Dear Chair Murray, Chair Fleischmann, Ranking Member Kennedy, and Ranking Member Kaptur:
As you know, to meet our energy security and climate goals, the enactment of a strong Fiscal Year 2024 Energy
and Water Development bill is of the upmost importance and this effort must include robust funding for carbon
dioxide removal (CDR) research, development, and demonstration (RD&D). To help ensure the maximum return
on investment of limited federal research dollars, we urge you to support the highest possible funding level for
CDR RD&D that specifically includes $20,000,000 to continue a competitive purchasing pilot program for CDR.
These strategic investments would provide strong support for the Department of Energy to continue and advance
its work on CDR technologies, which are an essential component of the full portfolio of solutions needed to meet
net-zero climate goals. This is especially important when considering that the National Academies of Sciences,
Engineering and Medicine (NAS) has stated that 10 billion metric tons of excess carbon dioxide (CO2) will need to
be removed from the atmosphere globally every year by 2050, rising to 20 billion annually in 2100, to avert the
worst impacts of climate change. In addition to climate benefits, CDR technologies and their deployment will lead
to high-quality jobs and economic development across the U.S.
To meet the significant volume of carbon removal needed this century and secure the climate and economic
benefits, further RD&D will be needed to advance existing CDR approaches and invent new ones. The NAS and
International Energy Agency (IEA) have both recommended extensive research into a full portfolio of solutions,
including at the Department of Energy. Congress has also acted on a bipartisan basis to support CDR RD&D, with
bipartisan authorizations totaling about $320,000,000 for CDR RD&D at DOE in FY24.
Consistent with these recommendations, though less than what has been recommended by NAS, the Senate FY24
Energy and Water Appropriations bill currently provides significant support for varied CDR RD&D at the
Department of Energy. This funding is critical to continuing DOE’s work throughout the Department. In addition,
the Senate bill provides support for the competitive purchasing pilot program, a critical tool to support
commercialization and scaling of promising CDR technologies.
As you continue the FY24 appropriations process, we urge you to consider our request and include the highest
possible levels of funding for CDR RD&D. Thank you for your attention to this matter and please do not hesitate to
reach out with any questions.
Sincerely,
BPC Action
Carbon180
Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES)
ClearPath Action
Environmental Defense Fund
LTC Action
Third Way
World Resources Institute