Rush Draws Attention to Quadrennial Energy Review Legislation at Energy & Power Subcommittee Hearing
WASHINGTON, D.C. – June 4, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — Today, during the Energy and Power Subcommittee hearing to review the Department of Energy’s (DOE) first Quadrennial Energy Report draft report, U.S. Representative Bobby L. Rush (D-Ill.) sought to garner bipartisan support for Quadrennial Energy Report (QER) legislation that he will soon be introducing. Rush’s bill would amend the Department of Energy Organization Act to replace the current requirement for a biennial energy policy plan with a quadrennial energy review.
Rush made his plea for bipartisan support for his bill during the hearing with Department of Energy Secretary, Ernest Moniz, who presented key components of the QER to the subcommittee, focusing on energy transmission, storage, and distribution infrastructure (TS&D). In his opening statement Rush declared, “It is my hope that this bill, like its Senate counterpart that was recently introduced by Senator Coons of Delaware and Senator Alexander of Tennessee, will attract bipartisan support. In fact, I have only held off on introducing the bill as of yet so that my office can continue to hold talks with the majority side in order to find language that both sides can agree on.” Rush went on to state, “Mr. Chairman, I will continue to reach across the aisle for support on this nonpartisan issue of codifying a quadrennial energy review, and I hope we can find common ground.”
In June 2013, President Obama initiated a quadrennial cycle of energy reviews as part of the President’s “Climate Action Plan.” On January 9, 2014, President Obama issued a Presidential Memorandum directing the Administration to conduct a Quadrennial Energy Review (QER). Planned annual installments of the QER over the ensuing four years are to focus on resource extraction and processing, energy transport and storage infrastructure, electricity generation, and energy end-use. On April 21, 2015, the first installment of the QER was released, focusing on energy transmission, storage, and distribution infrastructure (TS&D).
During the hearing, Rush also commended Secretary Moniz for his leadership in a wide array of different energy topics, including the historic nuclear talks with Iran, establishing the Minorities in Energy Initiative at the Department of Energy, and for overseeing the development of the comprehensive QER. Rush went on to request a meeting with the Secretary to discuss the progress of some of the initiatives that he and Moniz had worked on in the past. “Specifically, I would like to discuss with you the issue of inclusiveness and outreach at the publicly-funded national labs, including but not limited to Argonne and Fermi. My office will be in touch to schedule a meeting between the both of us for the very near future,” Rush informed the Secretary during the questioning portion of the hearing.
To listen to Rush’s entire opening statement view the following video:
