Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2017

Floor Speech

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Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to offer a bipartisan amendment with my colleague from Pennsylvania, Congressman Perry, and my colleague from Maine, Congresswoman Pingree, in support of water power technologies.

Mr. Chairman, our amendment would increase funding to the Department of Energy's Water Power Program by $9 million. This increase is offset by an equal amount by the departmental administration account.

As Congress promotes technologies that can help lower our constituents' energy bills, we must invest in new and innovative solutions, and my colleague just made a case for why hydropower is so important.

The Department of Energy has estimated that our Nation's marine energy resources could, in the future, represent a very good portion of U.S. generation needs.

Oregon State University, the University of Washington, and the University of Alaska Fairbanks are leveraging Federal funding from the Water Power Program to support the testing and research activities of the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center, a center that will provide visionary entrepreneurs with the domestic location to test wave energy devices, along with other technology, instead of traveling to Scotland to use their test center.

Without continued Federal investment, Europe will remain the leader. China is investing heavily in these technologies as well.

Federal partnerships with educational institutions and the private sector are necessary to further the research and development efforts already well underway and close the gap for these technologies on the verge of commercial viability.

The National Hydropower Association, along with its Pumped Storage and Marine Energy Councils have endorsed our bipartisan amendment. Investments in these technologies and this source of energy will spur domestic industry and create good-paying jobs and economic opportunities in our communities.

Mr. Chairman, I urge the adoption of this bipartisan amendment.

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Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Chairman, again, I want to thank my colleague from Pennsylvania and my colleague from Maine for cosponsoring this important amendment. This is a modest increase in the Water Power Program. It supports marine and hydropower energy technology, and I urge all of my colleagues to support this bipartisan amendment.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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