Amendments to the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill

Amendments to the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill

Heritage Action will be key voting the following amendments to the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill (H.R. 5325):

Key Vote Alert: "YES" on the Chabot Amendment

This week, the House will vote on the Chabot Amendment to the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill (H.R. 5325). The amendment would eliminate five wasteful and duplicative regional commissions, saving taxpayers approximately $100 million in fiscal year 2013.

Specifically, the amendment would eliminate the Appalachian Regional Commission, the Delta Regional Authority, the Denali Commission, the Northern Border Regional Commission and the South East Crescent Regional Commission. The Heritage Foundation has targeted these regional commissions, which fund various projects through regional strategies, for elimination because they are outdated and ineffective.

Since other federal, state, and local programs exist to encourage development and provide funding for activities such as job training, infrastructure projects, etc., eliminating the regional commissions is a commonsense solution to cutting spending and waste in the federal government.

Heritage Action supports the Chabot Amendment and will include it as a key vote on our scorecard.

Related:

Heritage Action's Scorecard
Heritage: How to Cut $343 Billion from the Federal Budget

Key Vote Alert: "YES" on the McClintock Amendment

This week, the House will vote on the McClintock Amendment to the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill (H.R. 5325). The amendment would essentially eliminate the Office of Fossil Energy (OFE), saving taxpayers approximately $428 million in fiscal year 2013.

Currently, OFE provides funding for clean coal initiatives, advanced turbines, carbon sequestration, and natural gas technologies. The office also conducts research on fuels and power systems to reduce power plant emissions. According to The Heritage Foundation, "most of the funding for fossil-energy research and development focuses on technologies that will reduce carbon dioxide emissions. This program includes a clean coal power initiative, research on fuels and power systems to reduce fossil power plant emissions, innovations for existing plants, integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC), advanced turbines, carbon sequestration, and natural gas technologies."

Unlike President Obama's budget proposal, which cuts funding for OFE to spend money on more "green" energy boondoggles, the McClintock amendment would use the savings to reduce the deficit. Importantly, the McClintock Amendment would not impact the operation, maintenance or oversight of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which is necessary for our national security should a crisis interrupt the global supply of oil.

Congress should remove all subsidies and open access for exploration and production while creating an efficient regulatory process that allows energy projects to move forward in a timely fashion. This will not only spur economic growth but it is also the best policy for energy consumers and taxpayers. Additional McClintock amendments properly target other subsidies, including those for renewable and nuclear energies. While those amendments are worthy of support, Heritage Action believes the OFE amendment is not only the most revealing, but also empowers lawmakers to rebut political charges of being "shills" for "Big Oil."

Heritage Action supports the McClintock Amendment and will include it as a key vote on our scorecard.

Related:

Heritage Action's Scorecard
Department of Energy Budget Cuts: Time to End the Hidden Green Stimulus