Senate Energy Committee Passes Energy Infrastructure Act

Last week, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed the “Energy Infrastructure Act,” which is expected to be part of the larger bipartisan infrastructure package currently working its way through Congress. The legislation will support nuclear energy, hydrogen energy, and carbon capture. The bill also includes provisions to bolster the nation’s electric grid and make it more resilient in the face of cyber threats and natural disasters.
 
The Energy Infrastructure Act authorizes over $100 billion to:

• Invest in the reliability and resilience of our electric grid and expand transmission capabilities
• Demonstrate the critical energy technologies
• Build out our domestic supply chains for clean energy technologies
• Invest in water infrastructure needed by western states, restore our ecosystems, and mitigate wildfire risk
• Clean up the abandoned energy infrastructure and mine lands that powered our country to greatness while also reducing methane emissions
• Fund the Energy Act of 2020 

Senate Energy Committee Chairman Joe Manchin (D-WV) shared the following statement after voting to advance the legislation: “I’m tremendously proud of the productive, bipartisan work we accomplished today on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. This Committee has a long history of working productively and across the aisle. This infrastructure bill includes provisions that have enjoyed strong bipartisan support in this Committee, like the SCALE Act and the REGROW Act. It also delivers on President Biden’s American Jobs Plan in many ways and has earned the support of a wide swath of stakeholders. Today’s vote is another critical step toward finalizing our bipartisan infrastructure package, and an important reminder that we can find sensible solutions to difficult problems when we put partisanship aside and work together.”
 
As the Senate plans to move forward with a comprehensive infrastructure package, the chamber will advance two versions: a bipartisan bill through regular order and another bill supported by Senate Democrats through reconciliation, which only requires a simple majority to move the legislation forward, bypassing the Senate’s filibuster process. The Energy Infrastructure Act passed by Committee will be included in the bipartisan version. The bipartisan infrastructure bill is expected to cost $1.2 trillion compared to the Democrat-led reconciled bill, which would cost $3.5 trillion.
 
ASME will continue to monitor the comprehensive infrastructure legislation as it advances through Congress.