[Senate Report 116-210]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


 					          Calendar No. 355

116th Congress}                                           { Report
                                 SENATE
  2d Session  }                                           { 116-210

======================================================================
 
               PROMOTING AMERICAN ENERGY JOBS ACT OF 2019

                                _______
                                

                January 28, 2020.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Ms. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 2508]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 2508) to require the Secretary of Energy 
to establish a council to conduct a survey and analysis of the 
employment figures and demographics in the energy, energy 
efficiency, and motor vehicle sectors of the United States, and 
for other purposes, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that the 
bill, as amended, do pass.

                               AMENDMENT

    The amendment, as amended, is as follows:
    On page 3, strike lines 16 and 17 and insert the following:

    (B) perform an analysis of the employment figures and demographics 
in those sectors, including the number of personnel in each sector who 
devote a substantial portion of working hours, as determined by the 
Secretary, to compliance matters.

                                PURPOSE

    The purpose of S. 2508 is to require the Secretary of 
Energy (Secretary) to establish a council to conduct a survey 
and analysis of the employment figures and demographics in the 
energy, energy efficiency, and motor vehicle sectors of the 
United States.

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    The second annual United States Energy and Employment 
Report published by the Department of Energy (DOE) in January 
2017 (2017 employment report) found, relying on employment data 
collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, that energy and 
energy efficiency industries employed 6.4 million Americans in 
2016. The 2019 U.S. Energy and Employment Report, published by 
the National Association of State Energy Officials and the 
Energy Futures Initiative, a non-profit think tank, using the 
same methodology that DOE used to produce its 2017 employment 
report, found that that figure had increased to 6.7 million 
jobs by the end of 2018.
    The 2017 employment report found that 73 percent of energy-
related industries reported difficulty hiring qualified workers 
over the last 12 months, and that 26 percent found it very 
difficult. As the energy sector grows increasingly more 
diverse, a wider variety of technical qualifications and 
skillsets will be required. DOE's second installment of the 
Quadrennial Energy Review found that workforce retirement is a 
particularly large issue for the electric power industry. This 
is due to a decrease in workforce training programs in the 
1980s that will lead to a gap in upper management following the 
retirement of baby boomers. The 2017 employment report also 
noted that energy employment is less diverse than other 
industries, with women representing 22 to 34 percent of 
workforce, compared to the U.S. average of 47 percent.
    Traditionally, DOE's role in workforce development has 
focused on research investments that support students, 
universities, and the national laboratories. DOE has previously 
operated a Jobs Strategy Council that has several programs 
related to workforce development, including a variety of 
programs dedicated to supporting veterans. DOE also sponsors 
scholarships and funding for education from K-12 education 
through postdoctoral fellowships. Each of the national 
laboratories also has outreach programs dedicated to education 
and workforce development.
    The Promoting American Energy Jobs Act would codify the 
previous 2017 employment report as an annual DOE requirement. 
It would also create a permanent Energy Jobs Council at the 
Department to oversee the report.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    Senators Shaheen and McSally introduced S. 2508 on 
September 18, 2019. The Energy Subcommittee held a hearing on 
the measure on November 6, 2019.
    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources met in 
open business session on November 19, 2019, and ordered S. 2508 
favorably reported, as amended.
    Following the Committee's action, both the House and the 
Senate passed, and the President signed into law, the Further 
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, Public Law 116-94. The 
Act provides $1.7 million for the Department to complete a U.S. 
energy employment report as outlined in the reports of the 
House and Senate Appropriations Committees on their respective 
Energy and Water Development Appropriations bills for fiscal 
year 2020. (H. Rept. 116-83 at 117-118 (2019); S. Rept. 116-102 
at 71 (2019).

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on November 19, 2019, by a majority voice 
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 
2508, if amended as described herein.

                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

    During its consideration of S. 2508, the Committee adopted 
an amendment offered by Senator Lee with a modification 
proposed by Senator Manchin. The amendment amends subparagraph 
(b) of section 2(b)(1) of the bill, which requires the Energy 
Jobs Council to perform an analysis of the employment figures 
and demographics in the energy, energy efficiency, and motor 
vehicle sectors of the economy, by adding the requirement that 
the analysis include the number of personnel in each sector who 
devote a substantial portion of working hours to compliance 
matters.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 sets forth the short title of the bill.

Sec. 2. Survey, analysis, and report on employment and demographics in 
        the energy, energy efficiency, and motor vehicle sectors in the 
        United States

    Section 2(a) requires the Secretary of Energy (Secretary) 
to establish an Energy Jobs Council (Council) to be comprised 
of members of the Energy Information Agency and members of the 
State Energy Advisory Board appointed by the Secretary. In 
addition, the Secretary of Commerce is directed to appoint 
representatives of the Department of Commerce and 
representatives of the Bureau of the Census, and the Secretary 
of Labor is directed to appoint representatives from the Bureau 
of Labor Statistics. The Secretary is also authorized to 
request representatives of any Federal agency whose assistance 
is required to carry out the Act be appointed by the head of 
the applicable agency.
    Subsection (b) sets forth the requirements of the energy 
and employment survey and analysis. It requires the Council to 
conduct a survey of energy-related employers and to perform an 
analysis of employment figures and demographics in those 
sectors, include the number of personnel focused on compliance 
matters.
    This subsection requires the survey to use the previously 
approved methodology from 2016 and a representative sample of 
the United States. It must also be designed to receive 
responses from businesses similar to those that responded to 
the 2016 and 2017 energy and employment surveys.
    In conducting the survey the Council is required to consult 
with key stakeholders including Federal agencies, States, the 
State Energy Advisory Board, and energy industry trade 
associations.
    Subsection (c) requires the Secretary to provide a public 
report on energy and employment in the United States within one 
year of enactment, and annually thereafter. The contents must 
include employment figures for electric power generation 
sector, the transmission, storage and distribution sector, the 
energy efficiency sector, and the motor vehicle sector.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

    The Congressional Budget Office estimate of the costs of 
this measure has been requested but was not received at the 
time the report was filed. When the Congressional Budget Office 
completes its cost estimate, it will be posted on the internet 
at www.cbo.gov.

                      REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following 
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out S. 2508.
    S. 2508 requires the Secretary of Energy to establish an 
Energy Jobs Council to conduct a voluntary survey of employers 
in the energy, energy efficiency, and motor vehicle sectors in 
order to collect employment and demographic data for those 
sectors. Section 2(b)(2)(A) of the bill, however, requires the 
Council to employ the survey methodology approved by the Office 
of Management and Budget (OMB) in 2016 for use in generating 
the data for the 2017 employment report.
    DOE was required to obtain OMB approval to conduct its 
energy jobs survey in 2016 by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995. In seeking OMB's approval of its data collection 
methodology for the energy jobs survey, DOE estimated that it 
would need to contact approximately 30,000 companies by 
electronic mail or telephone per year. DOE estimated that 
20,000 of the 30,000 companies contacted would not qualify for 
the survey and that the average burden to respond to the online 
survey or phone interview on those companies would average less 
than a minute and a half per company. DOE further estimated 
that approximately 10,000 of the 30,000 companies contacted 
would qualify for the survey and agree to take the survey. It 
estimated that about 8,800 of the 10,000 companies would employ 
less than 100 workers, and the average response would take 
about 15 minutes, and that the response time of the remaining 
1,200 companies that employ more than 100 workers would average 
about 30 minutes. Based upon those assumptions, DOE estimated 
that the average response burden would be about 6.42 minutes 
and would cost about $7.19 per respondent.
    Moreover, the survey methodology approved by OMB in 2016 
that the bill requires the Energy Jobs Council to use is 
designed to avoid paperwork burdens on companies by encouraging 
them to complete the survey electronically or by telephone, and 
by not requiring them to keep any data, but simply report on 
their current workforce. Individual responses remain 
confidential and data is reported only in aggregated format so 
that individual company responses are not identifiable. No 
personal data is collected.
    Based upon the bill's requirement that the Energy Jobs 
Council employ the data collection methodology that OMB 
approved in 2016 (OMB Control Number 1910-5179) and DOE's 
supporting documentation, which can be found on OMB's website 
(www.reginfo.gov), the Committee does not believe S. 2508 
impose a regulatory burden or additional paperwork requirements 
on private individuals or businesses, or impact personal 
privacy.

                   CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

    S. 2508, as ordered reported, does not contain any 
congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, 
or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The testimony provided by the Department of Energy at the 
November 6, 2019, hearing on S. 2508 follows:

   Testimony of Assistant Secretary Daniel Simmons, Office of Energy 
       Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of Energy


                              introduction


    Chairman Cassidy, Ranking Member Heinrich, and Members of 
the Energy Subcommittee of the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources, thank you for the opportunity to testify today on 
legislation pertinent to the Department of Energy now pending 
in the Senate. My name is Daniel Simmons, and I am the 
Assistant Secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and 
Renewable Energy (EERE).
    As the Assistant Secretary, I am responsible for overseeing 
a broad portfolio of energy efficiency and renewable energy 
programs. The technologies in my portfolio advance America's 
economic growth and energy security while enhancing the 
reliability and resilience of the U.S. energy system. The 
Department of Energy supports improving the energy efficiency 
and reducing energy costs, while at the same time ensuring 
important performance standards are met or exceeded. For 
instance, we want to ensure schools and other buildings are 
sufficiently bright to ensure safety, and that water flow from 
faucets is strong enough to clean dirty hands. Today, I would 
like to share what relevant work my office has done and is 
doing in the areas that these bills address.
    I have been asked to testify on eleven (11) bills today, 
addressing a range of important energy issues. The 
Administration continues to review all of these bills. I 
appreciate the ongoing bipartisan efforts to address our 
Nation's energy challenges and I look forward to working with 
the Committee.


                                 bills


S. 2508--Promoting American Energy Security Jobs
    S. 2508 requires the Secretary of Energy to establish a 
council to conduct a survey and analysis of the employment 
figures and demographics in the energy, energy efficiency, and 
motor vehicle sectors of the United States. In addition to key 
stakeholders, the Council shall include representatives from 
Commerce, Transportation, Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor 
Statistics, EPA, State Energy Advisory Board and energy trade 
associations. It also directs the Department to publish a 
report, to be entitled the ``U.S. Energy and Employment 
Report'', describing the employment figures and demographics in 
the energy, energy efficiency, and motor vehicle sectors of the 
United States based on the survey and analysis conducted.
    The Department will continue to review the legislation and 
looks forward to working with Congress as the legislative 
process moves forward.


                               conclusion


    Thank you again for the opportunity to testify before the 
Subcommittee today. The Department appreciates the ongoing 
bipartisan efforts to address our Nation's energy challenges, 
and looks forward to working with the Committee on the 
legislation on today's agenda and any future legislation. I 
would be happy to answer your questions.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no 
changes in existing law are made by S. 2508 as ordered 
reported.

                                  [all]