson Reservoir in California. The bill makes permanent a provision regarding aquifer recharge. The bill continues a provision regarding a feasibility study. The bill includes a provision regarding the San Joaquin River Restoration program. The bill continues a provision regarding instream flows. The bill includes a provision regarding pumped storage hydropower development. TITLE III--DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Introduction Funds recommended in Title III provide for all Department of Energy (DOE) programs, including Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response; Electricity Delivery; Nuclear Energy; Fossil Energy Research and Development; Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves; the Strategic Petroleum Reserve; SPR Petroleum Account; the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve; the Energy Information Administration; Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup; the Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund; Science; Nuclear Waste Disposal; Advanced Research Projects Agency---Energy; Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program; Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Loans Program; Tribal Energy Loan Guarantee Program; Departmental Administration; Office of the Inspector General; the National Nuclear Security Administration (Weapons Activities, Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, Naval Reactors, and Federal Salaries and Expenses); Defense Environmental Cleanup; Other Defense Activities; Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal; the Power Marketing Administrations; and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Committee Recommendation The Department of Energy has requested a total budget of $30,146,071,000 in fiscal year 2019 to fund programs in its four primary mission areas: science, energy, environment, and national security. The Department of Energy budget request is $4,373,978,000 below the fiscal year 2018 enacted level. Research and Development Policy.--The President's budget request proposes to refocus the Department on an early-stage research and development mission. Early-stage research and development has an appropriate place in a balanced research portfolio. However, the Committee believes that a focus on only early-stage activities will forego the nation's scientific capabilities in medium- and later-stage research and development and may not fully realize the technological advancements possible under the Department's applied energy activities. The Committee provides funding to support a more comprehensive approach that includes medium and later-stage research, development, deployment, and demonstration activities. The Department is expected to follow this comprehensive approach and expend funding in an expeditious manner, to include the issuance of funding opportunity announcements and awards of funds. Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability.--The Committee notes that the budget request proposed to split the Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability program into two new accounts: ``Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response'' and ``Electricity Delivery''. The Committee accepts this new account structure. The ``Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response'' account includes the subprograms ``Cybersecurity for Energy Delivery Systems'' and ``Infrastructure Security and Energy Restoration''. The ``Electricity Delivery'' account contains all other subprograms that were previously funded as part of the Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability program. In addition, each account contains separate Program Direction funding. CONGRESSIONAL DIRECTION Article I, section 9 of the United States Constitution states, ``No money shall be drawn from the Treasury but in consequence of Appropriations made by law.'' The Committee continues the Department's reprogramming authority in statute to ensure that the Department carries out its programs consistent with congressional direction. This reprogramming authority is established at the program, project, or activity level, whichever is the most specific level of budget items identified in this Act and the Committee report accompanying the Act. The Committee also prohibits new starts through the use of reprogramming and includes other direction to improve public oversight of the Department's actions. In addition, the recommendation continues a general provision specifying which transfer authorities may be used for accounts funded by this Act. The Committee recommendation includes a general provision that specifies the amount of funding that may be transferred from the Department's accounts to the DOE working capital fund in aggregate, consistent with the authorities provided by section 653 of the Department of Energy Organization Act (42 U.S.C. 7263). FINANCIAL REPORTING AND MANAGEMENT The Department still is not in compliance with its statutory requirement to submit to Congress, at the time that the President's budget request is submitted, a future-years energy program that covers the fiscal year of the budget submission and the four succeeding years, as directed in the fiscal year 2012 Act. In addition, the Department has an outstanding requirement to submit a plan to become fully compliant with this requirement. Working Capital Fund.--The Committee recommends $274,833,000, the same as fiscal year 2018, for transfers to the fund in fiscal year 2019, after accounting for the shift of CyberOne activities to Departmental Administration. Guidelines for the Department's working capital fund are provided in 42 U.S.C. 7263, which authorizes the use of the working capital fund for expenses necessary for the maintenance and operation of common administrative services. The use of the fund for cybersecurity is not specifically authorized and is not appropriate considering direct funding is also requested and appropriated within funds for the Chief Information Officer within Departmental Administration. The Department shall include all funding required for CyberOne and other related cybersecurity needs in its budget request for Departmental Administration in future budget requests. Alleviation of Poverty.--In its fiscal year 2016 report, the Committee directed the Department to provide a report detailing all domestic and international projects and programs within its jurisdiction that contribute to the alleviation of poverty. The Department is encouraged to provide this report not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act. Workplace Diversity.--The Committee recognizes the importance of workplace diversity in the Department of Energy's national laboratories. The Committee encourages the Department to continue to develop and broaden partnerships with minority serving institutions, including Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Asian and Pacific Islander Serving Institutions, Predominantly Black Institutions, Tribal Colleges, and other Minority Serving Institutions. The Committee notes that the fiscal year 2017 Act directed the Department to provide a detailed plan outlining efforts to recruit and retain diverse talent from the institutions mentioned above. The Department is encouraged to provide this plan not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act. Public Access Plan.--The Committee appreciates the Department issuing its Public Access Plan on July 24, 2014. The Committee urges the Department to continue efforts towards full implementation of the plan and expects an update on progress be included in the fiscal year 2020 budget request. Improper Payments.--The Committee continues to be concerned that the Department is failing in its responsibility to ensure that its maintenance and operating contracts with incurred costs valued at billions of dollars per year are being audited appropriately and in a timely manner. The Department was directed in the fiscal year 2015 Act to carry out a plan to improve its cost audit coverage, but has not reported any progress on issues identified by the DOE Inspector General (IG) associated with the Department's cost audit coverage. The DOE IG continues to track nearly a billion dollars in potentially unallowable and unresolved amounts on DOE contracts. In May 2017, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that DOE does not use leading practices for managing fraud risks, such as data analytics, that can help agencies detect fraudulent spending or other improper payments. The GAO made six recommendations that remain open. Nevertheless, the Department claims that it had an industry leading low improper payment rate of 0.07% for fiscal year 2015, far below the government- wide improper payment rate of 4.8%. In claiming this figure, the Department is clearly not accounting for payments that it has simply failed to audit and resolve. It is also not evident that the Department is capturing data on payments made to its contractors that are later determined to be an unallowable cost. The Committee directs the Comptroller General to investigate the Department's system of tracking unallowable, disputed, or improper payments and provide recommendations to improve the Department's methodology for reporting accurate, representative, and meaningful data on improper payments. Furthermore, the Department is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act a plan for removing the Department of Energy from the GAO's High Risk List for Fraud, Waste, and Abuse for its maintenance and operating contracts. This plan shall include actions to improve contract auditing and the tracking of meaningful data for fraud, waste, and abuse in its contracts. Supporting Information.--The Committee relies on a timely and accessible executive branch in the course of fulfilling its constitutional role in the appropriations process. The requesting and receiving of basic, factual information is vital in order to maintain a transparent and open governing process. The Committee recognizes that some discussions internal to the executive branch are pre-decisional in nature and, therefore, not subject to disclosure. However, access to facts, figures, and statistics that inform these decisions are not subject to this same sensitivity and are critical to the budget process. The Administration needs to ensure timely and complete responses to these inquiries. MANAGEMENT OF SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL AND DEFENSE WASTE The Committee fully supports the Administration's position to move forward with Yucca Mountain. The Department, together with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), has repeatedly confirmed over the years that Yucca Mountain is a safe and secure location to permanently store the nation's spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. However, many more steps remain before Yucca Mountain begins to accept waste. The Department's request restarts this process and brings the Department closer to fulfilling its legal obligation to take responsibility for storing the nation's nuclear waste. The Committee appreciates the Department's focus on Yucca Mountain and provides additional funds above the budget request to accelerate progress toward meeting the Department's goals. To restart the adjudication of the Yucca Mountain license application, the Committee provides a total of $267,700,000, an increase of $100,000,000 above the budget request. Funding for Yucca is provided in the following three accounts: $190,000,000 for Nuclear Waste Disposal, $30,000,000 for Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal, and $47,700,000 within the NRC. COMMONLY RECYCLED PAPER The Department shall not expend funds for projects that knowingly use as a feedstock commonly recycled paper that is segregated from municipal solid waste or collected as part of a collection system that commingles commonly recycled paper with other solid waste at any point from the time of collection through materials recovery. EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES The Department is prohibited from funding fellowship and scholarship programs in fiscal year 2019 unless the programs were explicitly included in the budget justification or funded within this recommendation. Any new or ongoing programs that the Department chooses to fund in fiscal year 2019 must be detailed in the fiscal year 2019 budget justifications. PROJECT MANAGEMENT The Committee notes that the Department is not meeting its statutory annual reporting requirements for its general plant projects. In addition, the Department has not been consistently reporting the details of its general plant projects across Departmental programs in its budget request. Not later than 60 days after the enactment of this Act, the Department shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a report on all general plant projects funded in fiscal years 2017, 2018, and 2019. The Department shall ensure that all general plant projects are clearly identified in the appropriate sections of its fiscal year 2020 budget request and that a full description with total costs is included for each project. REPROGRAMMING AND TRANSFER GUIDELINES The Committee requires the Department to inform the Committee promptly when a change in program execution and funding is required during the fiscal year. The Department's reprogramming requirements are detailed in statute. To assist the Department in this effort, the following guidance is provided for programs and activities. Definition.--A reprogramming includes the reallocation of funds from one activity to another within an appropriation. The recommendation includes a general provision providing internal reprogramming authority to the Department, as long as no program, project, or activity is increased or decreased by more than $5,000,000 or 10 percent, whichever is less, compared to the levels in the table detailing the Committee's recommendations for the Department's various accounts. For construction projects, a reprogramming constitutes the reallocation of funds from one construction project to another project or a change of $2,000,000 or 10 percent, whichever is less, in the scope of an approved project. Criteria for Reprogramming.--A reprogramming should be made only when an unforeseen situation arises, and then only if delay of the project or activity until the next fiscal year would result in a detrimental impact to an agency program or priority. A reprogramming may also be considered if the Department can show that significant cost savings can accrue by increasing funding for an activity. Mere convenience or preference should not be a factor for consideration. A reprogramming may not be employed to initiate new programs or to change program, project, or activity allocations specifically denied, limited, or increased by the Congress in the Act or report. Reporting and Approval Procedures.--In recognition of the security missions of the Department, the legislative guidelines allow the Secretary and the Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration jointly to waive the reprogramming restriction by certifying to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress that it is in the nation's security interest to do so. The Department shall not deviate from the levels for activities specified in the report that are below the level of the detail table, except through the regular notification procedures of the Committee. No funds may be added to programs for which funding has been denied. Any reallocation of new or prior-year budget authority or prior- year de-obligations, or any request to implement a reorganization that includes moving previous appropriations between appropriations accounts must be submitted to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress in writing and may not be implemented prior to approval by the Committees. Transfers.--As in fiscal year 2018, funding actions into or out of accounts funded by this Act may only be made by transfer authorities provided by this or other appropriations Acts. COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS The Committee's recommendations for Department of Energy programs in fiscal year 2019 are described in the following sections. A detailed funding table is included at the end of this title. ENERGY PROGRAMS Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Appropriation, 2018................................... $2,321,778,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 695,610,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 2,078,640,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -243,138,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +1,383,030,000 Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) programs include research, development, demonstration, and deployment activities advancing energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies, as well as federal energy assistance programs. The EERE program is divided into three portfolios: sustainable transportation, renewable energy, and energy efficiency. The sustainable transportation portfolio, which consists of the vehicles, bioenergy, and hydrogen and fuel cell programs, advances the development of plug-in electric and other alternative fuel vehicles, high-efficiency advanced combustion engines, and the replacement of oil with clean domestic transportation fuels. The renewable energy portfolio, which consists of the solar, wind, water, and geothermal programs, aims to develop innovative technologies to make renewable electricity generation cost competitive with traditional sources of energy. The energy efficiency portfolio, which consists of the advanced manufacturing, buildings, and federal energy assistance programs, seeks cost-effective solutions to reduce energy consumption in plants, buildings, and homes. The Committee encourages EERE to offer technical and other programmatic assistance to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to support investment in innovative technologies to effectively reduce power system emissions, efficiently treat wastewater, produce biofuels, and generate power from solid waste. In addition, the Committee also encourages EERE to assist Puerto Rico in assessing the viability and implementation of a subsea electric cable interconnection and the use of micro grids in order to reduce electricity rates. The Committee recognizes the importance of the Department's work on the Energy-Water Nexus and as part of that effort, the Committee encourages the Department to enter into an interdepartmental agreement with the Department of Agriculture for research that explores how to integrate ongoing research projects at the various national laboratories and the Agricultural Research Service to develop effective, deployable, energy- and water-efficient food production platforms, beginning in food-insecure communities across the country. By working together, DOE and the Department of Agriculture can bring respective strengths and resources to designing the most desirable low-cost and efficient production system. Zero Emissions Energy Credit.--The Committee notes that in the fiscal year 2018 Act the Department was directed to produce a report to evaluate the effects of a Zero Emissions Energy Credit. The Committee expects a timely delivery of the report. Energy Star.--The Committee supports the Department's ongoing role in the Energy Star program and its current structure. In November 2017, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requested feedback from Energy Star program stakeholders about how to improve the program by developing updated standard operating procedures (SOPs). The Department is directed to support the EPA's efforts to reexamine Energy Star guidelines and SOPs to ensure transparency, predictability, and consistency for all stakeholders. SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION The Vehicle, Bioenergy, and Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies programs fund activities that can reduce American exposure to future high oil prices. Research into cutting-edge technologies that will increase the fuel economy of gasoline and diesel fuel vehicles--the vast majority of today's fleet will allow Americans to spend less on fuel while traveling the same distance. Research into next-generation automotive and fuel cell technologies that power vehicles with domestic energy sources such as natural gas, electricity, biofuels, and hydrogen can likewise dramatically lower the impact of future high gas prices on Americans. Vehicle Technologies.--Within available funds, the recommendation includes $130,000,000 for Batteries and Electric Drive Technology, of which $7,000,000 is to enable extreme fast charging and advanced battery analytics; $25,000,000 for Energy Efficient Mobility Systems; $25,000,000 for Materials Technology; $2,500,000 for Advanced Vehicle Competitions; and $20,000,000 to continue the SuperTruck II program to further improve the efficiency of heavy-duty class 8 long- and regional-haul vehicles. The Committee also supports research and development to lower the cost of batteries for electric vehicles through cobalt-free materials and roll-to-roll manufacturing. The Committee directs the Department to continue to support the Clean Cities program, including providing competitive grants to support alternative fuel, infrastructure, and vehicle deployment activities. Within available funds, the recommendation provides $34,000,000 for Deployment through the Clean Cities Program. When issuing competitive grants in support of these activities, the Department is encouraged to focus on awards that range from $500,000 to $1,000,000 each and include at least one Clean Cities coalition partner. The Committee encourages the Department to ensure balance in the award of funds to achieve varied aims in fostering broader adoption of clean vehicles and installation of supporting infrastructure. Within available funds, the recommendation includes up to $15,000,000 for medium- and heavy-duty on-road natural gas engine research and development, including energy efficiency improvements, emission after-treatment technologies, fuel system enhancements, and new engine development. The recommendation also includes, within available funds, up to $10,000,000 to continue to support improving the energy efficiency of commercial off-road vehicles, including fluid power systems. The Committee is aware of the efforts to develop hyperloop transportation systems around the country, which have the potential to increase the energy efficiency of our nation's transportation system. The Committee directs the Department to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act a report that models the demands on the electric grid and the overall energy consumption of the transportation sector of varying levels of network penetration of an interconnected hyperloop system. The report should include information about how these systems could be integrated into the electric grid and identify any technological constraints of the grid that must be addressed to allow the broad adoption of hyperloop technologies. Bioenergy Technologies.--Within available funds, $27,000,000 is for feedstock supply and logistics, of which $14,000,000 is for the national lab consortium and $5,000,000 is for upgrades at the Biomass Feedstock National User Facility to extend its capabilities and maximize benefits. The recommendation provides $32,000,000 for algal biofuels, of which $2,000,000 is for further research and development activities to support carbon capture from the atmosphere (ambient air) using algae-to-energy technologies. Within available funds for Conversion Technologies, the recommendation provides $20,000,000 to continue the Agile Biology Foundry and $5,000,000 to improve the efficiency of community and smaller digesters that accept both farm and food wastes. The Committee is appreciative of research the Bioenergy Technologies Office has supported regarding wet and gaseous waste streams in waste-to-energy projects. The Committee is interested in understanding how further research and development activities can support baseload power generation using municipal solid waste-to-energy technologies. The Department is reminded that the fiscal year 2018 Act required, not later than 180 days after the enactment of that Act, a report on research and development activities that can improve the economic viability of municipal solid waste-to-energy facilities. Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies.--Within available funds, $2,000,000 is for the EERE share of the integrated hybrid energy systems work with the Office of Nuclear Energy and $7,000,000 is to enable integrated energy systems using high and low temperature electrolyzers with the intent of advancing the H2@Scale concept. The Committee recognizes the progress of the program and continues support for stationary, vehicle, motive, and portable power applications of this technology. The Department is encouraged to explore technologies that advance novel onboard hydrogen tank systems and trailer delivery systems, and that reduce the cost and improve the performance of hydrogen generation and storage systems. The Department is encouraged to work with the Department of Transportation on coordinating supporting hydrogen fueling infrastructure. The Committee recognizes the need to support the development of alternative fueling infrastructure for U.S. consumers. Accordingly, the Department is encouraged to collaborate with the National Institute of Standards and Technology to allow accurate measurement of hydrogen at fueling stations. RENEWABLE ENERGY The Solar Energy, Wind Energy, Water Power, and Geothermal Technologies programs fund applied research, development, and demonstration to reduce the cost of renewable energy to economically competitive levels. Research into innovative technologies, such as photovoltaic and concentrating solar technologies, offshore wind, hydropower, and ground heat, can expand energy production from our domestic resources and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Solar Energy.--The Committee encourages the Department to research high efficiency thin-film photovoltaics and processes for high-speed, low-cost processing to produce stable materials on flexible substrates that can be used in residential and commercial power and be integrated into buildings, vehicles, and food production. Research programs are encouraged to include cooperation between industry and academia and to include advanced optical characterization that enables development of strong correlations between materials, cell optical properties, and the photovoltaic power performance of the working solar cells. The Committee also encourages the Department to find ways to expand access to solar energy to residences and businesses in low-income communities. The Committee encourages the Department to prioritize research that seeks to improve photovoltaic cell technologies, overcome grid integration challenges, and reduce the costs of solar adoption. Wind Energy.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides up to $5,000,000 for LCOE reduction, domestic manufacturing, and lowering market barriers for distributed wind systems, including small wind for rural homes and farms. The recommendation provides $1,000,000 for the Wind for Schools program. The Committee supports wind energy research, development, and testing activities at the Department and recommends not less than $7,000,000 for these activities. The Department is encouraged to allocate this funding to perform experimental testing, including aeroacoustics, and any required equipment and instrumentation, to validate high-fidelity wind plant models, and to develop wind plant controls in support of the Department's Atmosphere to Electrons (A2e) initiative. The Department is encouraged to leverage existing partnerships and expand research collaboration with industry, national laboratories, and academia, especially in the areas of hybrid wind system control and optimization, wind turbine capability enhancement to increase grid reliability and resilience, and R&D activities, including cyber security, under the guidance of the Grid Modernization Initiative. The Committee continues to support wind activities with large generation potential. As such, the Committee urges the Department to prioritize offshore wind technologies that address the unique opportunities and issues across the nation's waterways, such as high winds, icing, and deep water. In addition, the Committee encourages the Department to continue its work in advancing innovative technologies for offshore wind development, including freshwater, deepwater, shallow water, and transitional depth installations. The Committee supports the efforts by the Department to establish an offshore wind research and development consortium. Water Power.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides $59,000,000 for marine and hydrokinetic technology research, development, and deployment activities, including research into mitigation of marine ecosystem impacts of these technologies. The Committee directs the Department to continue development of the open-water wave energy test facility with previously provided funds. The Committee directs the Department to continue competitive solicitations to increase energy capture, reliability, and survivability at lower costs for a balanced portfolio of wave and current (ocean, river, tidal) energy conversion systems and components. The Committee expects the Department to continue to support collaborations between the previously designated Marine Renewable Energy Centers and the national laboratories, including personnel exchanges, to support research, development, and deployment of marine energy components and systems. In addition, the Department is directed to continue its coordination with the U.S. Navy on marine energy technology development for national security applications at the Wave Energy Test Site and other locations. The recommendation provides $26,000,000 for conventional hydropower, of which $6,600,000 is for the purposes of section 242 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Within available funds for hydropower, $10,000,000 is recommended for a competitive funding opportunity for industry-led research, development and deployment of cross-cutting energy converter technologies for run-of-river and tailrace applications to better utilize underdeveloped low-head and other hydropower resources. ENERGY EFFICIENCY The Advanced Manufacturing, Building Technologies, Federal Energy Management, and Weatherization and Intergovernmental programs advance cost-effective solutions to reduce energy consumption through increased efficiency. Research into cutting-edge technologies that enhance manufacturing processes; develop advanced materials; and reduce energy use in buildings, homes, and factories can serve the national interest by greatly reducing our energy needs, while also giving American manufacturers an advantage to compete in the global marketplace. The Committee encourages the Department to plan a workshop to explore ways to improve the adoption rate of energy efficient technologies. Advanced Manufacturing.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides $80,000,000 for Advanced Manufacturing Research and Development Projects; not less than $4,205,000 for improvements in the steel industry; $20,000,000 for process informed science, design, and engineering of materials and devices operating in harsh environments; $5,000,000 for research into the materials and manufacturing process development of high-strength, light-weight nano-crystalline metal alloys; and $5,000,000 for process-informed catalyst science to direct chemical reactions in full-scale industrial manufacturing processes and to develop new industrial product applications. The recommendation provides $56,000,000 for four Clean Energy Manufacturing Innovation (CEMI) Institutes, $25,000,000 for the Critical Materials Institute, and $20,000,000 for the Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) and the Carbon Fiber Test Facility. Within available funds for the MDF, up to $5,000,000 is for the development of additive systems and automation technologies that have the potential to deposit multiple materials allowing for hybrid material solutions. In addition, the Committee supports the Department's ongoing efforts to work on bio-based composites, bio-derived materials, and nano/microcellulose research. The Committee supports the budget request for Research and Development Consortia to conduct early-stage research and development in high priority areas and also supports early-stage research in materials, process knowledge, and applications of modeling and simulation relevant to energy in manufacturing. The recommendation provides no funding for the Energy-Water Desalination Hub. The Committee notes that drying processes consume approximately 10 percent of the process energy used in the manufacturing sector. The recommendation provides up to $10,000,000 to support research and development efforts to improve the efficiency of drying processes. Building Technologies.--The Committee encourages the Department to continue work on transactive controls for the integration of buildings, the grid, and renewable energy assets, including photovoltaics, and encourages the continuation of this work. Within available funds, the recommendation includes up to $25,000,000 for transactive controls research and development, of which $5,000,000 is to continue promoting regional demonstrations of new, utility-led residential connected communities for advancing smart grid systems; $28,000,000 for Commercial Buildings Integration; $23,000,000 for Residential Buildings Integration; and $25,000,000 for solid state lighting. If the Secretary finds solid-state lighting technology eligible for the twenty-first century lamp prize, specified under section 655 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, $5,000,000 is provided in addition to funds recommended for lighting research and development. Within the Residential Buildings Integration program, the Committee encourages the Department to support industry teams to facilitate research, demonstrate and test new systems, and facilitate widespread deployment through direct engagement with builders, the construction trades, equipment manufacturers, smart grid technology and systems suppliers, integrators, and State and local governments. The Committee appreciates the Department's work in the area of mass composite timber technology and high performance building insulation and sensor technologies. The Committee notes that natural gas plays an important role in meeting the energy needs of U.S. homes and commercial buildings. The Committee encourages the Department to explore research and development that can advance future natural gas systems and appliances to meet consumer demand for high efficiency and environmentally friendly products. The Committee recommends up to $20,000,000 for research, development, and market transformation programs on energy efficiency efforts related to the direct use of natural gas in residential applications, including gas heat pump heating and water heating, on-site combined heat and power, and natural gas appliance venting. The Committee urges the Department to examine how on-site renewable generation and energy efficiency measures can combine to meet state energy code objectives. Weatherization and Intergovernmental Programs.--The Committee directs the Department to prioritize a timely distribution of Weatherization Assistance Program funds. The Committee recognizes that many individuals who would otherwise be eligible for the Weatherization Assistance Program have homes with structural deficiencies which preclude them from participating. The Department is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a briefing on the kinds of information that is collected from grantees and the potential for collecting additional information that discusses the kinds of structural deficiencies that make homes ineligible for the program. CORPORATE SUPPORT The Program Direction, Strategic Programs, and Facilities and Infrastructure budgets provide the necessary resources for program and project management across all of EERE's technology programs, for the adoption of technologies to market, and for the operation and upkeep of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Strategic Programs.--The Department is encouraged to work with 2-year, public community and technical colleges on job training programs that lead to an industry-recognized credential in the energy workforce. Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response Appropriation, 2018................................... $- - - Budget estimate, 2019................................. 95,800,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 146,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +146,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +50,200,000 The Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response program leads the Department's efforts to secure the nation's energy infrastructure against all hazards, reduce the risks of and impacts from cyber events, and assist with restoration activities. A reliable and resilient power grid is critical to the nation's economic competitiveness and leadership. After adjusting for the account structure changes proposed in the President's request, the recommendation is $49,971,000 above the fiscal year 2018 enacted level for these activities. The Committee places a high priority on ensuring the protection of the grid against cyberattacks and extreme weather events. The Committee appreciates the Department's enhanced focus on these activities. Many different actors, governmental and private, play a role in preventing and responding to threats to the nation's energy infrastructure. The Committee expects the Department to continue coordinating its efforts with all stakeholders to ensure the highest priority areas are being addressed effectively in its ongoing efforts to protect the grid. Within available funds for Cybersecurity for Energy Delivery Systems, $10,000,000 is for research and development on concepts to simplify and isolate automated systems and remove vulnerabilities that could allow unauthorized access to the grid through digital software systems. Electricity Delivery Appropriation, 2018................................... $- - - Budget estimate, 2019................................. 61,309,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 175,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +175,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +113,691,000 The Electricity Delivery program advances technologies and provides operational support to increase the efficiency and technological advancement of the nation's electricity delivery system. The power grid employs aging technologies at a time when power demands and the deployment of new intermittent technologies are imposing new stresses on the system. The Electricity Delivery program aims to develop a modern power grid by advancing resilient power distribution systems, intelligent and high-efficiency grid components, and energy storage systems. After adjusting for the account structure changes proposed in the President's request, the recommendation is $22,700,000 above the fiscal year 2018 enacted level for these activities. Within available funds for Resilient Distribution Systems, $7,000,000 is provided for university-based research and development of sensing, intelligent machines in the Internet of Things and their integration into the utility grid. The Committee supports investments to bring together the national laboratories' micro grid capabilities to provide the most advanced set of micro grid research, development, and experimentation capabilities for developing grid solutions from fundamental research to evaluation, design, and decision support. The Committee supports energy storage projects that fully assess and demonstrate a portfolio of energy storage systems at grid relevant scales and maximize the value stream of these technologies to deliver tangible benefits across the operations, energy delivery, environmental, and financial sectors of the utility industry. Within available funds for Energy Storage, the Department is encouraged to launch a new initiative aimed at aggressively driving down costs and improving the performance of a diverse set of grid-scale storage technologies. The program will build off the Department's prior research and development efforts in storage; include a suite of technologies capable of providing storage-like functions; and focus R&D efforts on technical, regulatory, and market issues necessary to achieve both existing grid-scale storage cost and performance targets, as well as targets for increased grid reliability, resiliency, or others as appropriate. The Electricity Delivery program is urged to coordinate its efforts with the Office of Science and EERE to ensure this new initiative best leverages the storage work being conducted within the Basic Energy Sciences program of the Office of Science and programs within EERE where appropriate. Low cost grid-scale energy storage technologies are critical to improving grid resiliency, reliability, security, and the successful integration of a broad range of generation sources. The Committee notes the potential benefits that high power, high capacity batteries can provide for increased energy resilience in the face of adverse events and increasing deployments of intermittent technologies. The Department is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act a report on the potential use of next generation, high capacity and high power batteries in our energy system. The Department is directed to continue the ongoing work between the national laboratories, industry, and universities to improve grid reliability and resiliency through the strategic goals of the Grid Modernization Initiative. The Committee encourages the Department to include all applied energy programs to ensure broad energy system resilience and modernization. In addition, the Committee supports the strategic goals of the Grid Modernization Laboratory Consortium and supports continued implementation of the Grid Multi-year Program Plan. The plan should include an emphasis on national grid resilience modeling and improved grid cyber resilience. The Committee is supportive of establishing a shared platform for understanding the interconnectedness of the North American grid, but lacks details on cost estimates for these efforts. The Department is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act a report describing the activities and costs necessary to achieve a North American grid model. Within available funds the Department may build upon existing tools and modeling work done at the Department to explore a shared modeling platform across the national laboratories. The Committee supports the Department's involvement in the grid restoration effort in Puerto Rico and encourages the Department to continue to provide technical assistance as Puerto Rico works to rebuild its energy infrastructure. In addition, the Electricity Delivery program is encouraged to collaborate with EERE to offer assistance in assessing the viability and implementation of a subsea electric cable interconnection and the use of micro grids in order to reduce electricity rates. The Department is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act a report on the potential of dynamic line rating systems to address transmission congestion management and improve grid reliability and resiliency. The report should contain an analysis of the technologies needed to support dynamic line rating and any generation technologies that may benefit or be disadvantaged by implementing a dynamic line rating scheme. Nuclear Energy Appropriation, 2018................................... $1,205,056,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 757,090,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 1,346,090,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +141,034,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +589,000,000 Nuclear power generates approximately one-fifth of the nation's electricity and will continue to be an important base- load energy source in the future. The Department of Energy's Nuclear Energy (NE) program invests in research, development, and demonstration activities that develop the next generation of clean and safe reactors, further improve the safety of our current reactor fleet, and contribute to the nation's long-term leadership in the global nuclear power industry. NUCLEAR ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT Nuclear Energy Enabling Technologies.--Within available funds, $50,000,000 is for Crosscutting Technology Development, of which $10,000,000 is for work on advanced sensors and instrumentation and $10,000,000 is for hybrid energy systems; $50,000,000 is for the Nuclear Science User Facilities, of which $10,000,000 is for nuclear energy computation system and support; $40,000,000 is for Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation, of which $6,000,000 is for MW-scale reactor modeling and simulation; and $24,300,000 is for the Energy Innovation Hub. The Department is directed to continue to treat the Energy Innovation Hub and the Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation programs as separate funding activities. Integrated University Program.--The Committee recommends $5,000,000 to continue the Integrated University Program, which is critical to ensuring the nation's nuclear science and engineering workforce in future years. Reactor Concepts Research, Development, and Demonstration.--Within available funds, $100,000,000 is for Advanced Small Modular Reactor Research and Development to support technical, first-of-its-kind engineering and design and regulatory development of next generation light water and non- light water small modular reactors, including $10,000,000 for seismic analysis; $155,000,000 is for Advanced Reactor Technologies, of which $34,000,000 is for fuel and graphite qualification, $22,000,000 is to complete the federal share of the two performance-based advanced reactor concepts, and $20,000,000 is for MW-scale reactor research and development; and $65,000,000 is for research and development to support efforts to develop a versatile fast test reactor. In support of the current fleet of reactors as they continue to ensure safe and reliable operations, the Committee includes $50,000,000 for the Light Water Reactor Sustainability program. The Department is encouraged to build upon the success of the advanced reactor concepts program and explore ways to support research and development that would enable non-light water reactor demonstrations by the mid to late 2020s. The Department shall continue to work with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to ensure an adequate supply of plutonium-238 is available for future NASA space exploration missions. Fuel Cycle Research and Development.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides $128,559,000 for the Advanced Fuels Program, of which not less than $55,600,000 is to continue the participation of three industry-led teams of the cost shared research and development program on Accident Tolerant Fuels; not less than $20,000,000 is to support accident tolerant fuels development at the national laboratories and other facilities, including at the Advanced Test Reactor, the Transient Reactor Test Facility, and the Halden reactor; $3,000,000 is to continue research on ceramic cladding; and $15,000,000 is for additional support of capability development of transient testing, including test design, modeling, and simulation. The Committee notes that continued operation of the Advanced Test Reactor, the Transient Reactor Test Facility, and the Halden Reactor are critical to the success of the Accident Tolerant Fuels program and should be preserved. Within available funds, the recommendation provides $50,000,000 for Material Recovery and Waste Form Development, of which $7,000,000 is for joint fuel cycle studies and up to $20,000,000 is for highly enriched uranium recovery preparation and testing to support needs for high assay low enriched uranium. The recommendation provides $62,500,000 to continue generic Used Nuclear Fuel Disposition research and development activities. The Department is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a report on how electromagnetic technologies can be used to remediate nuclear waste. The report shall evaluate the scientific basis for these technologies, the effects on nuclear waste and storage in the United States, the benefit to the nuclear power industry, and the implications for national security. The Committee is aware of the Department's ongoing research and development efforts regarding the safe transportation of spent nuclear fuel and encourages the Department to continue this important work to ensure that this fuel can be safely moved at the earliest opportunity. IDAHO FACILITIES MANAGEMENT INL Operations and Infrastructure.--Within available funds, the recommendation includes $300,000,000 for INL Operations and Infrastructure to support the MFC and ATR Five-Year Plan to increase reliability and sustainability. IDAHO SITEWIDE SAFEGUARDS AND SECURITY Idaho Sitewide Safeguards and Security.--Within available funds, the recommendation includes $10,000,000 to construct a protective forces building at the ATR complex that will meet the needs for expanded protective force and security operations under the Department's new Design Basis Threat but that will not exceed a total project cost of $10,000,000. Fossil Energy Research and Development Appropriation, 2018................................... $726,817,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 502,070,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 785,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +58,183,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +282,930,000 Fossil energy resources, such as coal, oil, and natural gas, generate approximately 63 percent of the nation's electricity and will continue to provide for the majority of our needs for the foreseeable future. The Fossil Energy Research and Development program funds research, development, and demonstration activities to improve existing technologies and to develop next-generation systems in the full spectrum of fossil energy areas. At a time when fossil fuel power generation is expanding around the globe, the activities funded within this program advance our nation's position as a leader in fossil energy technologies and ensure that we use the full extent of our domestic resources safely and efficiently. COAL--CCS AND POWER SYSTEMS The Department is directed to use funds from Coal CCS and Power Systems for both coal and natural gas research and development as it determines to be merited, as long as such research does not occur at the expense of coal research and development. The recommendation provides $25,000,000 to continue to support the solicitation for two large-scale pilots that focus on transformational coal technologies that represent a new way to convert energy to enable a step change in performance, efficiency, and the cost of electricity compared to today's technologies. Such technologies include thermodynamic improvements in energy conversion and heat transfer, such as pressurized oxygen combustion and chemical looping, and improvements in carbon capture systems technology. In making the awards for large-scale pilots, the Department should prioritize entities that have previously received funding for these technologies at the lab and bench scale. Within available funds for Coal CCS and Power Systems, the Committee supports new solicitations for Front-End Engineering and Design studies on projects that generate emissions suitable for utilization or storage. In addition, the Committee recommends research and development, as well as pilot scale activities, that will improve the performance, reliability, and efficiency of both new and existing fossil fuel fired power plants. Consistent with direction provided in fiscal year 2018, the Committee does not support the closure of any National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) site and provides no funds to plan, develop, implement, or pursue the consolidation or closure of any of the NETL sites. The Committee supports the integrated carbon and energy management activities of NE and EERE and provides $2,000,000 for Hybrid Carbon Conversion activities within Fossil Energy. Carbon Capture.--The Department is directed to explore carrying out a prize competition to advance the research, development, or commercialization of technologies that capture, sequester, or utilize carbon from coal. The Committee encourages the Department to focus its efforts on improving the efficiency and decreasing the costs of carbon capture technologies, demonstrating carbon capture technologies, and identifying how these technologies can be integrated with business models and operations. This focus includes small- and large-scale pilot testing of technologies moving through the program pipeline and retrofit activities on the existing fleet. Carbon Storage.--The Committee supports the past work of the Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships (RCSPs) in advancing future technologies for enhanced oil recovery, mineral resource extraction, and gaining deep subsurface knowledge through continued research. The Committee believes the Department should undertake measures to preserve, share, and advance the state of knowledge gained through these programs, which will provide the necessary information to strengthen platforms for industry adoption. Within available funds for Storage Infrastructure, the Committee provides up to $30,000,000 to support the CarbonSAFE initiative in which the RCSPs are eligible to participate. The Department is encouraged to continue activities that promote the use and reuse of captured carbon from both the power and industrial sectors. In addition, the Committee encourages the Department to support non-geologic utilization activities within the Carbon Use and Reuse program, including biological utilization by algae and other microorganisms. Advanced Energy Systems.--Within available funds, $30,000,000 is for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells to focus on hydrogen production and storage as well as research and development to enable efficient, cost-effective electricity generation with minimal use of water and the use of abundant domestic coal and natural gas resources with near-zero atmospheric emissions of CO2 and pollutants. Moreover, central power generation applications of solid oxide fuel cells can be integrated with carbon capture and storage efforts to contribute to a secure energy future. The Department is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act a report on the status of the Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Program. The report shall include a discussion of the technological achievements of the program, including lessons learned, and a discussion of the technical requirements to achieve the remaining goals of the program. The Committee urges the Department to fund research and development activities to improve the efficiency of gas turbines used in power generation systems, working cooperatively with industry, universities, and other appropriate parties. The Committee recognizes the abundance of domestic coal and its potential to be a significant primary energy source for the production of liquid fuels. Within available funds, the Department is directed to support research and development that focuses on expanding the Department's external agency activities to develop and test advanced concept coal to liquid fuels technologies. Within available funds, $37,000,000 is for transformative power generation to improve the efficiency, reliability, and flexible operations of both new and existing plants. The Department is directed to focus on advanced coal technologies that are applicable to retrofit technologies and modular coal technologies that are capable of distributed generation, represent maximum efficiency improvements over the current average fleet, incorporate advanced emissions control systems, and are economically competitive. Crosscutting Research.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides up to $2,500,000 to research low- temperature microwave plasma technology that converts domestic coal into high-performance carbon materials, and $20,000,000 for the Advanced Ultrasupercritical Program to fabricate, qualify, and develop domestic suppliers capable of producing components from high temperature materials. NETL Coal Research and Development.--The recommendation includes $20,000,000 for the Department to continue its ongoing external agency activities to develop and test advanced separation technologies and accelerate the advancement of commercially viable technologies for the recovery of rare earth elements and minerals from U.S. coal and coal byproduct sources. The Committee expects research to support pilot-scale and experimental activities for near-term application. Supercritical Transformational Electric Power (STEP) Generation.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides $16,700,000, consistent with the original scope of work, to fully fund the Department's cost share portion to design, construct, and operate a 10-MW pilot. The recommendation provides an additional $5,730,000 for competitively-awarded research and development activities, coordinated with EERE and NE, to advance the use of supercritical power cycles. NATURAL GAS TECHNOLOGIES Research.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides $9,000,000 for Environmentally Prudent Development and $5,200,000 for the Risk Based Data Management System. The Department is encouraged to explore technologies that curtail methane gas emissions from flaring and venting in shale formations. UNCONVENTIONAL FOSSIL ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES The Committee supports the Department's continued investment into research and development on unconventional fossil energy technologies. These investments will help the United States maximize the benefits of its abundant unconventional natural gas liquids production. The Committee recognizes the Department's ongoing efforts to support research into the exploration for and development of emerging unconventional oil and gas reservoirs. The Committee encourages continued efforts to characterize emerging unconventional reservoirs and to emphasize geographic areas where geological conditions are optimal for the generation and accumulation of economically significant amounts of oil or gas in the geological formations being studied. The Committee further encourages a focus of available resources on potential unconventional reservoirs for which there exist limited amounts of data rather than well-known existing reservoirs. The Committee provides $15,000,000 for Unconventional Field Test Sites. The Committee is pleased with the Department's progress to date on studying the volatility of crude oil from the Bakken Shale in North Dakota and accurately assessing and characterizing volatility before transporting. The Committee directs the Department to continue this research in partnership with the Department of Transportation to improve the safety of crude oil transported by rail in this country. NETL INFRASTRUCTURE Within available funds, the recommendation provides $5,500,000 for NETL's Supercomputer, Joule. Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves Appropriation, 2018................................... $4,900,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 10,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 10,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +5,100,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves no longer serve the national defense purpose envisioned in the early 1900's, and consequently the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 1996 required the sale of the Government's interest in the Naval Petroleum Reserve 1 (NPR-1). To comply with this requirement, the Elk Hills field in California was sold to Occidental Petroleum Corporation in 1998. Following the sale of Elk Hills, the transfer of the oil shale reserves, and transfer of administrative jurisdiction and environmental remediation of the Naval Petroleum Reserve 2 (NPR-2) to the Department of the Interior, the Department retained one Naval Petroleum Reserve property, the Naval Petroleum Reserve 3 (NPR-3) in Wyoming (Teapot Dome field). The Department issued a disposition plan for NPR-3 in June 2013 and began implementation of the plan in fiscal year 2014. Transfer of NPR-3 to a new owner occurred in fiscal year 2015. Strategic Petroleum Reserve Appropriation, 2018................................... $252,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 175,105,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 252,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. +76,895,000 The mission of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is to store petroleum to reduce the adverse economic impact of a major petroleum supply interruption to the U.S. and to carry out obligations under the international energy program. The recommendation includes funding to address facilities development and operations, including physical security and cavern integrity, and to maintain 1,000,000 barrels of gasoline blendstock in the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve. The recommendation includes legislative language to direct the Secretary to draw down and sell crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, with proceeds to be deposited into the Energy Security and Infrastructure Modernization Fund for use in carrying out the Life Extension II project. This drawdown and use of proceeds is in accordance with section 404 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015. SPR Petroleum Account Appropriation, 2018................................... $8,400,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. - - - Recommended, 2019..................................... 10,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +1,600,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +10,000,000 The SPR Petroleum Account funds Strategic Petroleum Reserve acquisition, transportation, and drawdown activities. The fiscal year 2019 budget request proposes to draw down and sell one million barrels of SPR crude oil to fund the costs of drawdown operations related to statutorily-directed sales. Instead, the recommendation provides discretionary appropriations for this purpose. Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve Appropriation, 2018................................... $6,500,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 10,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 10,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +3,500,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The acquisition and storage of heating oil for the Northeast began in August 2000 when the Department of Energy, through the Strategic Petroleum Reserve account, awarded contracts for the lease of commercial storage facilities and acquisition of heating oil. The purpose of the reserve is to assure home heating oil supplies for the Northeastern States during times of very low inventories and significant threats to the immediate supply of heating oil. The Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve was established as a separate entity from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve on March 6, 2001. Energy Information Administration Appropriation, 2018................................... $125,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 115,035,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 125,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. +9,965,000 The Energy Information Administration is a quasi- independent agency within the Department of Energy established to provide timely, objective, and accurate energy-related information to the Congress, the executive branch, state governments, industry, and the public. The Committee encourages the Department to continue important data collection, analysis, and reporting activities on energy use and consumption, including the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey, and the Residential Buildings Energy Consumption Survey. The Committee notes that while the Energy Information Administration website does provide information for Puerto Rico and the other territories in its State Profiles section, the information furnished for Puerto Rico is not as detailed nor as up-to-date as the information furnished for states. The Committee encourages the Energy Information Administration to work to close these remaining data gaps. Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup Appropriation, 2018................................... $298,400,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 218,400,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 240,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -58,400,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +21,600,000 Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup includes funds to manage and remediate sites used for civilian, energy research, and non-defense related activities. These past activities resulted in radioactive, hazardous, and mixed waste contamination that requires remediation, stabilization, or some other action. Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund Appropriation, 2018................................... $840,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 752,749,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 870,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +30,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +117,251,000 The Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund was established by the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to fund the cleanup of gaseous diffusion plants at Portsmouth, Ohio; Paducah, Kentucky; and the East Tennessee Technology Park in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Portsmouth.--The recommendation includes funding above the budget request to fully offset the amount of proceeds that the Department planned to generate through bartering arrangements in order to fund additional cleanup in fiscal year 2019. After the date of enactment of this Act, the Department shall not barter, transfer, or sell uranium for the remainder of fiscal year 2019 in order to generate additional funding for Portsmouth cleanup that is in excess of the amount of funding provided in this Act. Title X Uranium/Thorium Reimbursements.--The Committee recommends $32,959,000 to reimburse private licensees for the cost of cleaning up uranium and thorium processing sites in accordance with Title X of the Energy Policy Act of 1992. The Committee expects the Department to reimburse licensees for all previous expenses, including costs related to remediation, restoration, and oversight of these programs, and to ensure all impacted communities are made whole. Fulfilling the obligation to fully reimburse licensees is important to the health and safety of the impacted communities. The Committee expects the Department to provide sufficient resources within future budget requests to reimburse licensees for approved claim balances in a timely manner and to avoid accumulating balances and liabilities. Science Appropriation, 2018................................... $6,259,903,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 5,390,972,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 6,600,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +340,097,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +1,209,028,000 The Office of Science funds basic science research across national laboratories, universities, and other research institutions in support of American innovation and the Department's energy-focused missions. Through research in physics, biology, chemistry, and other science disciplines, these activities expand scientific understanding and secure the nation's leadership in energy innovation. The Office of Science is the nation's largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences. The Science program office includes Advanced Scientific Computing Research, Basic Energy Sciences, Biological and Environmental Research, Fusion Energy Sciences, High Energy Physics, Nuclear Physics, Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists, Science Laboratories Infrastructure, Safeguards and Security, and Program Direction. The Committee has placed a high priority on funding these activities in fiscal year 2019, given the private sector is not likely to fund research whose findings either have high non-commercial value or are not likely to be commercialized in the near or medium term. This work is vital to sustaining the scientific leadership of the United States and can provide the underpinnings for valuable intellectual property in the coming decades. The Committee encourages the Department to evaluate methods to educate new and existing minority and women-owned small businesses about SBIR and STTR grants, and directs the Department to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act a report on current and planned outreach efforts in this area. The Committee appreciates the Department's focus on quantum information sciences and encourages the Department, in addition to activities referenced in the budget request, to explore research and development on precision sensors. ADVANCED SCIENTIFIC COMPUTING RESEARCH The Advanced Scientific Computing Research program develops and hosts some of the world's fastest computing and network capabilities to enable science and energy modeling, simulation, and research. Exascale Computing Project.--The recommendation includes $225,000,000 for exascale activities. High Performance Computing and Network Facilities.--In addition to the long-term exascale initiative, the Committee supports continued upgrade and operation of the Leadership Computing Facilities at Argonne and Oak Ridge national laboratories and of the High Performance Production Computing capabilities at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The recommendation includes $140,000,000 for the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility, $185,000,000 for the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility, and $100,000,000 for the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Within available funds, the recommendation includes $10,000,000 for the Computational Science Graduate Fellowship program and $80,000,000 to support necessary infrastructure upgrades and operations for ESnet. The Committee is concerned that the increased costs of the Exascale Computing Initiative compared to previous high performance computing (HPC) efforts are not transparently presented because the Department's budget request contains inadequate detail on the cost of its HPC procurements. In its fiscal year 2020 budget request, the Department shall submit a budget justification for Advanced Scientific Computing Research that clearly details funding amounts requested for base research and development activities, operations, and procurements for the Exascale Computing Initiative. The Committee notes the importance of a strong research program in applied and computational mathematics to the Department's mission. The Committee encourages the Department to prioritize research in applied and computational mathematics, supercomputing, and quantum computing to ensure the U.S. remains competitive in this field. Artificial intelligence technologies that may improve the analysis and interpretation of big data can lead to substantial improvements in the Department's ability to meet its nuclear security, energy, and science missions. The Committee provides $26,000,000 to launch an artificial intelligence and big data initiative. BASIC ENERGY SCIENCES The Basic Energy Sciences program funds basic research in materials science, chemistry, geoscience, and bioscience. The science breakthroughs in this program enable a broad array of innovation in energy technologies and other industries critical to American economic competitiveness. Research.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides $24,088,000 for the Batteries and Energy Storage Innovation Hub; $15,000,000 for the Fuels from Sunlight Innovation Hub; $130,500,000 for facilities operations of the nanoscience research centers; $500,000,000 for facilities operations of the nation's light sources; $280,000,000 for facilities operations of the high flux neutron sources; $20,000,000 for the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research; $110,000,000 for the Energy Frontier Research Centers; and $10,100,000 for Other Project Costs, of which $6,100,000 is for LCLS-II, $2,000,000 is for ALS-U, and $2,000,000 is for LCLS-II HE. The Committee supports the continued research and development for the Batteries and Energy Storage Innovation Hub to develop energy storage research prototypes to ensure the outcome of basic research leads to practical solutions that are competitive in the marketplace. The Committee encourages the Hub to focus on grid storage applications, particularly on chemistries with low cost reagents. The Committee encourages the Department to resume annual, or biennial, Implementation Grant solicitations when making awards in support of the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research. The Department is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act a report that provides a plan for these future solicitations. The Committee encourages the Department to continue to provide support for basic research in polymers and polymer- based materials for energy applications and also encourages the Department to implement neutron research efforts for polymeric materials for the materials community. The Committee is aware of the discovery of physical phenomena in the light harvesting systems of photosynthetic organisms that has potential applications in quantum computing. The recommendation provides $10,000,000 for research of artificial light harvesting systems that promise to significantly increase computational processing power and speed. BIOLOGICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH The Biological and Environmental Research (BER) program supports advances in energy technologies and related science through research into complex biological and environmental systems. The Committee directs the Department to give priority to optimizing the operation of BER user facilities and the programs that utilize them. The recommendation provides $100,000,000 for the Bioenergy Research Centers and $70,000,000 for the Joint Genome Institute. The Committee recognizes the importance of the emerging field of microbiome research and encourages the Department to explore establishing a national microbiome database to maintain leadership in the field. The Committee continues to support the Department's funding for academia to perform studies, including independent evaluations using existing data sets and peer-reviewed publications that include the collection and evaluation of atmospheric data from satellite observations obtained in cooperation with NASA. Satellite observations of the atmosphere, within the context of the Earth as a global system, provide information that is critical in the interpretation of earth-based observations. The Committee supports the Department's proposal to initiate a terrestrial-aquatic interfaces pilot project and encourages the Department to explore the resiliency of coastal ecosystems as part of this project. Within available funds, the Department is directed to continue to support NGEE-Arctic, NGEE-Tropics, the SPRUCE field site, the Watershed Function Science Focus Area, and the AmeriFLUX project. FUSION ENERGY SCIENCES The Fusion Energy Sciences program supports basic research and experimentation aiming to harness nuclear fusion for energy production. Research.--The Committee recommends $281,704,000 for burning plasma science foundations, $61,246,000 for burning plasma science long pulse, and $84,050,000 for discovery plasma science. Within available funds, the recommendation provides $18,000,000 for High Energy Density Laboratory Plasmas, $25,000,000 for Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing, $2,500,000 to provide upgrades to the Safety and Tritium Applied Research facility, and $7,000,000 for the Materials Plasma Exposure Experiment. Construction.--The Committee recommends $163,000,000 for the U.S. contribution to the ITER project. The Committee continues to believe the ITER project represents an important step forward for energy sciences and has the potential to revolutionize the current understanding of fusion energy. HIGH ENERGY PHYSICS The High Energy Physics program supports fundamental research into the elementary constituents of matter and energy and ultimately into the nature of space and time. The program focuses on particle physics theory and experimentation in three areas: the energy frontier, which investigates new particles and fundamental forces through high-energy experimentation; the intensity frontier, which focuses on rare events to better understand our fundamental model of the universe's elementary constituents; and the cosmic frontier, which investigates the nature of the universe and its form of matter and energy on cosmic scales. Research.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides $22,450,000 to complete the dark energy and dark matter experiments, $105,000,000 for the HL-LHC Upgrade Projects, $31,000,000 for PIP-II, and $10,000,000 to continue the upgrade of FACET II. The Committee supports the Department's efforts to advance laser-driven accelerators and encourages the Department to explore how this technology fits within future planning efforts for the High Energy Physics program. In addition, the Committee strongly urges the Department to maintain a balanced portfolio of small, medium, and large scale experiments, and to ensure adequate funding for research performed at universities and the national laboratories. NUCLEAR PHYSICS The Nuclear Physics program supports basic research into the fundamental particles that compose nuclear matter, how they interact, and how they combine to form the different types of matter observed in the universe today. Operations and Maintenance.--Within available funds, the recommendation provides $10,000,000 for the Stable Isotope Production Facility, $6,600,000 for the Gamma-Ray Energy Tracking Array, and $5,660,000 for the Super Pioneering High Energy Nuclear Interaction Experiment. The Committee directs the Department to give priority to optimizing the operations for the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility, the Argonne Tandem Linac Accelerator System, and the Brookhaven Linac Isotope Producer Facility. Nuclear Waste Disposal Appropriation, 2018................................... $- - - Budget estimate, 2019................................. 90,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 190,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +190,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +100,000,000 The Committee recommendation includes $190,000,000 for Nuclear Waste Disposal to continue the Department of Energy's statutorily required activities for the Yucca Mountain license application. Within available funds, the Department is directed to reestablish its capability to respond to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission during the adjudicatory process and to otherwise fully support the Yucca Mountain licensing process. The recommendation includes support for affected units of local government that have formally consented to host Yucca Mountain. Educational Institutions.--The Department is reminded that, to the extent that funding or other assistance is made available to educational institutions pursuant to the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, institutions in the Nevada System of Higher Education, as defined by the State of Nevada, with experience in nuclear waste research and environmental monitoring are eligible for such assistance. Advanced Research Projects Agency--Energy Appropriation, 2018................................... $353,314,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. - - - Recommended, 2019..................................... 325,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -28,314,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +325,000,000 The Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) supports research aimed at rapidly developing energy technologies whose development and commercialization are too risky to attract sufficient private sector investment but are capable of significantly changing the energy sector to address our critical economic and energy security challenges. Projects funded by ARPA-E include such wide-ranging areas as production processes for transportation fuel alternatives that can reduce our dependence on imported oil, heating and cooling technologies with exceptionally high energy efficiency, and improvements in petroleum refining processes. The Department is directed to disburse funds appropriated for ARPA-E on eligible projects within a reasonable time period, consistent with past practices. Title 17 Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES GROSS APPROPRIATION Appropriation, 2018................................... $33,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 10,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 32,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -1,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +22,000,000 OFFSETTING COLLECTIONS Appropriation, 2018................................... $-10,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. -15,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... -15,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -5,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - RESCISSION Appropriation, 2018................................... $- - - Budget estimate, 2019................................. -240,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... - - - Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. +240,000,000 NET APPROPRIATION Appropriation, 2018................................... $23,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. -245,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 17,000,000 Comparison:........................................... Appropriation, 2018............................... -6,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +262,000,000 The funds provided to the Title 17 Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program support administrative operations only. Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program Appropriation, 2018................................... $5,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 1,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 5,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. +4,000,000 The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 established a direct loan program to support the development of advanced technology vehicles and associated components in the United States. The program provides loans to automobile and automobile part manufacturers for the cost of re-equipping, expanding, or establishing manufacturing facilities in the United States to produce advanced technology vehicles or qualified components, and for associated engineering integration costs. The funds provided support administrative operations only. Tribal Energy Loan Guarantee Program Appropriation, 2018................................... $1,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. -8,500,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 1,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. +9,500,000 The Energy Policy Act of 2005 established a loan guarantee program for energy development to provide or expand electricity on Indian land. The funds provided support administrative operations only. Departmental Administration GROSS APPROPRIATION Appropriation, 2018................................... $285,652,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 235,534,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 280,524,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -5,128,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +44,990,000 REVENUES Appropriation, 2018................................... $-96,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. -96,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... -96,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - NET APPROPRIATION Appropriation, 2018................................... $189,652,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 139,534,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 184,524,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -5,128,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +44,990,000 Funding recommended for Departmental Administration provides for general management and program support functions benefiting all elements of the Department of Energy, including the National Nuclear Security Administration. The account funds a wide array of Headquarters activities not directly associated with the execution of specific programs. The recommendation includes six reprogramming control points in this account to provide flexibility in the management of support functions. Other Departmental Administration includes Management, Project Management Oversight and Assessments, Chief Human Capital Officer, Office of Technology Transitions, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, General Counsel, Office of Policy, International Affairs, and Public Affairs. The Department is directed to continue to submit a budget request that proposes a separate funding level for each of these activities. Within International Affairs, the recommendation includes $2,000,000 for the Israel Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation, which was previously funded in the EERE account, and $4,000,000 for the U.S.-Israel Center of Excellence in Energy, Engineering and Water Technology. Economic Impact and Diversity.--The recommendation includes $10,169,000 for Economic Impact and Diversity, the same as fiscal year 2018 and $164,000 above the budget request. Chief Information Officer.--To enhance the accountability for management of cyber resources, the Committee recommendation consolidates cybersecurity funding under the Office of the Chief Information Officer. The recommendation includes $131,624,000, including $96,793,000 as requested within Departmental Administration and $34,831,000 as requested for CyberOne activities within the DOE working capital fund. Within this amount, not less than $71,501,000 shall be for cybersecurity and secure information. Nuclear Power Plant Closings.--Prior to the opening of a permanent repository or monitored retrievable storage for spent nuclear fuel, power plant sites serve as de facto storage facilities for this nuclear waste. When a plant closes, onsite storage of spent nuclear fuel can be a factor affecting redevelopment of the location. The Committee directs the Department to submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act a study on existing public and private resources and funding for which municipalities where a nuclear power plant is decommissioned, in the process of decommissioning, or plans to shut down within 3 years of enactment of this Act and contains nuclear waste within its boundaries may be eligible. Radium Contamination.--The Department shall review the details of any facility of the Nevada System of Higher Education, as defined by the State of Nevada, that is contaminated with radium to determine whether the Department has a legal liability or authorization for remediation of such facility. Office of the Inspector General Appropriation, 2018................................... $49,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 51,330,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 51,330,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +2,330,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Office of the Inspector General performs agency-wide audit, inspection, and investigative functions to identify and correct management and administrative deficiencies that create conditions for existing or potential instances of fraud, waste, and mismanagement. The audit function provides financial and performance audits of programs and operations. The inspections function provides independent inspections and analyses of the effectiveness, efficiency, and economy of programs and operations. The investigative function provides for the detection and investigation of improper and illegal activities involving programs, personnel, and operations. ATOMIC ENERGY DEFENSE ACTIVITIES The Atomic Energy Defense Activities programs of the Department of Energy in the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) consist of Weapons Activities, Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, Naval Reactors, and Federal Salaries and Expenses; outside of the NNSA, these include Defense Environmental Cleanup, Other Defense Activities, and Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal. Descriptions of each of these accounts are provided below. NATIONAL NUCLEAR SECURITY ADMINISTRATION The Department of Energy is responsible for enhancing U.S. national security through the military application of nuclear technology and reducing the global danger from the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The NNSA, a semi- autonomous agency within the Department, carries out these responsibilities. Established in March 2000 pursuant to title 32 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000, the NNSA is responsible for the management and operation of the nation's nuclear weapons complex, naval reactors, and nuclear nonproliferation activities. Indirect Overhead and Administrative Costs.--The Committee expects the NNSA to take prompt action to reduce the size of the overhead and administrative costs that are being charged to its programmatic activities, as directed in the fiscal year 2018 Act. The Committee is awaiting the receipt of required reports on the Department's indirect cost pools and a plan by the NNSA to reduce the size of the administrative and other overhead charges levied on its major nuclear modernization programs. None of the funds shall be used for an Institutional Plant Project that is funded through an indirect cost pool of an NNSA site. The recommendation provides robust direct funding for the NNSA's infrastructure needs, and the Committee will consider funding infrastructure investments through the site indirect cost pools after receipt of the outstanding reporting requirements. The NNSA is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act a report that accounts for the number of personnel at NNSA sites whose costs are entirely funded through site indirect cost pools. The recommendation includes $15,313,147,000 for the NNSA, $644,195,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $222,097,000 above the budget request. Weapons Activities Appropriation, 2018................................... $10,642,138,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 11,017,078,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 11,200,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +557,862,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +182,922,000 Weapons Activities ensures the safety, security, reliability, and effectiveness of the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear testing by providing funding to four main elements: Directed Stockpile Work; Research, Development, Technology and Engineering; Infrastructure and Operations; and Security. The NNSA's budget request for Weapons Activities proposed significant reductions to infrastructure recapitalization and deferred maintenance reduction efforts. The Committee is concerned that, in order to pay for the projected costs of its major nuclear modernization programs, the NNSA is undercutting the investments needed to address the entirety of its aging infrastructure problems and to build a nuclear weapons workforce that possesses the skills and knowledge needed to design, develop, test, and manufacture warheads, as endorsed in the Administration's Nuclear Posture Review. As the costs of the major modernization programs continue to increase, the NNSA must take concerted action to prevent cost growth associated with underperforming and poorly scoped activities. The recommendation provides additional funding above the request to continue the current pace of infrastructure recapitalization efforts across the nuclear security enterprise, including efforts to reduce the backlog of deferred maintenance and to upgrade physical security systems to improve the security posture of the NNSA sites. The Committee notes that the original fiscal year 2019 budget request did not contain adequate information regarding the Department's request for low-yield ballistic missile funding, but a technical amendment with additional details was later submitted. When proposing new or modified nuclear weapons activities, the Committee expects the Department to follow the requirements of 50 U.S.C. 2529, including requesting a single dedicated line item for such activities. Plutonium.--While the NNSA was directed in the fiscal year 2017 and 2018 Acts to request funding to meet additional plutonium infrastructure mission needs under a new and separate project that could be clearly presented for consideration, the NNSA's fiscal year 2019 budget request does not contain such a project and continues to disregard Congressional direction to remove specific scope from the Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement project that was in excess of the scope originally authorized by Congress. The NNSA's five year budget plans include approximately $4,000,000,000 for unspecified activities within Plutonium Sustainment to achieve long-term pit production capacity targets. The specific activities and total costs needed to achieve these targets are not described, and a management plan with near-term milestones for carrying out this significant multi-year effort are not presented. The NNSA's continued inability to produce a transparent plan to establish a pit production capability that includes a resource- loaded schedule that can be independently verified for reasonableness creates significant concerns. The recommendation establishes a new construction project within Infrastructure and Operations that shall be utilized to carry out any capital improvements and equipment installations that are needed at Los Alamos National Laboratory to meet plutonium mission needs. Not later than 60 days after the enactment of this Act, the NNSA shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations a report that describes in detail the scope, costs, and schedule, with near term milestones for any capital improvements needed, to meet its plutonium mission needs. DIRECTED STOCKPILE WORK Directed Stockpile Work includes all activities that directly support weapons in the nuclear stockpile, including maintenance, research, development, engineering, certification, dismantlement, and disposal activities. The Committee recommends $4,581,296,000 for Directed Stockpile Work, $571,849,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $84,909,000 below the budget request. Life Extension Programs.--The recommendation provides full funding for the NNSA's life extension programs, including the ongoing refurbishment efforts for the B61, W76, W88, and W80 warheads. The recommendation also provides funding requested for a new modification to the W76 warhead to achieve a lower- yield capability for that system and to initiate phase 6.1 efforts on a life extension or replacement of the W78 warhead. W76-2 Modification Program.--Not later than 30 days after the enactment of this Act, the NNSA shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a report detailing the plan, rationale, costs, and implications of producing a low-yield variant of the W76 warhead. The report shall include the cost and schedule estimates for the engineering phase, and any subsequent phase, of the W76-2 modification program; detailed discussion of the military requirements associated with the W76-2, including Nuclear Weapons Council decisions and U.S. Strategic Command requirements; estimated long-term maintenance costs; impacts on other current or planned warhead programs; impacts on the planned cost and schedule in the event of a time delay in the engineering phase, or any subsequent phase, of the W76-2; and impacts on other current or planned warhead programs in the event of a time delay in the W76-2 modification program, W78 Life Extension Program.--The Committee is concerned that the NNSA is proceeding with a premature decision to replace the W78 with an interoperable warhead based on a stockpile strategy that was not endorsed in the Administration's Nuclear Posture Review and that was not funded by the Congress when first proposed under the previous Administration. The NNSA has not resolved major technical issues identified by the JASONs Defense Advisory Group in 2015 associated with modifying existing warheads to achieve interoperability or to increase the usage of insensitive high explosives (IHE) in the stockpile. Specifically, the JASONs found that these warhead modifications may result in sub- optimal designs and may force a reduction in design yield margins. The rationale for converting warheads from CHE to IHE is not clear considering the technical risks, the high costs involved, and the current lack of a pit production capability that could produce such warheads in quantities needed for the stockpile. The NNSA carried out a Pit Manufacturing and Certification Campaign to restore the capability to manufacture and certify up to ten plutonium pits per year from 1996 to 2007. However, the NNSA never demonstrated production at full capacity and lost the limited capacity it had built due to safety missteps that shut down plutonium operations in the PF-4 facility for several years. The NNSA hopes to achieve a far greater production capacity over the same period of time. Given the NNSA's past performance, any nuclear modernization program that relies on the successful establishment of a near-term pit production capacity should be considered by the Administration to be a high-risk endeavor and a program that does not rely on pit production should be pursued in parallel to ensure stockpile needs will continue to be met. In lieu of the request to begin phase 6.2 activities for an interoperable warhead to replace the W78, the recommendation provides funding to begin a phase 6.1 study to fully analyze all available alternatives for the W78 warhead. Upon conclusion of phase 6.1 efforts and prior to initiation of phase 6.2 efforts, the NNSA shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a report that compares the costs associated with replacing the W78 warhead with an IHE design that may require new pit manufacturing to the costs of extending the life of the W78. The report shall include a detailed description of the comparative costs that may be needed to upgrade Department of Defense facilities to continue to safely handle CHE or that otherwise may reduce drivers for replacing CHE warheads with IHE. Domestic Uranium Enrichment.--The recommendation provides $100,704,000. Within these funds, not less than $25,000,000 is for continued research, operation, and further advancement of gas centrifuge technology. The Committee supports continued operations and testing of gas centrifuge technology to further advance the technology and to maintain the specialty expertise and operational proficiency that will be necessary to meet future U.S. defense and non-defense needs for enriched uranium. Comprehensive Beryllium Strategy.--Beryllium has been labeled a critical mineral by the United States Geological Survey for a wide variety of needs and is the only material qualified by field tests for certain nuclear weapons requirements. The Committee encourages the NNSA to continue efforts to create a unified approach to security of supply for beryllium and urges the national laboratories to create a joint plan to ensure that beryllium is available to support all the requirements of the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan. RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENGINEERING The NNSA's Research, Development, Technology, and Engineering (RDT&E) activities focus on the development and maintenance of critical capabilities, tools, and processes that support science-based stockpile stewardship and continued certification of the stockpile in the absence of underground nuclear testing. For RDT&E, the Committee recommends $2,028,366,000, $5,999,000 below fiscal year 2018 and $32,973,000 above the budget request. Academic Alliances and Partnerships.--Within Academic Alliances and Partnerships, not less than $20,000,000 shall be for the Minority Serving Institution Partnerships Program and not less than $9,000,000 shall be for academic grants for high energy density laboratory plasmas previously funded within the Inertial Confinement Fusion Ignition and High Yield program. The Committee supports continued research into high energy density plasmas and recognizes the partnerships between the national laboratories and research universities to address the critical need for skilled graduates to replace an aging workforce. Enhanced Capabilities for Subcritical Experiments.--The recommendation does not include funding requested for the Advanced Sources and Detectors Major Item of Equipment (MIE). DOE project management reports indicate the NNSA has not yet achieved Critical Decision-1 (CD-1) for this MIE, despite the NNSA's budget justification that lists CD-1 as a fiscal year 2017 achievement. Rather, significant portions of the technology are reported to be at low technology readiness levels and need to be advanced prior to the issuance of CD-1. The recommendation includes $20,000,000 to continue to advance technologies needed for the MIE. The NNSA is directed to submit a project data sheet for the Advanced Sources and Detectors MIE with the scope, cost, and schedule for carrying out this project clearly presented in its fiscal year 2020 budget request. Stockpile Responsiveness Program.--The recommendation includes additional funding above the budget request for the congressionally-mandated Stockpile Responsiveness Program. Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) and High Yield.--The recommendation rejects the NNSA's request to discontinue major experimental activities within the ICF program. Funds provided to the ICF program support unique experimental platforms that help assess the state of the current stockpile and enable decisions on life extension programs without underground nuclear weapons testing. While progress in achieving ignition at the National Ignition Facility has been slow, the value of maintaining a robust research program in high energy density physics will continue to be recognized and strongly supported. To ensure that funds provided will be used to adequately maintain the NNSA's experimental capabilities as intended, the recommendation includes new funding controls within the ICF program for the National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the Z Pulsed Power Facility at Sandia National Laboratories, and the Omega Laser Facility at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics. Within funds for High Energy Density R&D, the recommendation includes funding for research and support activities at Los Alamos National Laboratory, target fabrication, and not less than $8,000,000 for the Nike Laser at the Naval Research Laboratory. While the Committee continues to support the full utilization of ICF experimental facilities, the Committee also recognizes the need to save costs to ensure adequate funding for high priority stockpile modernization activities. The NNSA is directed to pursue full cost recovery for all users at the National Ignition Facility as previously recommended by the Department of Defense Office of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation and to ensure that all users are transitioned to a full cost recovery model by fiscal year 2020. Advanced Simulation and Computing.--Within amounts for Advanced Simulation and Computing (ASC), the recommendation includes $20,000,000 to continue research on advanced memory technology to address future architecture technical challenges. The Committee is concerned that the increased costs of the Exascale Computing Initiative compared to previous high performance computing (HPC) efforts are not transparently presented because the NNSA's budget request contains inadequate detail on the cost of its HPC procurements. In its fiscal year 2020 budget request, the NNSA shall submit a budget justification for ASC that clearly details funding amounts requested for base research and development activities, operations, procurements, and the Exascale Computing Initiative. While the NNSA's next generation of HPC systems are major acquisitions, the Committee is concerned that the NNSA's procurement decisions have not been derived by conducting a thorough analysis of alternatives that will meet a set of clearly identified threshold requirements. The NNSA is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 60 days after the enactment of this Act an analysis of alternatives for the NNSA's HPC acquisitions that clearly maps future system requirements to stockpile needs, compares costs and benefits of various alternatives, and provides a justification for the NNSA's preferred alternative. The Committee directs the Comptroller General to undertake a review of the NNSA's management of the ASC program to evaluate the NNSA's process for setting requirements and evaluating alternatives for the ASC program and to identify the estimated costs of the NNSA's future systems compared to previous HPC acquisitions. INFRASTRUCTURE AND OPERATIONS Infrastructure and Operations provides funding for the base operations, maintenance, and recapitalization of NNSA facilities and infrastructure. The Committee recommends $3,188,594,000 for Infrastructure and Operations, $70,791,000 above fiscal year 2018 and $185,858,000 above the budget request. Within Infrastructure and Operations, the NNSA shall ensure that incremental funding needed to meet individual programmatic goals are fully accounted for within funds for the corresponding programmatic activity. The Committee notes that the NNSA has been requesting significant funding amounts for projects while they are still in the very early planning stages, in violation of the requirements in 50 U.S.C. 2746 that require the NNSA to complete a conceptual design before requesting funding for a major construction project. Maintenance and Repair of Facilities.--The Committee recommends $515,138,000, $150,138,000 above the budget request, to sustain momentum on reducing the backlog of deferred maintenance and to carry out cost accounting changes needed to ensure direct funding of maintenance at the NNSA's national laboratories and other sites. Recapitalization.--The Committee recommends $612,661,000, $71,973,000 above the budget request, to restore funding for the Recapitalization program to the fiscal year 2018 level. 19-D-650 Plutonium Production Capability, LANL.--The recommendation includes a new construction start for infrastructure upgrades needed to carry out the NNSA's plutonium mission at Los Alamos National Laboratory. 06-D-141 Uranium Processing Facility (UPF), Y-12.--The NNSA approved starting major construction activities for the Uranium Processing Facility project without having a certified and compliant earned value management system in place for the project to accurately track project performance. The Committee is also concerned that the Department does not have adequate capacity for project review that is independent of NNSA program personnel that are accountable for project performance. While the NNSA continues to request an increasingly large amount for the project, prior year funds have not been fully expended. The recommendation provides funding at the fiscal year 2018 enacted level. The Committee will monitor project performance via financial reporting of project commitments to determine future funding needs. 04-D-125 Chemistry and Metallurgy Research (CMR) Replacement Project, LANL.--As directed by Congress in the fiscal year 2018 Act and previous years, funding for the CMR Replacement Project shall be limited to that of the original mission need for the project, that is, to relocate existing analytic chemistry and materials characterization capabilities from the legacy CMR facility. SECURITY Secure Transportation Asset.--Within Secure Transportation Asset Operations and Equipment, the recommendation includes $10,000,000 above the budget request to expedite procurement of the next generation Mobile Guardian Transporter (MGT). The Committee is concerned that the NNSA's program to replace its aging nuclear weapons transporter fleet with the MGT is proceeding excessively slowly. The current transporters are far beyond their 20-year service life, yet the NNSA's program would carry out planning and design activities over the next six fiscal years and would not procure the first replacement unit until fiscal year 2025. The NNSA is directed to undertake a review of its MGT program and provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 120 days after the enactment of this Act a plan to carry out an expedited design and procurement program that will address its aging fleet in a more timely manner and that will better ensure that its weapons transportation programs continue to meet stringent safety and security standards. Physical Security Improvement Program.--The Committee recommends $30,000,000 to modernize and upgrade physical security systems at the NNSA sites that are nearing the end of design life. LEGACY CONTRACTOR PENSIONS The Committee provides $162,292,000 for payments into the legacy University of California contractor employee defined benefit pension plans. Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Appropriation, 2018................................... $1,999,219,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 1,862,825,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 1,902,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -97,219,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +39,175,000 The Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation account provides funding to programs of the National Nuclear Security Administration that prevent, counter, and respond to global nuclear threats. The recommendation includes $15,000,000 for the University Consortia for Nuclear Nonproliferation Research program and not less than $18,000,000 to enhance nonproliferation and emergency response training capabilities at the Department's national laboratories. New U.S. Nonproliferation Activities in Russia.--The recommendation includes no new funds to enter into contracts and agreements with Russia in fiscal year 2019, the same as fiscal year 2018 and the budget request. Commercial Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing.--In 1977, President Carter issued a presidential policy statement prohibiting the commercial reprocessing and recycling of plutonium. The Committee awaits submission of requirements in the fiscal year 2018 Act for the Department to investigate the status of this policy and provide a report to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress. DEFENSE NUCLEAR NONPROLIFERATION Funding for the Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation is provided across five programmatic areas: Global Material Security, Material Management and Minimization, Nonproliferation and Arms Control, Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation R&D, and Nonproliferation Construction. Material Management and Minimization.--The recommendation for Material Management and Minimization includes funding for Nuclear Material Removal, Material Disposition, and Laboratory and Partnership Support, consistent with the fiscal year 2018 Act. The NNSA is directed to utilize this budget structure in future budget requests. Within funds for Material Management and Minimization, the recommendation includes $30,000,000 to expedite the removal of one metric ton of plutonium from the state of South Carolina. The recommendation does not include funding requested to start related construction activities for the dilute and dispose alternative to MOX. The NNSA has yet to submit a legislative proposal or an independent life cycle cost estimate for its dilute and dispose program. Laboratory and Partnership Support.--The recommendation for Laboratory and Partnership Support includes $3,100,000 above the budget request to provide technical support to industry partners seeking to minimize the use of highly enriched uranium in Mo-99 production. Since the enactment of the American Medical Isotopes Production Act of 2012, the NNSA has invested $100,000,000 of taxpayer funding with the goal of fielding a stable, domestic commercial supply of Mo-99 without the use of highly enriched uranium, but has only made limited gains on that investment. Recent foreign facility outages have resulted in additional shortages, indicating the U.S. supply remains vulnerable to supply chain disruptions caused by aging production facilities. The recommendation includes an additional $20,000,000 for a new funding opportunity directed in the fiscal year 2018 Act. The Committee encourages the NNSA to utilize advice from other Department of Energy programs with experience in fielding advanced technologies to the commercial sector to better evaluate potential projects to ensure that additional funds are awarded to projects that are likely to provide a stable, long- term domestic supply of this important medical isotope. MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility.--The Committee recommends $335,000,000 to sustain the current pace of construction on the MOX facility in fiscal year 2019. The bill contains a provision to allow the Secretary of Energy to terminate the project if requirements in Section 3121(b) of the Fiscal Year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act are satisfied. Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development (DNN R&D).--The recommendation includes $7,500,000 for the research and development of technologies to advance stable isotope, actinides, and other radioisotope production using novel techniques to support nonproliferation goals, including identification and characterization of foreign nuclear weapons programs. Nonproliferation Fuels Development.--The recommendation includes separate funding to develop fuels to advance U.S. nonproliferation goals within DNN R&D. The NNSA is directed to utilize this budget structure in future budget requests. The recommendation includes up to $10,000,000 for research and development of low-enriched uranium fuels suitable for naval applications. The recommendation does not include funds to convert the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) at Idaho National Laboratory or the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The NNSA estimates its program to convert five research reactors will cost approximately $1,100,000,000 and that, even at this cost, the ATR and HFIR reactors would not be converted until at least the 2030s. These reactors and their fuels are located in highly secure facilities on Department of Energy sites that have safe storage for significant quantities of nuclear materials. With no plans to otherwise remove nuclear materials from those sites, there are few benefits to proceeding with a costly effort to convert those reactors. Rather than allocate limited defense funding to conversion, the recommendation prioritizes funding to extend the life of these facilities and to upgrade safety and security postures at those sites within the respective infrastructure funding lines. Use of Prior-Year Balances.--The NNSA has been slow to make progress on reducing the size of its prior-year balances. To offset fiscal year 2019 needs and to close out discontinued activities, the recommendation directs the use of $36,396,000 in prior-year balances within the following programs that have not received funding since fiscal year 2015: Elimination of Weapons Grade Plutonium Production in Russia, Global Threat Reduction Initiative, International Nuclear Materials Protection and Cooperation, Nonproliferation and Verification Research and Development, Nonproliferation and International Security, Russian Surplus Fissile Materials Disposition, Supporting Activities, U.S. Plutonium Disposition, U.S. Uranium Disposition, and Waste Solidification Building. NUCLEAR COUNTERTERRORISM AND INCIDENT RESPONSE The NNSA's Nuclear Counterterrorism and Incident Response programs respond to and mitigate nuclear and radiological incidents worldwide in order to defend the nation from the threat of nuclear terrorism. The Committee recommends $319,185,000. The Radiological Assistance Program (RAP) is a critical activity that plays a major role in our nation's ability to detect, deter, and respond to a domestic nuclear or radiological incident. The Committee supports the Department's efforts to modernize mission critical equipment that has exceeded its useful life. It is imperative that response teams possess the best available technology to carry out their missions. The Committee urges the Department to move forward expeditiously with the RAP critical equipment modernization and provide the Committee with a timeline for this effort. High priority equipment recapitalization needs for this program include hand-held, high resolution, spectroscopic measurement instrumentation which is used to specifically identify nuclear threat materials. LEGACY CONTRACTOR PENSIONS The Committee provides $28,640,000 for payments into the legacy University of California contractor employee defined benefit pension plans. Naval Reactors (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) Appropriation, 2018................................... $1,620,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 1,788,618,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 1,788,618,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +168,618,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Naval Reactors (NR) program is responsible for all aspects of naval nuclear propulsion from technology development through reactor operations to ultimate reactor plant disposal. The program provides for the design, development, testing, and evaluation of improved naval nuclear propulsion plants and reactor cores. The recommendation fully funds the request to develop the Columbia-Class submarine, previously identified as the Ohio-replacement submarine, and to refuel the S8G prototype, which is closely linked to the Columbia-Class submarine. Naval Reactors Development.--Within amounts for Naval Reactors Development, $85,500,000 is provided for Advanced Test Reactor Operations. Federal Salaries And Expenses Appropriation, 2018................................... $407,595,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 422,529,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 422,525,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +14,934,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Federal Salaries and Expenses account provides corporate planning and oversight for Defense Programs, Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, and Naval Reactors, including the NNSA field offices in New Mexico, Nevada, and California. The Department is directed to undertake a review of the manning for the NNSA's Office of General Counsel and the NNSA's Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs to determine whether those functions could be combined with the Department of Energy's Office of the General Counsel and the Department of Energy's Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs to eliminate duplication. The Department shall report the results of its review to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later 90 days after the enactment of this Act. The report shall include the Department's recommendations as well as potential savings in full time equivalent (FTE) NNSA employee allocations that the NNSA could otherwise assign to meet its needs for additional programmatic personnel under existing legislative caps. The review shall include consideration of transfer of Overseas Presence personnel that perform Department-wide duties and are funded via the Department's Working Capital Fund, but that currently count against the NNSA personnel caps on FTE staff. ENVIRONMENTAL AND OTHER DEFENSE ACTIVITIES Defense Environmental Cleanup Appropriation, 2018................................... $5,988,048,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 5,630,217,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 5,759,220,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -228,828,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +129,003,000 The Defense Environmental Cleanup account provides funding for identifying and reducing risks and managing waste at sites where the nation carried out defense-related nuclear research and production activities that resulted in radioactive, hazardous, and mixed waste contamination requiring remediation, stabilization, or some other cleanup action. While the Department's budget request for the Office of Environmental Management (EM) included increases at some sites, those increases were at the expense of other important cleanup activities at Hanford, Idaho, and Oak Ridge. The Committee's recommendation continues to fund a balanced approach that sustains the momentum of ongoing cleanup activities more consistently across all DOE cleanup sites. Not later than 15 days after the enactment of this Act, EM shall provide to the Committees of Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an updated project data sheet for each EM major construction project funded by this Act for which the Department listed a cost or schedule reporting element as ``TBD'' in its fiscal year 2019 budget request. Excess Facilities.--The recommendation includes additional one-time increases to accelerate the decontamination and decommissioning of certain high-risk excess facilities that were previously not slated for cleanup in the near term. Since the excess facilities projects funded in fiscal year 2018 are not shovel-ready, final cost estimates and schedules for how soon those efforts can be accomplished have not yet been developed. The Committee will monitor the progress of the accelerations funded in fiscal year 2018 to determine when and where additional funds can be executed on specific projects. Within amounts for OR Excess Facilities D&D, $15,000,000 is for demolition of Alpha-4 Building 9201-4 COLEX Process Equipment and $10,000,000 is for demolition of Building 9213. Within ID Excess Facilities D&D, $10,000,000 is provided for the D&D of excess facilities and infrastructure at Idaho National Laboratory. Within RL Excess Facilities D&D, EM shall commence work on high risk contaminated excess facilities at the Hanford Site identified in its Plan for Deactivation and Decommissioning of Nonoperational Defense Nuclear Facilities submitted to Congress in December 2016. In identifying new accelerations, EM should prioritize higher risk facilities identified as ``Tier I'' to take advantage of the current skilled workforce at the site. Hanford Site.--The recommendation includes funds above the budget request for the Richland Operations Office to support stable funding for general cleanup activities at the Hanford Site, to ensure expeditious completion of the remaining Columbia River Corridor work, and to prevent delays to existing and new Tri-Party Agreement milestones. Within the Office of River Protection, $15,000,000 is provided for the planning and conduct of a pilot plant demonstration project to validate commercial scale application of treatment, stabilization, transportation, and disposal of Hanford tank waste that includes, among other activities, filtration and ion-exchange of tank waste to qualify the pretreated waste stream as low-activity waste (LAW). The Department shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than September 30, 2019, a report that includes the lessons learned from the demonstration, estimated potential tank waste lifecycle cost and schedule savings, and recommendations, including alternatives for off-site commercial LAW treatment and disposal from an initial set of three Hanford tanks. Waste Treatment Plant (WTP).--The recommendation provides funding for the Waste Treatment Plant consistent with the reprogramming control points in the fiscal year 2018 Act, which better reflects the actual execution of the project. The Department is directed to submit its fiscal year 2020 budget request consistent with this budget structure. The Department is directed to resume full engineering design to resolve safety-related design issues for the High- Level Waste Treatment facility and the Pretreatment facility and shall report to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress before moving forward with any plans to place the High-Level Waste Treatment facility and the Pre- Treatment facility into preservation mode for an extended period of time. The Government Accountability Office recently produced a report that cast doubt on the Office of River Protection's ability to carry out oversight of its contractors' quality assurance programs for the WTP project because its organizational structure did not ensure the independence of its oversight division. To ensure that oversight has been effectively conducted and that quality assurance issues have been appropriately identified prior to startup, the Department is directed to contract with an outside, independent agent with expertise in quality assurance programs to review current quality assurance procedures and to determine the full extent to which problems exist in all WTP structures. Idaho Site.--Within amounts for Idaho, $5,000,000 is provided for maturing the application of technologies to retrieve and disposition remote-handled mixed low level radioactive waste. Savannah River Site.--Within available funds for Site Risk Management, $3,000,000 shall be to support the disposition of spent fuel from the High Flux Isotope Reactor. As directed in fiscal year 2018, EM shall not change cost sharing arrangements to reallocate site indirect costs from the NNSA to EM. The recommendation does not include additional funds for the Emergency Operations Center as EM has not yet completed a conceptual design for that project. Per 50 U.S.C. 2746, the Department is required to complete a conceptual design before requesting funding for a major construction project. The recommendation reallocates prior-year balances from Saltstone Disposal Unit 6 to fund additional needs of follow-on disposal unit projects at Savannah River. 19-D-710 Savannah River Security System Replacement.--The recommendation includes $10,000,000. The project to upgrade the security systems at H, L, and K area facilities is a major construction activity, and the Department is required to obtain congressional authorization for carrying out the project as it did for similar projects at the Nevada National Security Site, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and the Y-12 National Security Complex. Not later than 30 days after the enactment of this Act, EM shall submit a project data sheet that includes planned scope, cost estimates, and schedule for the upgrade project. Technology Development.--Within Technology Development and Deployment, $5,000,000 is provided for the National Spent Nuclear Fuel Program to address issues related to storing, transporting, processing, and disposing of DOE-owned and managed spent nuclear fuel. Within these amounts, EM shall utilize funding to address the need for additional assessments into material degradation that may occur as a result of multiple decades of EM spent nuclear fuel storage facilities, nuclear material measuring and monitoring in DOE storage systems, and other activities recommendation by the U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board in its 2017 report on the Management and Disposal of U.S. Department of Energy Spent Nuclear Fuel. Also within Technology Development and Deployment, up to $5,000,000 shall be for research and development projects to improve worker safety and the Department is encouraged to consider exploring options to develop and deploy wearable robotic devices to enhance worker safety. The Committee encourages the Department to continue a robust research effort to advance nuclear filtration testing and the development of state of the art containment ventilation systems. Other Defense Activities Appropriation, 2018................................... $840,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 853,300,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 870,300,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +30,300,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +17,000,000 The Other Defense Activities account provides funding for the Office of Environment, Health, Safety and Security; the Office of Independent Enterprise Assessments; the Office of Legacy Management; Specialized Security Activities; Defense Related Administrative Support; and the Office of Hearings and Appeals. Within the Office of Nuclear Safety, the Committee directs the Department to continue its research into developing an advanced simulation tool that can more realistically predict the nonlinear response of critical nuclear facilities during earthquakes. With many mission critical facilities in seismically active regions, this research is in our nation's vital interest. The agreement includes $17,000,000 above the budget request for targeted investments to defend the U.S. energy sector against the evolving threat of cyber and other attacks in support of the resiliency of the nation's electric grid and energy infrastructure. Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal Appropriation, 2018................................... $- - - Budget estimate, 2019................................. 30,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 30,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +30,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal appropriation was established by the Congress for activities related to the disposal of defense high-level waste from the Department's atomic energy defense activities in lieu of payment from the Department of Energy into the Nuclear Waste Fund. POWER MARKETING ADMINISTRATIONS Management of the federal power marketing functions was transferred from the Department of the Interior to the Department of Energy in the Department of Energy Organization Act of 1977 (Public Law 95-91). These functions include the power marketing activities authorized under section 5 of the Flood Control Act of 1944 and all other functions of the Bonneville Power Administration, the Southeastern Power Administration, the Southwestern Power Administration, and the power marketing functions of the Bureau of Reclamation that have been transferred to the Western Area Power Administration. All four power marketing administrations give preference in the sale of their power to publicly-owned and cooperatively- owned utilities. Operations of the Bonneville Power Administration are financed principally under the authority of the Federal Columbia River Transmission System Act (Public Law 93-454). Under this Act, the Bonneville Power Administration is authorized to use its revenues to finance the costs of its operations, maintenance, and capital construction, and to sell bonds to the Treasury if necessary to finance any additional capital program requirements. Beginning in fiscal year 2011, power revenues from the Southeastern, Southwestern, and Western Area Power Administrations, which were previously classified as mandatory offsetting receipts, were reclassified as discretionary offsetting collections to directly offset annual expenses. The capital expenses of Southwestern and Western Area Power Administrations are appropriated annually. Beginning in fiscal year 2018, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) changed its scoring of the power marketing administrations (PMAs). The change stemmed from information on execution of language regarding purchase power and wheeling expenses and offsetting collections included in this bill each year. The Committee appreciates the PMAs' and their customers' efforts to provide additional financial information. To address the increased score in the short-term, the recommendation reduces the maximum level for purchase power and wheeling below the budget request. The Committee will continue to work with the PMAs, their customers, and CBO to resolve scoring issues appropriately. Organizational Reporting.--The Department recently announced a change in organizational structure moving the point of reporting for the PMAs to the Assistant Secretary for Electricity from the Deputy Secretary. The Committee has heard concerns that the realignment may indicate an intention to change the substantive relationship between the Department and each PMA, including actions related to PMA leadership decisions, use of the PMAs and their resources, and ratemaking; the Committee does not support such a change. The PMAs have unique statutory requirements, and the Committee expects the Department to adhere to and not expand upon those requirements. Bonneville Power Administration Fund The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is the Department of Energy's marketing agency for electric power in the Pacific Northwest. Bonneville provides electricity to a 300,000 square mile service area in the Columbia River drainage basin. Bonneville markets the power from federal hydropower projects in the Northwest, as well as power from non-federal generating facilities in the region, and exchanges and markets surplus power with Canada and California. The Committee encourages the Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation to work with the BPA on efforts to drive down costs and promote BPA's long-term competitiveness. Assuring BPA competitiveness is important not only for BPA's operation, but to ensure Treasury repayment and assist the Corps and Reclamation in meeting their core functions (including navigation, flood control, water supply, and irrigation). The Committee is pleased that the operating agencies have taken important short-term steps on cost control and encourages efforts to make long-term improvements. The Committee encourages the Corps and Bureau to work with BPA to optimize investment in the federal hydropower system, including prioritization of investments, effective project management approaches, including efficient procurement of equipment and services, and ensuring the cost effectiveness of any proposed higher capital spending levels for hydropower facilities. In addition, the Committee urges the operating agencies to strongly consider a review of the allocation of project costs including joint costs for the projects in the Federal Columbia River Power System and a review of the authorities allowing changes to such allocations, and to explore matters such as: (1) a more flexible workforce and business-oriented organization; (2) increased reliance on system automation as appropriate; (3) strategies to get labor costs stable or reduced long-term; and (4) further review of costs of conducting the new environmental impact statement for Columbia River System Operations to determine what costs are truly incremental. Operation and Maintenance, Southeastern Power Administration Budget estimate, 2019................................. $- - - Appropriation, 2018................................... - - - Recommended, 2019..................................... - - - Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Southeastern Power Administration (SEPA) markets hydroelectric power produced at 22 Corps Projects in 11 states in the southeast. Southeastern does not own or operate any transmission facilities, so it contracts to ``wheel'' its power using the existing transmission facilities of area utilities. Operation and Maintenance, Southwestern Power Administration Appropriation, 2018................................... $11,400,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 10,400,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 10,400,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -1,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Southwestern Power Administration (SWPA) markets hydroelectric power produced at 24 Corps projects in the six- state area of Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas. SWPA operates and maintains 1,380 miles of transmission lines, along with supporting substations and communications sites. Construction, Rehabilitation, Operation and Maintenance, Western Area Power Administration Appropriation, 2018................................... $93,372,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 89,372,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 89,372,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -4,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Western Area Power Administration is responsible for marketing the electric power generated by the Bureau of Reclamation, the Corps, and the International Boundary and Water Commission. Western also operates and maintains a system of transmission lines nearly 17,000 miles long. Western provides electricity to 15 western states over a service area of 1.3 million square miles. Falcon and Amistad Operating and Maintenance Fund Appropriation, 2018................................... $228,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 228,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 228,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - Falcon Dam and Amistad Dam are two international water projects located on the Rio Grande River between Texas and Mexico. Power generated by hydroelectric facilities at these two dams is sold to public utilities through the Western Area Power Administration. The Foreign Relations Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 created the Falcon and Amistad Operating and Maintenance Fund to defray the costs of operation, maintenance, and emergency activities. The Fund is administered by the Western Area Power Administration for use by the Commissioner of the U.S. Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission. The budget request includes a proposal for authority to accept contributed funds in fiscal year 2019 for use in fulfilling duties associated with the Falcon and Amistad Dams. This authority would be equivalent to the authority used throughout the Western Area Power Administration to secure alternative financing. The Committee includes this proposal. The Committee continues to hear concerns that additional infrastructure investments are necessary at these dams. The fiscal year 2018 Act directed Western to coordinate with the International Boundary and Water Commission to determine a plan for addressing any needed improvements and brief the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act on progress towards finalizing a plan. The Committee reiterates this direction. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission SALARIES AND EXPENSES Appropriation, 2018................................... $367,600,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 369,900,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 369,900,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +2,300,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - REVENUES Appropriation, 2018................................... $-367,600,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. -369,900,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... -369,900,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -2,300,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Committee recommendation for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is $369,900,000, the same as the budget request. Revenues for FERC are established at a rate equal to the budget authority, resulting in a net appropriation of $0. The fiscal year 2018 Act directed FERC to analyze electricity transmission investment incentives in rate treatments to determine ways to encourage efficient investment for critical infrastructure security and to report this analysis to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 180 days after the enactment of the Act. The Committee encourages FERC to meet the provided deadline. Resilience.--California recently experienced one of its worst fire seasons in modern history, resulting in severe challenges to the well-being of utilities and the electric system in that state. The Committee is concerned that the safe, reliable, and affordable delivery of electricity to consumers could be compromised by the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters--including hurricanes, floods, and wildfires. The Committee directs the Federal Energy Regulatory Committee (FERC) to continue working with industry on cost- effective ways within its jurisdiction to increase the resilience of the electric transmission system. These efforts shall include just and reasonable cost-recovery mechanisms for the development of resilient infrastructure and system repair and restoration, as well as practices to better prepare the nation's bulk power system for natural disasters. FERC shall study the impacts and effects of strict liability doctrines on utilities' ability to invest in the reliability and resilience of transmission systems. FERC is directed to report its findings and recommendations to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress, as well as the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act. COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION The Committee's detailed funding recommendations for programs in Title III are contained in the following table: [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] GENERAL PROVISIONS--DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (INCLUDING TRANSFERS OF FUNDS) The bill includes a provision that prohibits the use of funds provided in this title to initiate requests for proposals, other solicitations or arrangements for new programs or activities that have not yet been approved and funded by the Congress; requires notification or a report for certain funding actions; prohibits funds to be used for certain multi-year ``Energy Programs'' activities without notification; prohibits the obligation or expenditure of funds provided in this title through a reprogramming of funds except in certain circumstances; and permits the transfer and merger of unexpended balances of prior appropriations with appropriation accounts established in this bill. The bill continues a provision that authorizes intelligence activities of the Department of Energy for purposes of section 504 of the National Security Act of 1947. The bill continues a provision that prohibits the use of funds in this title for capital construction of high hazard nuclear facilities, unless certain independent oversight is conducted. The bill continues a provision that prohibits the use of funds provided in this title to approve critical decision-2 or critical decision-3 for certain construction projects, unless a separate independent cost estimate has been developed for that critical decision. The bill includes a provision limiting the amount of funds to be used for the working capital fund. The bill continues a provision restricting certain activities in the Russian Federation. The bill continues a provision regarding management of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The bill includes a provision restricting the use of funds for the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility Project. The bill includes a provision regarding authority to release refined petroleum product from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). Instead of engaging the Congress on developing appropriate legislation for a regional refined petroleum product reserve, the previous Administration chose to establish the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve (NGSR) under the existing authorities of the SPR. As such, the NGSR is subject to national impact thresholds for releases, making it operationally ineffective as a regional product reserve. The Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives is evaluating the proper configuration of the SPR in light of current circumstances. This evaluation will be informed, in part, by an assessment of the SPR being undertaken by the Government Accountability Office. While this work is ongoing, this bill includes temporary authority to ensure the operational effectiveness of the NGSR. The bill includes a provision regarding a report on the potential of locating a reprocessing or recycling facility for spent nuclear fuel near the Yucca Mountain site. TITLE IV--INDEPENDENT AGENCIES Appalachian Regional Commission Appropriation, 2018................................... $155,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 152,000,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 155,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. +3,000,000 The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a regional economic development agency established in 1965 by the Appalachian Regional Development Act (P.L. 89-4). It is composed of the governors of the 13 Appalachian States and a federal co-chair appointed by the President. Each year, the ARC provides funding for several hundred projects in the Appalachian Region in areas such as business development, education and job training, telecommunications, infrastructure, community development, housing, and transportation. To diversify and enhance regional business development, $10,000,000 is provided to continue the program of high-speed broadband deployment in distressed counties within the Central Appalachian region that have been most negatively impacted by the downturn in the coal industry. This funding shall be in addition to the 30 percent directed to distressed counties. The Committee is concerned that many rural areas in the Central Appalachian region continue to face a variety of significant and detrimental health issues. The Committee directs the ARC to engage in a partnership with a rural consortium that includes academic entities, rural health care providers, and economic development entities in order to develop information and data on overall agricultural and human health issues, how economic distress can be overcome through addressing these issues, and strategies for implementing solutions. The ARC is directed to provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than one year after the enactment of this Act a report describing activities in support of this effort. Within available funds, the Committee directs $50,000,000 for activities in support of the POWER+ Plan. The ARC targets 50 percent of its funds to distressed counties or distressed areas in the Appalachian region. The Committee continues to believe this should be the primary focus of the ARC. Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board SALARIES AND EXPENSES Appropriation, 2018................................... $31,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 31,243,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 31,243,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +243,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) was created by the fiscal year 1989 National Defense Authorization Act. The Board, composed of five members appointed by the President, provides advice and recommendations to the Secretary of Energy regarding public health and safety issues at the Department's defense nuclear facilities. The DNFSB is responsible for reviewing and evaluating the content and implementation of the standards relating to the design, construction, operation, and decommissioning of the Department of Energy's defense nuclear facilities. Delta Regional Authority SALARIES AND EXPENSES Appropriation, 2018................................... $25,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 2,500,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 15,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -10,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +12,500,000 The Delta Regional Authority (DRA) is a federal-state partnership established by the Delta Regional Authority Act of 2000 (P.L. 106-554) that serves a 252-county/parish area in an eight-state region near the mouth of the Mississippi River. Led by a federal co-chair and the governors of each participating state, the DRA is designed to remedy severe and chronic economic distress by stimulating economic development and fostering partnerships that will have a positive impact on the region's economy. The DRA seeks to help local communities leverage other federal and state programs that are focused on basic infrastructure development, transportation improvements, business development, and job training services. Under federal law, at least 75 percent of appropriated funds must be invested in distressed counties and parishes, with 50 percent of the funds for transportation and basic infrastructure improvements. The budget request proposed to eliminate funding for the DRA. The recommendation does not include funds to shut down the DRA. Denali Commission Appropriation, 2018................................... $30,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 7,300,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 15,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -15,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +7,700,000 The Denali Commission is a regional development agency established by the Denali Commission Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-277) to provide critical utilities, infrastructure, health services, and economic support throughout Alaska. To ensure that local communities have a stake in Commission-funded projects, local cost-share requirements for construction and equipment have been established for both distressed and non-distressed communities. The budget request proposed to eliminate funding for the Denali Commission. The recommendation does not include funds to shut down the Denali Commission. Northern Border Regional Commission Appropriation, 2018................................... $15,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 850,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 12,000,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -3,000,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +11,150,000 The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (P.L.110- 234) authorized the establishment of the Northern Border Regional Commission as a federal-state partnership intended to address the economic development needs of distressed portions of the four-state region of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. The budget request proposed to eliminate funding for the Northern Border Regional Commission. The recommendation does not include funds to shut down the Northern Border Regional Commission. Southeast Crescent Regional Commission Appropriation, 2018................................... $250,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. - - - Recommended, 2019..................................... 250,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. +250,000 The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (P.L. 110- 234) authorized the establishment of the Southeast Crescent Regional Commission as a federal-state partnership intended to address the economic development needs of distressed portions of the seven-state region in the southeastern United States not already served by a regional development agency. Nuclear Regulatory Commission SALARIES AND EXPENSES Appropriation, 2018................................... $909,137,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 958,050,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 953,050,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +43,913,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. -5,000,000 REVENUES Appropriation, 2018................................... $-779,768,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. -805,019,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... -763,640,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +16,128,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +41,379,000 NET APPROPRIATION Appropriation, 2018................................... $129,301,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 153,031,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 189,410,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +60,109,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. +36,379,000 The Committee recommendation for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) provides the following amounts: (Dollars in thousands) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FY 2018 FY 2019 Account enacted request Cmte. rec. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nuclear Reactor Safety.......................................... $466,655 $474,767 $474,767 Nuclear Materials and Waste Safety.............................. 113,145 110,609 110,609 Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste............................. 27,980 25,393 25,393 Integrated University Program................................... 15,000 0 15,000 Yucca licensing................................................. 0 47,700 47,700 Corporate Support............................................... 301,357 299,581 299,581 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOTAL, Program Level.................................... 924,137 958,050 973,050 Savings and Carryover........................................... -15,000 - - - -20,000 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOTAL................................................... 909,137 958,050 953,050 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The recommendation includes $20,000,000 in savings for fiscal year 2019 that was not included in the budget request. The Committee directs the Commission to apply these savings in a manner that continues to ensure the protection of public health and safety and maintains the effectiveness of the current inspection program. Since the Commission has already collected fees corresponding to these activities in prior years, these funds are not included within the fee base calculation for determining authorized revenues and does not provide authority to collect additional offsetting receipts for their use. Within available funds, not more than $9,500,000 is included for salaries, travel, and other support costs for the Office of the Commission. These salaries and expenses shall include only salaries and benefit and travel costs, and not general and administrative and infrastructure costs. The Committee directs that these funds are to be jointly managed by the Commissioners, and the bill requires that the use and expenditure of these salaries and expenses shall only be by a majority vote of the Commission. The NRC shall continue to include a breakout and explanation of the Commission salaries and expenses in its annual budget requests. If the Commission wishes to change the composition of the funds requested for its salaries and expenses in future years, it must do so in an annual budget request or through a reprogramming. The recommendation directs $47,700,000 to continue adjudication of the Yucca Mountain license application. Integrated University Program.--The Committee recommendation includes $15,000,000 to provide financial support for the university education programs, as the Commission continues to be reliant on a pipeline of highly trained nuclear engineers and scientists and benefits substantially from this university program. Of this amount, $5,000,000 is to be used for grants to support research projects that do not align with programmatic missions, but are critical to maintaining the discipline of nuclear science and engineering. Transformation Initiative.--The Committee commends the NRC for launching its Transformation Initiative in January. This Initiative is intended to enhance the NRC's ability to evaluate and regulate new and novel technologies--such as accident tolerant fuels, new materials and new manufacturing approaches, big data, digital instrumentation and controls, and small modular and advanced reactor designs--that will challenge the NRC's current regulatory framework. As such, the NRC's success in this initiative will be essential to establishing a pathway for the efficient regulation of future nuclear technologies in the United States. The Committee expects the NRC budget request for fiscal year 2020 to include concrete proposals developed under the Initiative and to reflect savings achieved from their implementation. Accident Tolerant Fuel.--Development and deployment of accident tolerant fuel (ATF) holds great promise in improving both the safety and economics of the nation's existing reactor fleet. To develop an efficient framework for the qualification and regulation of these new fuels in support of their deployment by the mid-2020s, the NRC must ensure that its work is complementary to and not unnecessarily duplicative of the efforts of the Department of Energy, National Laboratories, and fuel developers. Not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, the NRC shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a plan describing the NRC's activities with respect to the testing of materials, the development of consensus standards, and the validation of computer codes and how these activities will be integrated with the work of external organizations. The plan shall describe how the Advanced Test Reactor, the Transient Reactor Test Facility, and the Halden Reactor are necessary to support these efforts. Digital Instrumentation and Control.--The future of commercial nuclear power depends, in part, on the NRC's ability to keep pace with innovation and technological developments. Although the NRC has demonstrated its capacity to adapt to new technology and innovation in its decision to issue a construction permit for a first-of-a-kind medical isotope production facility, this adaptive thinking is not evident in the NRC's work on the licensing of digital systems for nuclear safety-related applications, where the agency remains mired in unresolved complexity while the obsolesce issues for the U.S. nuclear fleet grow more and more urgent. Digital systems serve vital safety functions throughout the aviation and military sectors. Not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act, the NRC shall provide to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a report describing the approaches to permitting the use of digital instrumentation and control in safety applications outside of nuclear, discussing whether these approaches would be acceptable in nuclear applications, and if not, explaining why not. Budget Execution Plan.--The Commission shall provide a specific budget execution plan to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress not later than 30 days after the enactment of this Act. The plan shall include details at the product line level within each of the control points. Rulemaking.--The Commission shall list all rulemaking activities planned, to include their priority, schedule, and actions taken to adhere to the backfit rule, in the annual budget request and the semi-annual report to Congress on licensing and regulatory activities. Reporting Requirements.--The Committee directs the Commission to continue to provide quarterly reports on licensing goals and right-sizing commitments, as described in the explanatory statement for P.L. 114-113. Organization Optimization.--In fiscal year 2018, the Commission was directed to submit a report on actions taken to improve the fidelity of the agency estimates of necessary FTE levels and to optimize the structure of the agency over the next five years. The Committee reaffirms this direction and may have additional guidance after review of the report. OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL GROSS APPROPRIATION Appropriation, 2018................................... $12,859,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 12,609,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 12,609,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -250,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - REVENUES Appropriation, 2018................................... $-10,555,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. -10,355,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... -10,355,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... +200,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - NET APPROPRIATION Appropriation, 2018................................... $2,304,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 2,254,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 2,254,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... -50,000 Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Committee has included $1,103,000 within this appropriation for the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board for Inspector General services from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Inspector General. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board SALARIES AND EXPENSES Appropriation, 2018................................... $3,600,000 Budget estimate, 2019................................. 3,600,000 Recommended, 2019..................................... 3,600,000 Comparison: Appropriation, 2018............................... - - - Budget estimate, 2019............................. - - - The Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board (NWTRB) was established by the 1987 amendments to the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 to provide independent technical oversight of the Department of Energy's nuclear waste disposal program. The Committee expects the NWTRB to continue its active engagement with the Department and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on issues involving nuclear waste disposal. GENERAL PROVISIONS--INDEPENDENT AGENCIES The bill continues a provision requiring the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to fully comply with Congressional requests for information. The bill continues a provision regarding the circumstances in which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission may reprogram funds. TITLE V--GENERAL PROVISIONS The bill continues a provision that prohibits the use of funds provided in this Act to, in any way, directly or indirectly influence congressional action on any legislation or appropriation matters pending before the Congress, other than to communicate to Members of Congress as described in section 1913 of Title 18, United States Code. The bill continues a provision consolidating the transfer authorities into and out of accounts funded by this Act. No additional transfer authority is implied or conveyed by this provision. For the purposes of this provision, the term ``transfer'' shall mean the shifting of all or part of the budget authority in one account to another. The bill continues a provision prohibiting funds in contravention of E.O. 12898 of February 11, 1994, regarding environmental justice. The bill includes a provision prohibiting funds in this Act from being used to maintain or establish computer networks unless such networks block the viewing, downloading, or exchange of pornography. The bill includes a provision prohibiting the use of funds to further implementation of components of the National Ocean Policy developed under E.O. 13547. The bill includes a provision prohibiting the use of funds to operate the Federal Columbia River Power System in a manner inconsistent with the Army Corps of Engineers' 2017 Fish Operations Plan. The bill includes a provision prohibiting the use of funds for the removal of any federally-owned or operated dam unless the removal was previously authorized by Congress. The bill continues a provision prohibiting funds in this Act from being used to close the Yucca Mountain license application process or for actions that would remove the possibility that Yucca Mountain might be an option in the future. The bill includes a provision regarding the spending reduction account. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES REPORT REQUIREMENTS The following items are included in accordance with various requirements of the Rules of the House of Representatives. Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the following is a statement of general performance goals and objectives for which this measure authorizes funding: The Committee on Appropriations considers program performance, including a program's success in developing and attaining outcome-related goals and objectives, in developing funding recommendations. Transfer of Funds Pursuant to clause 3(f)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the following is submitted describing the transfer of funds provided in the accompanying bill. TITLE I--CORPS OF ENGINEERS--CIVIL Under section 103, ``General Provisions, Corps of Engineers--Civil'', $5,400,000 under the heading ``Operation and Maintenance'' may be transferred to the Fish and Wildlife Service to mitigate for fisheries lost due to Corps projects. TITLE II--BUREAU OF RECLAMATION Under ``Water and Related Resources'', $67,393,000 is available for transfer to the Upper Colorado River Basin Fund and $5,551,000 is available for transfer to the Lower Colorado River Basin Development Fund. Such funds as may be necessary may be advanced to the Colorado River Dam Fund. The amounts of transfers may be increased or decreased within the overall appropriation under the heading. Under ``California Bay Delta Restoration'', such sums as may be necessary to carry out authorized purposes may be transferred to appropriate accounts of other participating federal agencies. TITLE III--DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Under ``Atomic Energy Defense Activities--National Nuclear Security Administration--Naval Reactors'', $85,500,000 shall be transferred to ``Department of Energy--Energy Programs--Nuclear Energy'' for the Advanced Test Reactor. Under section 301, ``General Provisions--Department of Energy'', unexpended balances of prior appropriations provided for activities in this Act may be transferred to appropriation accounts for such activities established pursuant to this title. Balances so transferred may be merged with funds in the applicable established accounts and thereafter may be accounted for as one fund for the same time period as originally enacted. Disclosure of Earmarks and Congressionally Directed Spending Items Neither the bill nor the report contains any congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in clause 9 of rule XXI. Changes in the Application of Existing Law Pursuant to clause 3(f)(1)(A) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the following statements are submitted describing the effect of provisions in the accompanying bill which directly or indirectly change the application of existing law. TITLE I--CORPS OF ENGINEERS Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Investigations, providing for detailed studies and plans and specifications of projects prior to construction. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Investigations, providing for a limited number of new starts. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Construction, stating that funds can be used for the construction of river and harbor, flood and storm damage reduction, shore protection, aquatic ecosystem restoration, and related projects authorized by law, and for detailed studies and plans and specifications of such projects. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Construction, permitting the use of funds from the Inland Waterways Trust Fund and the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Construction, providing for a limited number of new starts. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Mississippi River and Tributaries, permitting the use of funds from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund. Language has been included under the Corps of Engineers, Operation and Maintenance, stating that funds can be used for: the operation, maintenance, and care of existing river and harbor, flood and storm damage reduction, aquatic ecosystem restoration, and related projects authorized by law; providing security for infrastructure owned or operated by the Corps, including administrative buildings and laboratories; maintaining authorized harbor channels provided by a State, municipality, or other public agency that serve essential navigation needs of general commerce; surveying and charting northern and northwestern lakes and connecting waters; clearing and straightening channels; and removing obstructions to navigation. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Operation and Maintenance, permitting the use of funds from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund; providing for the use of funds from a special account for resource protection, research, interpretation, and maintenance activities at outdoor recreation areas; and allowing use of funds to cover the cost of operation and maintenance of dredged material disposal facilities for which fees have been collected. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Operation and Maintenance, providing that one percent of the total amount of funds provided for each of the programs, projects, or activities funded under the Operation and Maintenance heading shall not be allocated to a field operating activity until the fourth quarter of the fiscal year and permitting the use of these funds for emergency activities as determined by the Chief of Engineers to be necessary and appropriate. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Expenses, regarding support of the Humphreys Engineer Support Center Activity, the Institute for Water Resources, the United States Army Engineer Research and Development Center, and the United States Army Corps of Engineers Finance Center. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Expenses, providing that funds are available for official reception and representation expenses. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Expenses, prohibiting the use of other funds in Title I of this Act for the activities funded in Expenses. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, Expenses, permitting any Flood Control and Coastal Emergency appropriation to be used to fund the supervision and general administration of emergency operations, repairs, and other activities in response to any flood, hurricane or other natural disaster. Language has been included to provide for funding for the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 101, providing that none of the funds may be available for obligation or expenditure through a reprogramming of funds except in certain circumstances. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 102, prohibiting the execution of any contract for a program, project or activity which commits funds in excess of the amount appropriated (to include funds reprogrammed under section 101) that remain unobligated. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 103, providing for transfer authority to the Fish and Wildlife Service for mitigation for lost fisheries. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 104, prohibiting certain dredged material disposal activities. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 105, prohibiting any acquisition that is not consistent with a certain federal regulation. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 106, prohibiting certain activities at a Corps of Engineers project. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 107, prohibiting requirement of a permit for the discharge of dredged or fill material under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act for certain activities. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 108, repealing a certain rule under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Language has been included under Corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 109, allowing the possession of firearms at water resources development projects under certain circumstances. Language has been included under corps of Engineers, General Provisions, section 110, prohibiting funds for a new hopper dredge. TITLE II--DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, Water and Related Resources, providing that funds are available for fulfilling federal responsibilities to Native Americans and for grants to and cooperative agreements with State and local governments and Indian tribes. Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, Water and Related Resources, allowing fund transfers within the overall appropriation to the Upper Colorado River Basin Fund and the Lower Colorado River Basin Development Fund; providing that such sums as necessary may be advanced to the Colorado River Dam Fund; and, transfers may be increased or decreased within the overall appropriation. Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, Water and Related Resources, providing for funds to be derived from the Reclamation Fund or the special fee account established by 16 U.S.C. 6806; that funds contributed under 43 U.S.C. 395 by non-federal entities shall be available for expenditure; and that funds advanced under 43 U.S.C. 397a are to be credited to the Water and Related Resources account and available for expenditure. Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, Water and Related Resources, providing that funds may be used for high priority projects carried out by the Youth Conservation Corps, as authorized by 16 U.S.C. 1706. Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, Central Valley Project Restoration Fund, directing the Bureau of Reclamation to assess and collect the full amount of additional mitigation and restoration payments authorized by section 3407(d) of Public Law 102-575. Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, Central Valley Project Restoration Fund, providing that none of the funds under the heading may be used for the acquisition or lease of water for in-stream purposes if the water is already committed to in-stream purposes by a court order adopted by consent or decree. Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, California Bay-Delta Restoration, permitting the transfer of funds to appropriate accounts of other participating federal agencies to carry out authorized programs; allowing funds made available under this heading to be used for the federal share of the costs of the CALFED Program management; and requiring that CALFED implementation be carried out with clear performance measures demonstrating concurrent progress in achieving the goals and objectives of the program. Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, Policy and Administration, providing that funds are to be derived from the Reclamation Fund and prohibiting the use of any other appropriation in the Act for activities budgeted as policy and administration expenses. Language has been included under Bureau of Reclamation, Administrative Provision, providing for the purchase of motor vehicles for replacement. Language has been included under General Provisions, Department of the Interior, section 201, providing that none of the funds may be available for obligation or expenditure through a reprogramming of funds except in certain circumstances. Language has been included under General Provisions, Department of the Interior, section 202, regarding the San Luis Unit and the Kesterson Reservoir in California. Language has been included under General Provisions, Department of the Interior, section 203, regarding the use of diversion structures at a Bureau of Reclamation project. Language has been included under General Provisions, Department of the Interior, section 204, regarding a feasibility study. Language has been included under General Provisions, Department of the Interior, section 205, prohibiting funds to implement the San Joaquin River Restoration program. Language has been included under General Provisions, Department of the Interior, section 206, prohibiting funds to purchase water in certain circumstances. Language has been included under General Provisions, Department of the Interior, section 207, regarding pumped storage hydropower development. TITLE III--DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Language has been included under Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment. Language has been included under Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment. Language has been included under Nuclear Energy for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment. Language has been included under Fossil Energy Research and Development for the acquisition of interest, including defeasible and equitable interest in any real property or any facility or for plant or facility acquisition or expansion, and for conducting inquires, technological investigations, and research concerning the extraction, processing, use and disposal of mineral substances without objectionable social and environmental costs under 30 U.S.C. 3, 1602 and 1603. Language has been included under the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves, permitting the use of unobligated balances. Language has been included under the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, directing the Secretary of Energy to draw down and sell crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum and providing that the proceeds be deposited in the Energy Security and Infrastructure Modernization Fund for use in carrying out the Life Extension II project. Language has been included under Science providing for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment; and for the purchase of motor vehicles and an airplane. Language has been included under Nuclear Waste Disposal for the acquisition of real property or facility construction or expansion. Language has been included under Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program crediting fees collected pursuant to section 1702(h) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 as offsetting collections to this account and making fees collected under section 1702(h) in excess of the appropriated amount unavailable for expenditure until appropriated. Language has been included under Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program prohibiting the subordination of certain interests. Language has been included under Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program rescinding subsidy amounts for the cost of loan guarantees. Language has been included under Departmental Administration providing for the hire of passenger vehicles and for official reception and representation expenses. Language has been included under Departmental Administration providing, notwithstanding the provisions of the Anti-Deficiency Act, such additional amounts as necessary to cover increases in the estimated amount of cost of work for others, as long as such increases are offset by revenue increases of the same or greater amounts. Language has been included under Departmental Administration, notwithstanding 31 U.S.C. 3302, and consistent with the authorization in Public Law 95-238, to permit the Department of Energy to use revenues to offset appropriations. The appropriations language for this account reflects the total estimated program funding to be reduced as revenues are received. Language has been included under Weapons Activities for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment. Language has been included under Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment and other incidental expenses. Language has been included under Naval Reactors for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment, facilities, and facility expansion and for the purchase of aircraft. Language has been included under Naval Reactors transferring certain funds to Nuclear Energy. Language has been included under Federal Salaries and Expenses providing funding for official reception and representation expenses. Language has been included under Defense Environmental Cleanup for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment; and for the purchase of passenger vehicles. Language has been included under Other Defense Activities for the purchase, construction, and acquisition of plant and capital equipment. Language has been included under Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal for the acquisition of real property or facility construction or expansion. Language has been included under Bonneville Power Administration Fund providing funding for official reception and representation expenses and precluding any new direct loan obligations. Language has been included under Southeastern Power Administration providing funds for official reception and representation expenses. Language has been included under Southeastern Power Administration providing that, notwithstanding 31 U.S.C. 3302 and 16 U.S.C. 825s, amounts collected from the sale of power and related services shall be credited to the account as discretionary offsetting collections and remain available until expended for the sole purpose of funding the annual expenses of the Southeastern Power Administration; amounts collected to recover purchase power and wheeling expenses shall be credited to the account as offsetting collections and remain available until expended for the sole purpose of making purchase power and wheeling expenditures. Language has been included under Southwestern Power Administration providing funds for official reception and representation expenses. Language has been included under Southwestern Power Administration providing that, notwithstanding 31 U.S.C. 3302 and 16 U.S.C. 825s, amounts collected from the sale of power and related services shall be credited to the account as discretionary offsetting collections and remain available until expended for the sole purpose of funding the annual expenses of the Southwestern Power Administration; amounts collected to recover purchase power and wheeling expenses shall be credited to the account as offsetting collections and remain available until expended for the sole purpose of making purchase power and wheeling expenditures. Language has been included under Construction, Rehabilitation, Operation and Maintenance, Western Area Power Administration, providing funds for official reception and representation expenses. Language has been included under Construction, Rehabilitation, Operation and Maintenance, Western Area Power Administration providing that, notwithstanding 31 U.S.C. 3302, 16 U.S.C. 825s, and 43 U.S.C. 392a, amounts collected from the sale of power and related services shall be credited to the account as discretionary offsetting collections and remain available until expended for the sole purpose of funding the annual expenses of the Western Area Power Administration; amounts collected to recover purchase power and wheeling expenses shall be credited to the account as offsetting collections and remain available until expended for the sole purpose of making purchase power and wheeling expenditures. Language has been included under Falcon and Amistad Operating and Maintenance Fund providing that, notwithstanding 68 Stat. 255 and 31 U.S.C. 3302, amounts collected from the sale of power and related services shall be credited to the account as discretionary offsetting collections and remain available until expended for the sole purpose of funding the annual expenses of the hydroelectric facilities of those dams and associated Western Area Power Administration activities. Language has been included under Falcon and Amistad Operating and Maintenance Fund providing that the Western Area Power Administration may accept a limited amount of contributions from the United States power customers of the Falcon and Amistad Dams for use by the Commissioner of the United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission for operating and maintenance of hydroelectric facilities. Language has been included under Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to permit the hire of passenger motor vehicles, to provide official reception and representation expenses, and to permit the use of revenues collected to reduce the appropriation as revenues are received. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 301, prohibiting the use of funds to prepare or initiate requests for proposals or other solicitations or arrangements for programs that have not yet been fully funded by the Congress; requiring notification and reporting requirements for certain funding awards; limiting the use of multi-year funding mechanisms; providing that none of the funds may be available for obligation or expenditure through a reprogramming of funds except in certain circumstances; and providing that unexpended balances of prior appropriations may be transferred and merged with new appropriation accounts established in this Act. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 302, providing that funds for intelligence activities are deemed to be specifically authorized for purposes of section 504 of the National Security Act of 1947 during fiscal year 2019 until enactment of the Intelligence Authorization Act for fiscal year 2019. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 303, prohibiting the use of funds for capital construction of high hazard nuclear facilities unless certain independent oversight is conducted. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 304, prohibiting the use of funds to approve critical decision-2 or critical decision-3 for certain construction projects, unless a separate independent cost estimate has been developed for that critical decision. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 305, limiting the amount of funds that may be transferred to the working capital fund. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 306, prohibiting nonproliferation activities in the Russian Federation until certain reporting requirements are met. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 307, limiting the authority of the Secretary of Energy to establish regional petroleum product reserves. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 308, prohibiting the use of funds for the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility project unless certain requirements in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2018 are met. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 309, authorizing the Secretary of Energy to draw down and sell refined petroleum product from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve under certain circumstances. Language has been included under Department of Energy, General Provisions, section 310, requiring the Secretary of Energy to submit a report regarding spent nuclear fuel. TITLE IV--INDEPENDENT AGENCIES Language has been included under Appalachian Regional Commission providing for the hire of passenger vehicles and services authorized by 5 U.S.C. 3109. Language has been included under Delta Regional Authority allowing the expenditure of funds as authorized by the Delta Regional Authority Act without regard to section 382C(b)(2), 382F(d), 382M and 382N of said Act. Language has been included under Denali Commission allowing the expenditure of funds notwithstanding section 306(g) of the Denali Commission Act of 1998, and providing for cost-share requirements for Commission-funded construction projects in distressed and non-distressed communities, as defined by section 307 of the Denali Commission Act of 1998 (Division C, Title III, Public Law 105-277), and an amount not to exceed 50 percent for non-distressed communities. Language has been included under Denali Commission allowing funding to be available for payment of a non-federal share for certain programs. Language has been included under Northern Border Regional Commission for expenditure as authorized by subtitle V of title 40, United States Code, without regard to section 15751(b). Language has been included under Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Salaries and Expenses that provides for salaries and other support costs for the Office of the Commission, to be controlled by majority vote of the Commission. Language has been included under Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Salaries and Expenses that provides for official representation expenses and permits the use of revenues from licensing fees, inspections services, and other services for salaries and expenses to reduce the appropriation as revenues are received. Funding is provided to support university research and development, and for a Nuclear Science and Engineering Grant Program. Language has been included under the Nuclear Regulatory Commission providing funds that are not derived from fee revenues. Language has been included under Office of Inspector General that provides for the use of revenues from licensing fees, inspections services, and other services for salaries and expenses, notwithstanding section 3302 of title 31, United States Code, to reduce the appropriation as revenues are received. Language has been included under Independent Agencies, General Provisions, section 401, requiring the NRC to comply with certain procedures when responding to Congressional requests for information. Language has been included under Independent Agencies, General Provision, section 402, providing that none of the funds may be available for obligation or expenditure through a reprogramming of funds except in certain circumstances. TITLE V--GENERAL PROVISIONS Language has been included under General Provisions, section 501, prohibiting the use of funds in this Act to influence congressional action on any legislation or appropriation matters pending before the Congress. Language has been included under General Provisions, section 502, prohibiting the transfer of funds except pursuant to a transfer made by, or transfer authority provided in this or any other appropriations Act, or certain other authorities, and requiring a report. Language has been included under General Provisions, section 503, prohibiting funds in contravention of Executive Order No. 12898 of February 11, 1994, regarding environmental justice. Language has been included under General Provisions, section 504, prohibiting funds from being used to maintain or establish computer networks unless such networks block the viewing, downloading, or exchange of pornography. Language has been included under General Provisions, section 505, prohibiting the use of funds to further implementation of components of the National Ocean Policy developed under Executive Order 13547. Language has been included under General Provisions, section 506, prohibiting the use of funds to operate the Federal Columbia River Power System hydroelectric dams in a manner inconsistent with a 2017 operations plan. Language has been included under General Provisions, section 507, prohibiting the use of funds for the removal of any federally-owned or operated dam unless the removal has been previously authorized by Congress. Language has been included under General Provisions, section 508, prohibiting funds in this Act from being used to close the Yucca Mountain license application process, or for actions that would remove the possibility that Yucca Mountain might be an option in the future. Language has been included under General Provisions, section 509, setting at $0 the amount that the proposed new budget authority exceeds the allocation made by the Committee on Appropriations under section 302(b) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Program Duplication No provision of this bill 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. Directed Rule Making The bill does not direct any rule making. Compliance With Rule XIII, Cl. 3(e) (Ramseyer Rule) In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed in italics, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): OMNIBUS PUBLIC LAND MANAGEMENT ACT OF 2009 * * * * * * * TITLE IX--BUREAU OF RECLAMATION AUTHORIZATIONS Subtitle A--Feasibility Studies SEC. 9001. SNAKE, BOISE, AND PAYETTE RIVER SYSTEMS, IDAHO. (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, may conduct feasibility studies on projects that address water shortages within the Snake, Boise, and Payette River systems in the State of Idaho, and are considered appropriate for further study by the Bureau of Reclamation Boise Payette water storage assessment report issued during 2006. (b) Bureau of Reclamation.--A study conducted under this section shall comply with Bureau of Reclamation policy standards and guidelines for studies. (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of the Interior to carry out this section $3,000,000. (d) Termination of Effectiveness.--The authority provided by this section terminates on the date that is [10] 20 years after the date of enactment of this Act. * * * * * * * ---------- SECTION 9 OF THE RECLAMATION PROJECT ACT OF 1939 Sec. 9. (a) No expenditures for the construction of any new project, new division of a project, or new supplemental works on a project shall be made, nor shall estimates be submitted therefor, by the Secretary until after he has made an investigation thereof and has submitted to the President and to the Congress his report and findings on-- (1) the engineering feasibility of the proposed construction; (2) the estimated cost of the proposed construction; (3) the part of the estimated cost which can properly be allocated to irrigation and probably be repaid by the water users; (4) the part of the estimated cost which can properly be allocated to power and probably be returned to the United States in net power revenues; (5) the part of the estimated cost which can properly be allocated to municipal water supply or other miscellaneous purposes and probably be returned to the United States. If the proposed construction is found by the Secretary to have engineering feasibility and if the repayable and returnable allocations to irrigation, power, and municipal water supply or other miscellaneous purposes found by the Secretary to be proper, together with any allocation to flood control or navigation made under subsection (b) of this section, equal the total estimated cost of construction as determined by the Secretary, then the new project, new division of a project, or supplemental works on a project, covered by his findings, shall be deemed authorized and may be undertaken by the Secretary. If all such allocations do not equal said total estimated cost, then said new project, new division, or new supplemental works may be undertaken by the Secretary only after provision therefor has been made by Act of Congress enacted after the Secretary has submitted to the President and the Congress the report and findings involved. (b) In connection with any new project, new division of a project, or supplemental works on a project there may be allocated to flood control or navigation the part of said total estimated cost which the Secretary may find to be proper. Items for any such allocations made in connection with projects which may be undertaken pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall be included in the estimates of appropriations submitted by the Secretary for said projects, and funds for such portions of the projects shall not become available except as directly appropriated or allotted to the Department of the Interior. In connection with the making of such an allocation, the Secretary shall consult with the Chief of Engineers and the Secretary of the Army, and may perform any of the necessary investigations or studies under a cooperative agreement with the Secretary of the Army. In the event of such an allocation the Secretary of the Interior shall operate the project for purposes of flood control or navigation, to the extent justified by said allocation therefor. (c) (1) The Secretary is authorized to enter into contracts to furnish water for municipal water supply or miscellaneous purposes: Provided, That any such contract either (A) shall require repayment to the United States, over a period of not to exceed forty years from the year in which water is first delivered for the use of the contracting party, with interest not exceeding the rate of 3\1/2\ per centum per annum if the Secretary determines an interest charge to be proper, of an appropriate share as determined by the Secretary of that part of the construction costs allocated by him to municipal water supply or other miscellaneous purposes; or (B) shall be for such periods, not to exceed forty years, and at such rates as in the Secretary's judgment will produce revenues at least sufficient to cover an appropriate share of the annual operation and maintenance cost and an appropriate share of such fixed charges as the Secretary deems proper, and shall require the payment of said rates each year in advance of delivery of water for said year. Any sale of electric power or lease of power privileges, made by the Secretary in connection with the operation of any project or division of a project, shall be for such periods, not to exceed forty years, and at such rates as in his judgment will produce power revenues at least sufficient to cover an appropriate share of the annual operation and maintenance cost, interest on an appropriate share of the construction investment at not less than 3 per centum per annum, and such other fixed charges as the Secretary deems proper: Provided further, That in said sales or leases preference shall be given to municipalities and other public corporations or agencies; and also to cooperatives and other nonprofit organizations financed in whole or in part by loans made pursuant to the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 and any amendments thereof. Nothing in this subsection shall be applicable to provisions in existing contracts, made pursuant to law, for the use of power and miscellaneous revenues of a project for the benefit of users of water from such project. The provisions of this subsection respecting the sales of electric power and leases of power privileges shall be an authorization in addition to and alternative to any authority in existing laws related to particular projects, including small conduit hydropower development and pumped storage hydropower development exclusively using Bureau of Reclamation reservoirs. No contract relating to municipal water supply or miscellaneous purposes or to electric power or power privileges shall be made unless, in the judgment of the Secretary, it will not impair the efficiency of the project for irrigation purposes. (2)(A) When carrying out this subsection, the Secretary shall first offer the lease of power privilege to an irrigation district or water users association operating the applicable transferred conduit, or to the irrigation district or water users association receiving water from the applicable reserved conduit. The Secretary shall determine a reasonable time frame for the irrigation district or water users association to accept or reject a lease of power privilege offer for a small conduit hydropower project. (B) If the irrigation district or water users association elects not accept a lease of power privilege offer under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall offer the lease of power privilege to other parties in accordance with this subsection. (3) The Bureau of Reclamation shall apply its categorical exclusion process under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) to small conduit hydropower development under this subsection, excluding siting of associated transmission facilities on Federal lands. (4) The Power Resources Office of the Bureau of Reclamation shall be the lead office of small conduit hydropower policy and procedure- setting activities conducted under this subsection. (5) Nothing in this subsection shall obligate the Western Area Power Administration, the Bonneville Power Administration, or the Southwestern Power Administration to purchase or market any of the power produced by the facilities covered under this subsection and none of the costs associated with production or delivery of such power shall be assigned to project purposes for inclusion in project rates. (6) Nothing in this subsection shall alter or impede the delivery and management of water by Bureau of Reclamation facilities, as water used for conduit hydropower generation shall be deemed incidental to use of water for the original project purposes. Lease of power privilege shall be made only when, in the judgment of the Secretary, the exercise of the lease will not be incompatible with the purposes of the project or division involved, nor shall it create any unmitigated financial or physical impacts to the project or division involved. The Secretary shall notify and consult with the irrigation district or water users association operating the transferred conduit before offering the lease of power privilege and shall prescribe terms and conditions that will adequately protect the planning, design, construction, operation, maintenance, and other interests of the United States and the project or division involved. (7) Nothing in this subsection shall alter or affect any existing agreements for the development of conduit hydropower projects or disposition of revenues. (8) Nothing in this subsection shall alter or affect any existing preliminary permit, license, or exemption issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission under Part I of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 792 et seq.) or any project for which an application has been filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as of the date of the enactment of the Bureau of Reclamation Small Conduit Hydropower Development and Rural Jobs Act. (9) In this subsection: (A) Conduit.--The term ``conduit'' means any Bureau of Reclamation tunnel, canal, pipeline, aqueduct, flume, ditch, or similar manmade water conveyance that is operated for the distribution of water for agricultural, municipal, or industrial consumption and not primarily for the generation of electricity. (B) Irrigation district.--The term ``irrigation district'' means any irrigation, water conservation or conservancy, multicounty water conservation or conservancy district, or any separate public entity composed of two or more such districts and jointly exercising powers of its member districts. (C) Reserved conduit.--The term ``reserved conduit'' means any conduit that is included in project works the care, operation, and maintenance of which has been reserved by the Secretary, through the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation. (D) Transferred conduit.--The term ``transferred conduit'' means any conduit that is included in project works the care, operation, and maintenance of which has been transferred to a legally organized water users association or irrigation district. (E) Small conduit hydropower.--The term ``small conduit hydropower'' means a facility capable of producing 5 megawatts or less of electric capacity. (d) No water may be delivered for irrigation of lands in connection with any new project, new division of a project, or supplemental works on a project until an organization, satisfactory in form and powers to the Secretary, has entered into a repayment contract with the United States, in a form satisfactory to the Secretary, providing among other things-- (1) That the Secretary may fix a development period for each irrigation block, if any, of not to exceed ten years from and including the first calendar year in which water is delivered for the lands in said block; and that during the development period water shall be delivered to the lands in the irrigation block involved at a charge per annum per acre-foot, or other charge, to be fixed by the Secretary each year and to be paid in advance of delivery of water: Provided, That where the lands included in an irrigation block are for the most part lands owned by the United States, the Secretary, prior to execution of a repayment contract, may fix a development period, but in such case execution of such a contract shall be a condition precedent to delivery of water after the close of the development period: Provided further, That when the Secretary, by contract or by notice given thereunder, shall have fixed a development period of less than ten years, and at any time thereafter but before commencement of the repayment period conditions arise which in the judgment of the Secretary would have justified the fixing of a longer period, he may amend such contract or notice to extend such development period to a date not to exceed ten years from its commencement, and in a case where no development period was provided, he may amend such contract within the same limits: Provided further, That when the Secretary shall have deferred the payment of all or any part of any installments of construction charges under any repayment contract pursuant to the authority of the Act of September 21, 1959 (73 Stat. 584), he may, at any time prior to the due date prescribed for the first installment not reduced by such deferment, and by agreement with the contracting organization, terminate the supplemental contract by which such deferment was effected, credit the construction payments made, and exercise the authority granted in this section. After the close of the development period, any such charges collected and which the Secretary determines to be in excess of the cost of the operation and maintenance during the development period shall be credited to the construction cost of the project in the manner determined by the Secretary. (2) That the part of the construction costs allocated by the Secretary to irrigation shall be included in a general repayment obligation of the organization; and that the organization may vary its distribution of construction charges in a manner that takes into account the productivity of the various classes of lands and the benefits accruing to the lands by reason of the construction: Provided, That no distribution of construction charges over the lands included in the organization shall in any manner be deemed to relieve the organization or any party or any land therein of the organization's general obligation to the United States. (3) That the general repayment obligation of the organization shall be spread in annual installments, of the number and amounts fixed by the Secretary, over a period of not more than 40 years, exclusive of any development period fixed under paragraph (1) of this subsection, for any project contract unit or, if the project contract unit be divided into two or more irrigation blocks, for any such block, or as near to said period of not more than forty years as is consistent with the adoption and operation of a variable payment formula which, being based on full repayment within such period under average conditions, permits variance in the required annual payments in the light of economic factors pertinent to the ability of the organization to pay. (4) That the first annual installment for any project contract unit, or for any irrigation block, as the case may be, shall accrue, on the date fixed by the Secretary, in the year after the last year of the development period or, if there be not development period, in the calendar year after the Secretary announces that the construction contemplated in the repayment contract is substantially completed or is advanced to a point where delivery of water can be made to substantially all of the lands in said unit or block to be irrigated; and if there be no development period fixed, that prior to and including the year in which the Secretary makes said announcement water shall be delivered only on the toll charge basis hereinbefore provided for development periods. (e) In lieu of entering into a repayment contract pursuant to the provisions of subsection (d) of this section to cover that part of the cost of the construction of works connected with water supply and allocated to irrigation, the Secretary, in his discretion, may enter into either short- or long-term contracts to furnish water for irrigation purposes. Each such contract shall be for such period, not to exceed forty years, and at such rates as in the Secretary's judgment will produce revenues at least sufficient to cover an appropriate share of the annual operation and maintenance cost and an appropriate share of such fixed charges as the Secretary deems proper, due consideration being given to that part of the cost of construction of works connected with water supply and allocated to irrigation; and shall require payment of said rates each year in advance of delivery of water for said year. In the event such contracts are made for furnishing water for irrigation purposes, the costs of any irrigation water distribution works constructed by the United States in connection with the new project, new division of a project, or supplemental works on a project, shall be covered by a repayment contract entered into pursuant to said subsection (d). (f) No less than sixty days before entering into or amending any repayment contract or any contract for the delivery of irrigation water (except any contract for the delivery of surplus or interim irrigation water whose duration is for one year or less) the Secretary shall-- (1) publish notice of the proposed contract or amendment in newspapers of general circulation in the affected area and shall make reasonable efforts to otherwise notify interested parties which may be affected by such contract or amendment, together with information indicating to whom comments or inquiries concerning the proposed actions can be addressed; and (2) provide an opportunity for submission of written data, views and arguments, and shall consider all substantive comments so received. Appropriations Not Authorized by Law Pursuant to clause 3(f) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the following table lists the appropriations in the accompanying bill which are not authorized: [thousand dollars] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Appropriation in Agency/Program Last Year of Authorization Last Year of Net Appropriation Authorization Level Authorization in this Bill ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Corps FUSRAP........................ ................. \ 1\ ................. 150,000 EERE Program Direction.............. 2006 110,500 164,198 153,700 EERE Weatherization Activities...... 2012 1,400,000 68,000 251,000 EERE State Energy Programs.......... 2012 125,000 50,000 55,000 Nuclear Energy...................... 2009 495,000 792,000 1,346,090 Nuclear Energy Infrastructure and 2009 145,000 245,000 331,000 Facilities......................... Fossil Energy....................... 2009 641,000 727,320 785,000 Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale 2014 20,000 20,000 10,000 Reserves........................... Strategic Petroleum Reserve......... 2003 not specified 172,856 252,000 Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve.. 2003 not specified 6,000 10,000 Energy Information Administration... 1984 not specified 55,870 125,000 Office of Science................... 2013 6,007,000 4,876,000 6,600,000 Advanced Technology Vehicle 2012 not specified 6,000 5,000 Manufacturing Program.............. Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup: West Valley Demonstration....... 1981 5,000 5,000 75,000 Departmental Administration......... 1984 246,963 185,682 184,524 Atomic Energy Defense Activities: National Nuclear Security Administration: Weapons Activities.......... 2018 10,377,475 10,642,138 11,200,000 Defense Nuclear 2018 1,883,310 1,999,219 1,902,000 Nonproliferation........... Naval Reactors.............. 2018 1,431,551 1,620,000 1,788,618 Federal Salaries and 2018 407,551 407,595 422,529 Expenses................... Defense Environmental Cleanup....... 2018 5,440,106 5,988,048 5,759,220 Other Defense Activities............ 2018 816,000 840,000 870,300 Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal.. 2018 30,000 0 30,000 Power Marketing Administrations: Southwestern.................... 1984 40,254 36,229 10,400 Western Area.................... 1984 259,700 194,630 89,372 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 1984 not specified 29,582 0 Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety 2018 30,600 31,000 31,243 Board.............................. Delta Regional Authority............ 2018 30,000 25,000 15,000 Northern Border Regional Commission. 2018 30,000 15,000 12,000 Southeast Crescent Regional 2018 30,000 250 250 Commission......................... Nuclear Regulatory Commission....... 1985 460,000 448,200 191,664 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- \1\Program was initiated in 1972 and has never received a separate authorization. Rescissions Pursuant to clause 3(f)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, there are no rescissions recommended in the accompanying bill. Comparison With the Budget Resolution Pursuant to clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 308(a)(1)(A) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the following table compares the levels of new budget authority provided in the bill with the appropriate allocation under section 302(b) of the Budget Act. [In millions of dollars] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 302(b) Allocation This Bill --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Budget Authority Outlays Budget Authority Outlays ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mandatory........................... - - - - - - 0 \1\0 Discretionary....................... 44,700 44,485 44,700 44,485 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- \1\Includes outlays from prior-year budget authority. Five-Year Outlay Projections Pursuant to section 308(a)(1)(B) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the following table contains five-year projections prepared by the Congressional Budget Office of outlays associated with the budget authority provided in the accompanying bill: [In millions of dollars] Projection of outlays associated with the recommendation: 2019.............................................. \2\26,161 2020.............................................. 12,600 2021.............................................. 4,279 2022.............................................. 945 2023 and future years............................. 554 \2\Excludes outlays from prior-year budget authority. Assistance to State and Local Governments Pursuant to section 308(a)(1)(C) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the amount of financial assistance to State and local governments is as follows: [In millions of dollars] ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Budget Authority Outlays ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Financial assistance to State and 170 \2\0 local government for 2019........ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ \2\Excludes outlays from prior-year budget authority. Full Committee Votes Pursuant to the provisions of clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the House of Representatives, the results of each rollcall vote on an amendment or on the motion to report, together with the names of those voting for and those voting against, are printed below: [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] MINORITY VIEWS We commend Chairman Frelinghuysen and Chairman Simpson for their efforts to assemble portions of this bill in an inclusive manner. The bill funds critical water resource projects, supports science activities necessary for American competitiveness and contributes to our national defense through vital weapons, naval reactor research, and nonproliferation funding, all priorities that unite rather than divide us. Chairman Simpson has worked hard to incorporate the interests of Members from both parties. As a result, much of the funding reflects some priorities from both sides of the aisle. However, the Majority has made clear that this bill reflects their priorities--and the funding levels for programs of great importance to the nation, including Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy and Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, show that these are not the priorities of the Majority. Further, it is disappointing that the Majority has jeopardized the possibility of a bipartisan bill by adding ideological riders that are anti-environment, including gutting the Clean Water Act and overturning a court decision meant to protect endangered fish species, in addition to allowing guns on public lands. We should not have to remind our Majority colleagues that similar provisions have imperiled passage of this bill in the past, and that these riders cannot be included in any legislation that requires bipartisan support to pass. Yet they continue not only to include the same riders year after year, but this year brings a new, unnecessary version of a Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rider while introducing a new provision legislating an ongoing court case, both poison pills. These issues inject divisive partisan issues into must- pass spending bills, a recipe for chaos when Congress attempts to keep the government open for business. The subcommittee's allocation is $44,700,000,000, $8,173,568,000 above the Administration's budget request and $1,500,000,000 above the Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 level. The defense allocation is $500,000,000 above FY 2018, while the non-defense allocation is $1,000,000,000 above FY 2018. We commend the Chairman for increasing Corps of Engineers' funding by $2,493,417,000 above the President's completely inadequate request, ensuring that many ongoing projects will continue. The bill provides $7,278,000,000 for the Army Corps of Engineers, representing the highest funding level the agency has received in recent years. The bill provides $1,600,000,000 for projects funded from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, $200,000,000 above FY 2018 and $160,000,000 above the FY 2019 target set by the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014. This funding would allow preventive and proactive investments necessary for the economy and the safety of American citizens. The funding above the request would also allow investments in the nation's ports and waterways, which are critical to ensuring that American made goods can move to market, both domestically and abroad. We firmly believe that our underinvestment in infrastructure continues to hamper economic gains and prolongs the underemployment plaguing our middle class. While this bill ensures increased investment beyond that included in the budget request, we should be doing even more to build infrastructure and create jobs. Federal support of water resource projects creates construction jobs and indirect economic benefits that encourage local businesses and individuals to embrace risk and make critical investments in their communities. Every year, this important bill sets the path for America's energy future, and we have made enormous strides in increasing our energy independence. We now meet more than 90 percent of our energy needs with domestic sources, a great accomplishment. Renewable energy now accounts for 18 percent of U.S. electricity generation, nearly on par with the nation's nuclear fleet. Electricity made up a smaller share of consumer spending in 2017 than it ever has in recorded history. These successes are due in no small part to federal investment in DOE's world-class research--both basic and applied. Research at the Department of Energy has led to the technological advances that have drastically altered global energy markets. These significant strides towards America's energy security are to be lauded, but now is not the time to rest on our laurels. Today, the price of oil is on the rise again, currently 50 percent higher than it was one year ago. Fuel prices are also rising, and when fuel prices rise consumer spending constricts, impacting the economy. Given these factors, we must not lose sight of the ultimate goal of energy independence. Unfortunately, even with a generous allocation, the Majority chose to cut $243,138,000 from energy efficiency and renewable energy programs, which threatens to delay progress on breakthroughs in energy efficiency and clean energy and to hinder innovation to drive sustained economic growth in the clean energy economy of the future. It also leaves us perilously open to being overtaken by our competitors who are aggressively investing with the goal of overtaking us, at times using our own technologies. Renewable energy has achieved cost competitiveness in some areas, yet despite what we hear from this administration, further investment can drive down the costs of existing technology and provide breakthroughs in others. Investment in portfolio diversity remains necessary for the long term. The advances in renewable energy are not the drumbeats of some distant clean energy future. That future is now, and the rest of the world is ready to lay siege to our technologies if we do not continue to innovate. An investment in clean energy is an investment in American jobs: nearly 3.2 million Americans work in clean energy, including 2.5 million energy efficiency jobs, 457,000 solar and wind jobs, and 220,000 jobs making clean vehicles. With regard to the applied energy programs at the Department of Energy, investments in energy technology programs are once again skewed too heavily toward nuclear and fossil fuels, though we recognize that the level of renewable energy funding is higher than recent years in a House bill. We must provide for critical research and development for the nuclear and fossil energy sectors to increase efficiency and reduce emissions of these sources, but continued and sustained research and development programs in renewable energy and energy efficiency are necessary and appropriate, and cannot be the price of increased support for other technologies. To finally free ourselves from our dependence on foreign energy sources, as well as to drastically cut our dangerous carbon emissions, we must continue to strongly fund DOE's research and development efforts. The bill also cuts the Advanced Research Projects Agency- Energy (ARPA-E), which focuses on energy technologies that have the potential to be transformational and are too early for private sector investment. ARPA-E's approach is working-136 ARPA-E projects have attracted over $2,600,000,000 in private follow-on funding. Yet we have come to expect that the administration will propose to eliminate this important program each year. And again, despite the generous allocation we received, the Majority has opted to reduce funding by $28,314,000 from FY 2018. One positive is the five percent increase over FY 2018 for the Office of Science. This is critical to the competitiveness of our nation and ensuring that the United States maintains its position as the global leader in innovation. The bill provides $15,091,050,000 for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); these increases are seen in Weapons Activities, $557,862,000 above FY 2018, and Naval Reactors, $168,618,000 above FY 2018. We continue to be troubled by the continued unsustainable spending in the weapons program. We are concerned by the inclusion of funding to build a new, low-yield ballistic missile as called for in the 2018 Nuclear Posture Review. The President's budget request did not include this warhead until mid-April, leaving our Committee without any time to appropriately consider this significant new request. We did not have this information during our Subcommittee budget hearings with the Secretary of Energy or with the NNSA Administrator. We owe it to the American people to have a full discussion and debate about this new nuclear capability, including security, cost, schedule, and impact to the ongoing efforts to modernize our existing nuclear arsenal. We must have appropriate consideration before wandering down a pathway to new nuclear weapons varieties. Further, the NNSA is being asked to take on this additional weapons capability while it is in the midst of simultaneously executing four active warhead life extension programs and several major construction projects. The former NNSA Administrator has said that the NNSA is essentially working at capacity now, before taking on this new low-yield ballistic missile. This is on top of the challenges brought on by the need to modernize a complex built substantially in the 1950s. While NNSA has made progress in mapping out the most urgent needs in this area, we remain concerned about the agency's ability to carry out the major construction projects necessary to modernize the complex. With NNSA's history of staggering cost overruns and schedule delays, we continue to question whether the organization has the necessary tools, processes and workforce to manage large increases in weapons activities and infrastructure needs year after year. We appreciate and support the Chairman's continued strong oversight of the NNSA in these areas. The majority has invested in a costly, unjustified new nuclear weapon while underfunding efforts to denuclearize the world. The bill includes $1,902,000,000 for these critical programs, $146,219,000 below the FY 2018 appropriation. The Nuclear Nonproliferation program plays an important role in verification of treaties and agreements to curb nuclear weapons and weapons usable materials. The program develops technologies that help strengthen the safeguards mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)--for example, DOE's national laboratories created the Online Enrichment Monitor, which allows IAEA inspectors to measure in real time the enrichment level of uranium, an enormous step forward for verifying compliance with safeguards agreements and for keeping us safe. Yet the bill continues a downward trajectory of funding for this critical program, cut at the expense of providing continued increases to the weapons program. This is something we hope we can again reverse in conference. Two of the partisan riders in this bill risk protection of the world's most precious resource: water. The first provides agricultural exemptions from the Clean Water Act. The second is a new version related to the WOTUS rule, which legislatively repeals the rule and directs agencies to act as if the rule had never been in place. This is a disturbing effort to sidestep law that establishes requirements for withdrawal of a regulation such as this. This effort would also effectively avoid the administration being required to provide a substantive rationale'as it considers changing regulations and taking into consideration public input. The bill contains numerous other riders, including three related to Endangered Species Act issues, one of which would legislate an ongoing court case, and one that would prohibit activities related to the National Ocean Policy. The inclusion of the rider allowing guns to be carried on all Corps of Engineers lands injects into the bill an unnecessarily partisan topic that is unwarranted. We disagree with the notion that reasonable limits on where guns can be carried are an infringement upon the Second Amendment. We see no need to contribute to an environment where guns are commonplace in recreational areas where families are trying to escape the pressures of everyday life. In spite of these concerns, we would like to reiterate our appreciation for the Chairman's work with us on many issues, continuing the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee's tradition of a collegial and bipartisanship process. The Subcommittee has operated collaboratively and effectively for many years, and the bill addresses many of the interests we have expressed. More broadly, the Bipartisan Budget Act enacted earlier this year provided relief from unworkable discretionary spending caps. The agreement was supposed to provide the country with stability following a year of shutdowns, last- minute veto threats, and general uncertainty in government. That stability lasted long enough for Congress to pass a bipartisan Omnibus appropriations bill for FY 2018, and then Republican chaos reigned again. The President threatened to veto the bill, unhappy with Congress' large investments in programs to help low-and middle-income Americans and rejection of his campaign-promised border wall. Even after the President backed off his threat and signed the bill, the Administration and Republican leadership in Congress who voted for the Bipartisan Budget Act and the Omnibus bill have continued to attempt to undo those bipartisan agreements. Now, the majority s seeking to pass a rescissions bill to undo funding and mollify an angry President. We have beep told by Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney that this is the first of many rescission packages meant to bring spending in line with the President's priorities, ignoring Congressional action that dismissed the President's FY 2017 and FY 2018 draconian budget requests. In addition to the unacceptable rescissions proposals, the majority's lack of transparency with regards to how it will allocate the FY 2019 discretionary budget also endangers future bipartisan compromise. The majority has abandoned longstanding committee practice to provide the Members and the public with a budget blueprint for domestic spending, known as 302(b) allocations. Members are being asked to vote on bills without having the full picture on what impact each bill will have on other bills. We are very concerned about what that means for programs in other bills that have yet to be considered. Democrats can only be left to assume that the majority is siphoning money from bills at the end of the process like the State and Foreign Operations bill and the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill, which invests in priorities like education, job training, health, and workplace safety and rights. In conclusion, the majority of Democrats on the committee voted no on the motion to advance the bill to the full House because this bill's funding level will ensure critical investments in other bills cannot be made, priorities related to achieving energy independence and a green future are underfunded, and extraneous, controversial policy riders are included. Without a full budget we are left to assume that the programs for the most vulnerable and American families who simply need a level playing field will be left on the chopping block. If that were not enough reason, the majority included controversial policy matters on the environment and guns. We look forward to the day when transparency returns to the Committee and all of the bills are adequately funded at the outset. Until then, Democrats stand ready to work in a bipartisan manner when our Republican colleagues eschew the fringe and want to pass bills into law. Nita M. Lowey. Marcy Kaptur. [all]