Washington, DC – U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann (TN-03), Chairman of Energy and Water Appropriations, lauded the passage of the fiscal year 2024 Energy and Water Development appropriations bill, which makes historic investments to strengthen and modernize America’s nuclear stockpile, advance America’s New Nuclear Future, and support critical basic science and energy security work at the Oak Ridge National Lab (ORNL) and throughout the United States.
“I applaud my bipartisan colleagues in the House of Representatives for their support of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill. By working together to strengthen America’s national and energy security, the final Energy and Water bill is a strong investment in America. I’m proud that it responsibly uses every precious and limited taxpayer dollar available to support many national security and energy security priorities conservatives have long championed.”
“To support America’s nuclear arsenal and ensure we do not fall behind nuclear-armed adversaries such as China and Russia, the bill funds the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) at more than $24.1 billion to ensure the United States maintains a safe, secure, and reliable strategic nuclear deterrent. Specifically, the Energy and Water bill fully funds all major weapons and infrastructure modernization activities, including the W-93 warhead, the nuclear Sea-Launched Cruise Missile, a variant of the B61 gravity bomb, and the restart of domestic plutonium pit production capability.”
“The Energy and Water bill also makes strong investments in the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science and Office of Nuclear Energy to ensure that America remains the global leader in scientific discovery and counters the Chinese Communist Party’s growing malign influence in advanced sciences and developing new nuclear technologies. These efforts will ensure America has reliable, sustainable, and affordable energy here at home and will help our allies around the globe who want to buy American-made nuclear technologies.”
“We were given an arduous task – to make the most of limited, precious taxpayer dollars to rebuild our nuclear defenses, invest in American global scientific leadership, and build on groundbreaking fusion energy breakthroughs. I am proud that we accomplished just that. The Energy and Water Development appropriations bill delivers for the American People and ensures our country remains the world’s preeminent nuclear power and scientific leader. I strongly urge the Senate to act quickly and pass the Energy and Water bill by a wide bipartisan vote.”
Highlights of the Fiscal Year 2024 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Bill:
The bill includes $24.135 billion for the National Nuclear Security Administration, $1.972 billion above FY23 enacted and more than President Biden requested to defend our nation, to ensure the United States maintains a safe, secure, and reliable strategic deterrent.
- $810 million for the Uranium Processing Facility, $50 million above the administration’s requested level.
- $2.911 billion for plutonium pit production, $142 million above the administration’s requested level.
- Full funding for all Life Extension Programs and the vital work for the future nuclear Sea-Launched Cruise Missile program.
The bill funds the Office of Science at $8.24 billion, $140 million above FY23 enacted.
- $373 million for operations at ORNL’s high-flex neutron sources (the Spallation Neutron Source and the High Flux Isotope Reactor).
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$790 million for Fusion Energy Sciences to advance our understanding of plasma physics and support bringing commercial fusion energy to the grid.
- $40 million for the Milestone Program, which accelerates progress toward developing commercial fusion power plant designs through public-private partnerships between industry and the Office of Science.
- $25 million for ORNL’s MPEX experiment, which will advance materials science for fusion.
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$130 million for Isotope R&D and Production, which produces isotopes that are in short supply but critically important to numerous industries throughout the nation. The program is one of a few producers of these critical isotopes in the world.
- Includes funding to continue construction of the U.S. Stable Isotope Production and Research Center and begin construction of the Radioisotope Processing Facility, both of which are located at ORNL.
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$1.02 billion for Advanced Scientific Computing Research, which leads quantum computing, artificial intelligence and machine learning, and big data efforts for the Office of Science:
- $255 million for the ORNL Leadership Computing Facility, which maintains Frontier, the world’s fastest supercomputer, and advances artificial intelligence research utilizing other ORNL high-performance computers.
The bill provides $1.685 billion for the Office of Nuclear Energy, which is $122 million above the administration’s requested level, and funds several key provisions that Chairman Fleischmann included in the House bill earlier this year and fought to include in the final bill:
- $900 million for next-generation small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs), including $100 million for design and $800 million for deployment of SMR designs that are ready for deployment now.
- $2.8 billion for domestic uranium production, including high assay low enriched uranium (HALEU) necessary for advanced nuclear energy reactor technologies.
- $316 million to continue the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program.
- $20 million for used fuel reprocessing, including $10 million for design and $10 million for licensing.
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This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://fleischmann.house.gov/media/press-releases/chairman-fleischmann-s-energy-and-water-development-bill-passes-house