Energy Secretary Chris Wright testified on the Trump administration’s budget request for his department before a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing in which many of the questions were focused on funds already authorized by Congress that his department has delayed.
“This budget will return DOE to its core mission of advancing energy innovation and global competitiveness through research and development,” Wright told the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development on May 7. “We will invest DOE’s resources in sources and technologies that support affordable, reliable and secure energy and provide a return on investment for the American taxpayers.”
The hearing was scheduled at the same time as other Appropriations subcommittees were reviewing budgets for the departments of Agriculture, the Army, the Treasury and Homeland Security. That schedule led to complaints from Ranking Member Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio).
“We’re being squished into this tourniquet, and it’s not fair to you, and it’s not fair to the American people, and it’s not fair to members,” Kaptur said. “And I know this chairman didn’t do it, but I don’t like it because we can’t get into the level of detail that we need to do. And it’s all part of this squeeze by the new administration.”
In addition to complaining about the Republican majority’s review of the budget, she also criticized the proposed $20 billion in cuts to DOE’s budget, including 74% of the funding for energy efficiency and renewable energy.
“Since January, the Department of Energy has suspended critical energy programs, canceled executed awards and contracts authorized by this Congress, severely reduced staffing — including removal of the inspector general who tries to go after the crooks — and changed contracting policies,” Kaptur said. “The resulting confusion has disrupted communities, businesses and project developers across our country.”
At her time for questioning, Kaptur asked Wright why he had not responded to letters she and colleagues have sent to him this year asking about reports on paused congressionally approved funding.
“I receive dozens of letters accusing me of things that are reported in headlines, in blog posts and media all over the place, almost all of which are false,” Wright said. “Everyone who’s reached directly out to me, I’ve jumped on the phone with.”
Wright said his department has not paused funding because any project that already was underway has not seen its funding impacted. But it is reviewing other projects that were not underway. Part of that review includes $100 billion in loan commitments the Biden administration pushed out between the 2024 presidential election and President Donald Trump’s inauguration, Wright said.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), the ranking member of the Appropriations Committee, said Congress was supposed to receive a detailed spending plan for this fiscal year by the end of April, which did not happen.
“I’ve got a fear that we’re going to lawlessly, illegally try to move these funds and move them elsewhere,” DeLauro said. “But the law of the land is the 2024 enacted budget applied to 2025, so, really we’re going to press on getting that.”
She added that the department has refused to release $67 billion in funding. Wright took issue with her characterization of the issue and, in response to a later question, explained what is going on with that money.
“I’m very cautious about giving answers when I don’t really have an answer,” Wright said. “I’ve assembled a team and a process that’s not political, that’s not focused on buzzwords. It’s just a technology, business and end-market overview of projects. If we invest a lot of money, we want something at the other end that’s going to go forward, that’s going to have customers and off-takers and move on with it.”
The government spends $1.25 for every dollar in taxes it collects, Wright said, so he is on board with Trump’s policies that are meant to bring that spending under control. DOE grew 20% under the Biden administration, and the request would cut its budget to the lowest level since 2017.
Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.) told Wright he was on board with the administration’s goals to rein in government spending, but he pressed the secretary on staffing cuts at the Bonneville Power Administration that gets no funding from taxpayers. About 200 employees have taken buyouts offered by the Trump administration, and Newhouse worried that low staffing levels could impact the power marketing agency’s operations.
Wright said he and DOE leadership are concerned about BPA and other federal power marketers’ staffing levels as well, saying those 200 employees took an initial offer for early retirement and that staffing already was below target when Trump took office.
“We did a second round that’s been much bigger, but we’ve been specific at saying we can’t have people leave from Bonneville Power and the other power marketing agencies, because I don’t think we have room to reduce head count there anymore,” Wright said.
