Skip to primary navigation Skip to content
December 21, 2020

Chairwoman Johnson Celebrates Passage of Robust Energy Policy in FY21 Omnibus

(Dallas, TX) — Today, the House of Representatives considered and passed legislation providing further funding for Fiscal Year 2021. Included was the Energy Act of 2020 which supports and directs the Department of Energy to conduct comprehensive clean energy research, development, demonstration, and commercialization activities that will be key to achieving meaningful carbon pollution reduction targets as quickly as possible and supporting a clean energy economy. These policies are strongly consistent with the work and recommendations set forth by the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. 

 

The Energy Act of 2020 includes 14 bipartisan bills that the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee developed and advanced over the course of this Congress. Those bills are H.R. 34, the Energy and Water Research Integration ActH.R. 2986, the Better Energy Storage Technologies ActH.R. 3607, the Fossil Energy Research and Development ActH.R. 3609, the Wind Energy Research and Development ActH.R. 3597, the Solar Energy Research and Development ActH.R. 4091, the ARPA-E Reauthorization ActH.R. 4230, the Clean Industrial Technology Act (CITA)H.R. 5428, the Grid Modernization Research and Development ActH.R. 5374, the Advanced Geothermal Research and Development ActH.R. 4481, the Securing Energy Critical Elements and American Jobs ActH.R. 6084, the Water Power Research and Development ActH.R. 6097, the Nuclear Energy Research and Development ActH.R. 8273, the Energizing Technology Transfer Act; and H.R. 4733, the Low-Dose Radiation Research Act. It also incorporates two substantive floor amendments in fusion energy research and development and produced water research and development, offered by Committee Members to H.R. 4447, the Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act, to make further progress in these critical areas.

Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Jonson (D-TX) made the following statement.

“I am pleased to see language included in the FY21 spending package that makes long-overdue reforms to U.S. energy and environment policy and authorizes investments in innovative energy technologies, one of the best ways to address the climate crisis while growing our economy. The bipartisan and bicameral Energy Act of 2020 is a down payment on fighting climate change that will allow the Biden-Harris Administration to hit the ground running on day one to drive us toward a clean energy future. As I’ve made clear throughout this Congress, our response to climate change is not a choice between action versus jobs. In fact, addressing the climate crisis provides a unique opportunity for the U.S. to create a clean energy future while strengthening our position as a global economic leader - spurring new and advanced industries, supporting high-paying jobs, and preparing our next generation of clean energy researchers and other professionals.”