The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“ENERGY EFFICIENCY” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Labor was published in the Senate section on pages S2769-S2770 on May 7, 2014.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, this is the first time since 2007 the Senate has taken up and considered an energy bill. I am pleased we are finally discussing this important issue. I hope we will also take time to talk about our country's recent boom in oil and gas production.
In the years since our last energy debate in the Senate, the United States has transitioned from a position of inordinate dependence on foreign energy sources to become one of the largest energy producers in the world today. Much of this is the result of technological innovation, and we must do everything possible to make it easier for domestic companies to access, refine, and transport the oil and gas that has become available with recent advances in technology.
In my view, energy efficiency and industrial competitiveness should not be addressed without also addressing energy production. The two are necessarily interrelated, and it makes no sense to treat each in isolation. But that isn't happening today. As a result, we are missing a critical opportunity to have an important debate on how best to invest our Nation's resources to support domestic energy production.
The bill we have been discussing establishes new programs promoting energy efficiencies for buildings and manufacturing. It authorizes new spending for career skills and workforce training. But instead of simply devoting additional resources to energy efficiency programs, we should first understand the impact of existing energy sector programs administered by the Federal Government and, most critically, have a serious conversation about broader energy policy.
If the Senate actually functioned the way it was designed and I was given the opportunity, I would have called up amendment No. 3015, which would eliminate some of the duplication and overlap which has become so prevalent as the size and scope of the Federal Government continues to expand.
Our Federal bureaucracy has grown to the point that government agencies are simply unaware many of the programs they administer are duplicated by similar--and sometimes nearly identical--programs administered in other Federal agencies.
The Federal Leviathan has become so large and complex that the left hand literally doesn't know what the right hand is doing, especially when it comes to spending taxpayer moneys. This is simply unacceptable.
Our national government has grown so unwieldy that coordination between its individual parts cannot be assumed and often must instead be mandated. This phenomenon is certainly the case with many of the programs that would receive funding if this bill was enacted as currently written.
Currently, the Department of Labor, the Department of Education, and the Department of Energy each administer programs that fund training and education targeted specifically at the energy sector. I am sure the Federal bureaucrats in each of these three agencies are trying to do as best they can. But it can't possibly be necessary or, for that matter, wise for all three agencies to be doing the same thing.
The obvious solution is for the Department of Energy to ensure there are no federally funded programs with the same stated objectives as the programs they are already administering.
My amendment requires the Secretary of Energy to coordinate with the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education prior to issuing any career skills and workforce training funding opportunity announcements to ensure that these three departments are not issuing redundant and overlapping grants.
We cannot keep spending more taxpayer dollars in the same inefficient ways. Energy efficiency is important, but far more important is our Nation's overall energy policy. We should be discussing energy efficiency only as part of that critical debate.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Louisiana is recognized.
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