Last week the House voted down an attempt by Pennsylvania Congressman Scott Perry (R-4) to modify funding for the 2014 energy and water bill (H.R. 2609). Perry proposed increasing funding for renewable energy programs by $31 million and reducing department administration by the same amount.
Several democrats also offered amendments aimed at restoring funding to renewable energy programs under the bill, which funds the Department of Energy and other agencies. But the House rejected these ideas as well.
The bill cuts non-security related spending by $2.5 billion compared to 2013. That includes a $100 million cut to civil works programs in the Army Corps of Engineers, another $100 million cut to the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Reclamation, and a $2.1 billion cut to the Department of Energy.
Two GOP proposals that were accepted including moving $15 million from Department of Energy’s administrative account, and $15 million from solar energy programs, to boost funding for rural water projects; and increasing funding for Defense Environmental Cleanup by $22.5 million, using funds from renewable energy programs and departmental administration.