Energy and Water Development: FY2017 Appropriations

Summary

The Energy and Water Development appropriations bill provides funding for civil works projects of the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and Central Utah Project (CUP), and the Department of Energy (DOE), as well as the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and several other independent agencies. DOE typically accounts for about 80% of the bill’s total funding.

President Obama’s FY2017 discretionary appropriations request for agencies in the Energy and Water Development bill totaled $37.55 billion, as calculated by the House and Senate appropriations committees. That amount is 0.6% above the $37.32 billion appropriated for FY2016. (The Administration proposed $2.26 billion in new mandatory funding for DOE in addition to the FY2017 discretionary funding request.) FY2017 funding for the Corps would be cut by 22.9%, and Reclamation and CUP by 17.2%, from their FY2016 levels.

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved its version of the FY2017 Energy and Water Development appropriations bill on April 14, 2016 (S. 2804, S.Rept. 114-236), and the House Appropriations Committee completed action on April 19, 2016 (H.R. 5055, H.Rept. 114-532). As passed by committee, the Senate bill would increase budget authority for energy and water programs by $823.5 million over the request (2.2%), and the House bill would provide an increase of $12.7 million over the request (0.03%).

Major Energy and Water Development funding highlights for FY2017 include

Proposed Corps and Reclamation Budgets. The Administration requested similar funding levels for the Corps and Reclamation as sought in FY2016, which are substantially lower than the final FY2016 levels approved by Congress. The proposed reductions were largely rejected by the House and Senate committees.

Definition of “Fill Material” Under the Clean Water Act. The Senate Appropriations Committee voted to prohibit the Corps during FY2017 from changing the definition of “fill material” in relation to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. The Administration objected to the restriction.

California Drought and Central Valley Project Operations. The House proposed changes that would aim to increase water supplies to users facing curtailed allocations from Reclamation.

40% Requested Boost for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The Administration requested an increase of $829.2 million (40.1%) in discretionary funding for DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) for FY2017, for total discretionary funding of $2.898 billion. The House and Senate committees did not approve the proposed increase.

Nuclear Waste “Consent-Based Siting.” The Administration proposed to triple funding in FY2017 for DOE to develop a consent-based nuclear waste siting program. The House Appropriations Committee rejected the consent-based siting request, instead providing $170 million for a proposed waste repository at Yucca Mountain, NV. The Senate panel approved most of the Administration request.

Surplus Plutonium Disposition. Construction of the Mixed-Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility (MFFF), which would make fuel for nuclear reactors out of surplus weapons plutonium, would be terminated beginning in FY2017 by the Administration’s budget request. The Senate Appropriations Committee approved the Administration halt, while the House panel voted to continue construction.