Department of Energy Science and Innovation Act of 2018

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5905, the Department of Energy Science and Innovation Act of 2018. This bill provides important statutory direction to the Department of Energy's Office of Science, which is our Nation's largest supporter of research in the physical sciences. So it is impossible to overstate its importance to our energy future and to our overall innovation enterprise.

This agency also operates more than 30 world-class scientific user facilities, whose applications range from developing new materials for next generation batteries, to new pharmaceuticals that will better treat diseases, to even examining the fundamental building blocks of the universe.

Much of this bill is derived from previous bipartisan, bicameral agreements that were included in H.R. 589, the House-passed Department of Energy Research and Innovation Act of 2017.

As we await Senate action on that legislation, I support moving forward with additional language included in this bill that would authorize upgrades to several important user facilities, direct DOE to provide sufficient support to maintain our commitments to the ITER international fusion project, and provide statutory authority to fund low-dose radiation research as well as a promising computational materials initiative at our national labs.

I also note that I am happy to see robust funding levels included in this bipartisan bill, particularly for the Biological and Environmental Research program, which supports critical research to reduce uncertainties and better understand the impacts of climate change. I strongly support this bill and encourage my colleagues to do the same.

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