CRES Letter to House and Senate E&W Appropriations Subcommittee

Dear Chairwoman Feinstein and Ranking Member Kennedy and Chairwoman Kaptur and Ranking Member Simpson:

As the U.S. House and Senate Subcommittees for Energy and Water Development finalize the Energy and Water Development Fiscal Year 2022 appropriations bill, Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES) respectfully requests support for the following offices and programs within the U.S. Department of Energy that advance clean energy research, innovation, and technology.

Energy Storage: CRES supports the significant investment both bills make in energy storage programs and activities at the U.S. Department of Energy. Energy storage will play a vital role in integrating new energy sources while strengthening grid reliability and resilience. Energy storage systems are fuel-neutral and help generation connected to the grid – wind, solar, hydropower, nuclear, and natural gas – become more efficient, productive, and resilient. CRES encourages conferees to retain the robust funding that both subcommittees have detailed.

Industrial Decarbonization: CRES appreciates and supports the establishment and funding both committees provided for the Industrial Emissions Reduction Technology Development Program. As the Senate report noted, 32 percent of greenhouse gas emissions come from industrial sources, and the deployment of innovative technologies is critical to achieve significant emissions reductions in the hard to abate, industrial sector. Additionally, industrial decarbonization investments can improve manufacturing productivity, and promote U.S. development of new carbon-free innovative products.

CCUS and Power Systems: CRES encourages the subcommittee to support funding for Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS and Power Systems) in the final conference report. CRES appreciates that both committees exceeded the President’s FY22 budget request and FY21 funding levels and hopes the committee can consider funding CCUS technology at the highest appropriate level to reduce carbon emissions in both the power and industrial sectors.

EERE/Renewable Power: CRES supports a continued federal role in research and development in renewable power, including system modeling, energy storage integration, and distributive energy resources control coordination. The further development of the next generation of zero emissions technologies, such hydrogen, fuel cell technology, and bioenergy to name a few, are critical to reducing carbon emissions. CRES supports the committee’s investments in the renewable power portfolio within the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy office.

ARPA-E: CRES has been a staunch supporter of DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) program. Federal funding for ARPA-E would ensure that the United States maintains a technological lead in developing and deploying advanced energy technologies. The program’s mission is to enhance the economic and energy security of the United States through the development of technologies that reduce imports of energy from foreign sources and identify and promote revolutionary advances in energy-related applied sciences. CRES supports the House funding level of $600 million for the ARPA-E program.

Critical Minerals: The Energy Act of 2020 authorized important research, development, and deployment activities related to critical minerals. Additionally, the bill promoted research and development projects to enhance the security and stability of the rare earth element supply chain. This research will include approaches to mining of domestic rare earth elements that are critical to U.S. technology development and manufacturing, as well as emphasize environmentally responsible mining practices. CRES supports robust funding for the Critical Minerals Initiative and urges the committee to fund these activities at the highest possible level.

CRES was pleased to see the enactment of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act and applauds the inclusion of crucial energy demonstration projects that will ensure that the U.S. leads the world in innovation as we work to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. Thank you for the Committee’s continued leadership in supporting innovation and investments at U.S. Department of Energy.

Sincerely,

Heather Reams
Executive Director, CRES

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