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 POLICY ACT OF 2005” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Energy was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E839 on May 2, 2005.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
ENERGY POLICY ACT OF 2005
______
speech of
HON. JERRY F. COSTELLO
of illinois
in the house of representatives
Thursday, April 21, 2005
The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 6) to ensure jobs for our future with secure, affordable, and reliable energy:
Mr. COSTELLO. Mr. Chairman, those of us who come from coal-producing states, like Illinois, believe that DOE's fossil energy research and development program is very important to the future of coal utilization. Over the years, the coal R&D program of the Department of Energy has been broad-based and has led to many of the combustion and gasification technologies now in use. These technologies represent both environmental and energy-efficiency improvements over the technologies they have replaced. In last year's energy bill passed by the House, Science Chairman Boehlert and I reached agreement on a set of coal programs of research, development and demonstration priorities for the next decade. We also agreed that the authorizations for the coal programs set out in what are now sections 963, 965 and 967 should be at least 60 percent of the total authorization in section 968(a). The agreed-upon language from last year has been omitted from the version of H.R. 6 before us today. The requirement that at least 60 percent of fossil energy research and development funds be spent on coal remains in the Committee on Science's report, but not in the H.R. 6 bill language. There, the traditional categories of coal research funding are removed and replaced with a series of objectives, which are consistent with the roadmap for these programs developed by the Department in conjunction with industry. Therefore, it is my assumption and will be my position going forward into Conference that the intent of the House of Representatives towards coal research and development has not changed. We still favor a fossil R&D program that allocates at least the historical 60 percent of funds to coal R&D and that the House is not mandating significant structural changes in the program that we set out in last year's version of H.R. 6.
____________________
