WASHINGTON, DC, US. President George Bush has asked Congress for US$25 billion in funds for the Department of Energy, of which $1.25 billion is allocated for the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy.
Energy secretary Samuel Bodman says the DOE budget request for FY2009 is an increase of $1 billion over the FY2008 appropriation and will “continue investments to meet growing energy demand with clean, safe, affordable, reliable and diverse supplies of energy; support the development of climate change technologies; advance environmental cleanup; and ensure the reliability of our nuclear weapons stockpile.” The budget supports development of carbon capture and storage technologies and accelerates technology to further the Advanced Energy Initiative.
The Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy budget requests $1.25 billion, $1 million more than the administration’s FY2008 request, to support a diverse portfolio of energy options, including fuels and vehicles ($592 million); renewable power ($242 million); and energy efficiency ($186 million) programs.
For fuels and vehicles, the funding would go to biomass ($225 million) for commercial scale cellulosic ethanol by 2012, as well as support for plug-in hybrids, lithium-ion batteries, and hydrogen fuel cell technology.
To advance renewables, the budget request includes funding for the Solar America Initiative ($225 million total - $156 million from EERE and $69 million from the Office of Science); wind power research ($53 million) and geothermal ($30 million). The budget request supports energy efficiency programs, including buildings and industrial technologies ($186 million), to reduce energy consumption and reduce the carbon footprint through zero-energy buildings.
"This budget furthers President Bush’s comprehensive strategy to increase energy, economic, and national security by focusing on accelerating technological breakthroughs, expanding traditional and renewable sources of energy, and increasing investment in scientific discovery and development,” Bodman explains.
The budget request was criticized by the Center for American Progress, which says it involves “cuts in critical areas, including climate protection, tribal energy and solar energy, while funding for fossil and nuclear energy was increased.” It notes the Renewable Energy Production Incentive was “zeroed out entirely.”
Among the inconsistencies in the request was a 27% decrease in total funding requested for the Department of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy programs from the FY2008 appropriations level; a 25% increase in funding for nuclear energy; and reductions to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance and Weatherization Assistance programs.
For renewable energy, the proposed budget for the Renewable Energy Production Incentive program us zero, down from $5 million allocated in FY2008. It also includes a $6.9 million cut to the hydropower program (cut of 70% from FY2008 appropriations); a $12.3 million cut to the solar energy program (down 7%); a $26.8 million increase in biomass and biorefinery systems R&D (up 13%); and a $10.2 million increase in geothermal technology (up 51%) which the group said should “be commended as an investment in low-carbon alternatives.”
The budget also includes a $4.9 million reduction to tribal activities such as the Tribal Energy Program, which provides financial and technical assistance to Native American tribes for feasibility studies of renewable energy development on tribal lands, and offers assistance to tribes for the initial steps toward renewable energy development. This is an 83% cut from the FY2008 appropriations level.
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