Dear Chairman Murkowski and Ranking Member Manchin:
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce applauds your bipartisan leadership on energy issues and supports 13 bills the Committee will mark up on July 16. These bills would drive innovation, enhance energy and national security, and increase energy efficiency.
We strongly encourage the committee to favorably report these bills that collectively would enhance America’s global competitiveness and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Specifically, the Chamber supports:
S. 903, the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act, which would bolster America’s historic leadership in nuclear energy by facilitating the development of next-generation nuclear energy resources.
S. 1085, the Vehicle Innovation Act of 2019,which would support research and development into advanced vehicle technologies that can move larger volumes of goods and more passengers while using less energy and lowering emissions.
S. 1201, the Enhancing Fossil Fuel Energy Carbon Technology Act of 2019,which would authorize DOE to support the development of technologies that will significantly improve the efficiency, effectiveness, costs, and environmental performance of coal and natural gas use
S. 1286, the Energy Technology Maturation Act of 2019,which would establish a funding program to facilitate the commercialization of promising energy and related technologies that are developed at DOE facilities.
S. 1685, the Launching Energy Advancement and Development through Innovations for Natural Gas Act of 2019, which would accelerate the DOE’s research and development of commercially-viable carbon capture technologies for natural gas-fired electric generation facilities.
S. 816, the Small Scale LNG Access Act of 2019, which would streamline the application and approval process for small-scale exports of liquefied natural gas.
S. 1052, the Rare Earth Element Advanced Coal Technologies Act, which would require DOE to spur the development of advanced separation technology to extract and recover rare earth elements and minerals from coal and coal byproducts.
S. 1064, the Appalachian Energy for National Security Act, which would direct the Secretary of Energy to study the national security implications of building ethane and other natural-gas-liquids-related petrochemical infrastructure in the Appalachian Basin.
S. 1317, the American Mineral Security Act,which would expand the availability, development, and environmentally responsible production of domestic resources needed to meet national material and critical mineral needs.
S. 859, the Reliable Investment in Vital Energy Reauthorization Act,which would extend the authorization and eligibility for production incentives available to the owners or operators of hydroelectric facilities at existing dams in order to facilitate capital expenditures directly related to improving efficiency.
S. 983, the Weatherization Enhancement and Local Energy Efficiency Investment and Accountability Act of 2019,which would reauthorize the weatherization assistance program and promote energy efficiency and the deployment of renewable technologies.
S. 1706, the Energy Savings through Public-Private Partnerships Act of 2019,which would expanded Energy Savings Performance Contracts and Utility Energy Service Contracts that each allow federal agencies to increase their efficiency and thereby reduce their energy costs by using private sector funding and expertise.
S. 1857, the Federal Energy and Water Management Performance Act of 2019,which would amend the National Energy Conservation Policy Act to improve energy and water performance requirements for Federal buildings.
Collectively, these bills have the potential to leverage America’s rich resource portfolio while reducing the environmental footprint of energy production and use. We urge the Committee to favorably report these bills to the full Senate.
Sincerely,
Neil L. Bradley
cc: Members of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
