Seal of the U.S. Department of Energy
| |
 James V. Forrestal Building, Department Headquarters | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | August 4, 1977 |
| Preceding agencies | |
| Headquarters | James V. Forrestal Building 1000 Independence Avenue Southwest, Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Employees | 12,944 federal (2014) 93,094 contract (2008) |
| Annual budget | $27.9 billion (2015) |
| Agency executives | |
| Website | energy |
The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is a cabinet-level department of the United States Government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material. Its responsibilities include the nation's nuclear weapons program, nuclear reactor production for the United States Navy, energy conservation, energy-related research, radioactive waste disposal, and domestic energy production. It also directs research in genomics; the Human Genome Project originated in a DOE initiative. DOE sponsors more research in the physical sciences than any other U.S. federal agency, the majority of which is conducted through its system of National Laboratories. The agency is administered by the United States Secretary of Energy, and its headquarters are located in Southwest Washington, D.C., on Independence Avenue in the James V. Forrestal Building, named for James Forrestal, as well as in Germantown, Maryland.
Former Governor of Texas Rick Perry is the current Secretary of Energy. He was confirmed by a 62 to 37 vote in the United States Senate on March 2, 2017.
History
Formation and consolidation
In 1942, during World War II, the United States started the Manhattan Project, a project to develop the atomic bomb, under the eye of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. After the war in 1946, the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was created to control the future of the project. Among other nuclear projects, the AEC produced fabricated uranium fuel cores at locations such as Fernald Feed Materials Production Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1974, the AEC gave way to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which was tasked with regulating the nuclear power industry, and the Energy Research and Development Administration, which was tasked to manage the nuclear weapon, naval reactor, and energy development programs.
The 1973 oil crisis called attention to the need to consolidate energy policy.
On August 4, 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed into law The Department of Energy Organization Act of 1977 (Pub.L. 95–91, 91 Stat. 565, enacted August 4, 1977), which created the Department of Energy. The new agency, which began operations on October 1, 1977, consolidated the Federal Energy Administration, the Energy Research and Development Administration, the Federal Power Commission, and programs of various other agencies. Former Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger, who served under Presidents Nixon and Ford during the Vietnam War, was appointed as the first secretary.
Weapon plans stolen
In December 1999, the FBI was investigating how China obtained plans for a specific nuclear device. Wen Ho Lee was accused of stealing nuclear secrets from Los Alamos National Laboratory for the People's Republic of China. Federal officials, including then-Energy Secretary Bill Richardson,
publicly named Lee as a suspect before he was charged with a crime. The
U.S. Congress held hearings to investigate the Department of Energy's
mishandling of his case. Republican senators thought that an independent
agency should be in charge of nuclear weapons and security issues, not the Department of Energy.
All but one of the 59 charges against Lee were eventually dropped
because the investigation finally proved that the plans the Chinese
obtained could not have come from Lee. Lee filed suit and won a $1.6
million settlement against the federal government and news agencies.
Loan guarantee program of 2005
In 2001, American Solar Challenge was sponsored by the United States Department of Energy and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. After the 2005 race, the U.S. Department of Energy discontinued its sponsorship.
Title XVII of Energy Policy Act of 2005
authorizes the DOE to issue loan guarantees to eligible projects that
"avoid, reduce, or sequester air pollutants or anthropogenic emissions
of greenhouse gases"
and "employ new or significantly improved technologies as compared to
technologies in service in the United States at the time the guarantee
is issued".
In loan guarantees, a conditional commitment requires to meet an equity
commitment, as well as other conditions, before the loan guarantee is
completed.
The United States Department of Energy, the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management (INMM), and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) partnered to develop and launch the World Institute for Nuclear Security
(WINS) in September 2008. WINS is an international non-governmental
organization designed to provide a forum to share best practices in
strengthening the security and safety of nuclear and radioactive materials and facilities.
Recent
On March
28, 2017 a supervisor in the Office of International Climate and Clean
Energy asked staff to avoid the phrases "climate change," "emissions
reduction," or "Paris Agreement" in written memos, briefings or other
written communication. A DOE spokesperson denied that phrases had been
banned.
Organization
Structure and positions
Organizational chart of the U.S. Department of Energy as of July 2015
Energy
| Program | |
|---|---|
| Secretary of Energy | Deputy Secretary of Energy *Associate Deputy Secretary of Energy |
| Assistant Secretary of Energy (Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy) | |
| Assistant Secretary of Energy (Nuclear Energy) | |
| Assistant Secretary of Energy (Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability) | |
| Assistant Secretary of Energy (International Affairs) | |
| Assistant Secretary of Energy (Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs) | |
| Assistant Secretary of Energy (Cybersecurity, Energy Security and Emergency Response) | |
| Office of the General Counsel | |
| Office of the Chief Financial Officer | |
| Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy | |
| Energy Information Administration | |
| Bonneville Power Administration | |
| Southeastern Power Administration | |
| Southwestern Power Administration | |
| Western Area Power Administration | |
| Federal Energy Regulatory Commission | |
| Enterprise Assessments | |
| Energy Policy and System Analysis | |
| Intelligence and Counterintelligence | |
| Loan Programs Office | |
| Public Affairs | |
| Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization | |
| Under Secretary of Energy for Science | Office of Science |
| Assistant Secretary of Energy (Fossil Energy) | |
| Indian Energy Policy and Programs | |
| Technology Transitions | |
| Under Secretary of Energy for Nuclear Security | National Nuclear Security Administration |
| Under Secretary of Energy | National Laboratory Operations Board |
| Associate Under Secretary of Energy (Environment, Health, Safety and Security) | |
| Office of Management | |
| Chief Human Capital Officer | |
| Chief Information Officer | |
| Economic Impact and Diversity | |
| Hearings and Appeals | |
| Assistant Secretary of Energy (Environmental Management) *Legacy Management | |
The department is under the control and supervision of a United States Secretary of Energy, a political appointee of the President of the United States. The Energy Secretary is assisted in managing the department by a United States Deputy Secretary of Energy,
also appointed by the president, who assumes the duties of the
secretary in his absence. The department also has three under
secretaries, each appointed by the president, who oversee the major
areas of the department's work. The president also appoints seven
officials with the rank of Assistant Secretary of Energy who have line
management responsibility for major organizational elements of the
Department. The Energy Secretary assigns their functions and duties.
Symbolism in the seal
Excerpt from the Code of Federal Regulations, in Title 10: Energy:
The official seal of the Department of energy
"... includes a green shield bisected by a gold-colored lightning bolt, on which is emblazoned a gold-colored symbolic sun, atom, oil derrick, windmill, and dynamo. It is crested by the white head of an eagle, atop a white rope. Both appear on a blue field surrounded by concentric circles in which the name of the agency, in gold, appears on a green background."
"The eagle represents the care in planning and the purposefulness of efforts required to respond to the Nation's increasing demands for energy. The sun, atom, oil derrick, windmill, and dynamo serve as representative technologies whose enhanced development can help meet these demands. The rope represents the cohesiveness in the development of the technologies and their link to our future capabilities. The lightning bolt represents the power of the natural forces from which energy is derived and the Nation's challenge in harnessing the forces."
"The color scheme is derived from nature, symbolizing both the source of energy and the support of man's existence. The blue field represents air and water, green represents mineral resources and the earth itself, and gold represents the creation of energy in the release of natural forces. By invoking this symbolism, the color scheme represents the Nation's commitment to meet its energy needs in a manner consistent with the preservation of the natural environment."
Facilities
The Department of Energy operates a system of national laboratories
and technical facilities for research and development agency, as
follows:
- Ames Laboratory
- Argonne National Laboratory
- Brookhaven National Laboratory
- Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory
- Idaho National Laboratory
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
- Los Alamos National Laboratory
- National Energy Technology Laboratory
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
- Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
- Sandia National Laboratories
- Savannah River National Laboratory
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
- Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility
Other major DOE facilities include:
- Albany Research Center
- Bannister Federal Complex
- Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory – focuses on the design and development of nuclear power for the U.S. Navy
- Kansas City Plant
- Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory – operates for Naval Reactors Program Research under the DOE (not a National Laboratory)
- National Petroleum Technology Office
- Nevada Test Site
- New Brunswick Laboratory
- Office of Fossil Energy
- Office of River Protection
- Pantex
- Radiological and Environmental Sciences Laboratory
- Y-12 National Security Complex
- Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository
Other:
- Pahute Mesa Airstrip – Nye County, Nevada, in supporting Nevada National Security Site
Nuclear weapons sites
The DOE/NNSA
has federal responsibility for the design, testing and production of
all nuclear weapons. NNSA in turn uses contractors to carry out its
responsibilities at the following government owned sites:
- Design of the nuclear components of the weapon: Los Alamos National Laboratory and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
- Engineering of the weapon systems: Sandia National Laboratories
- Manufacturing of key components: Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Kansas City Plant, and Y-12 National Security Complex
- Testing: Nevada Test Site
- Final weapon and warhead assembling and dismantling: Pantex
Related legislation
Sign in front of the United States Department of Energy Forrestal Building on 1000 Independence Avenue in Washington D.C.
- 1920 – Federal Power Act
- 1935 – Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935
- 1946 – Atomic Energy Act PL 79-585 (created the Atomic Energy Commission) [Superseded by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954]
- 1954 – Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as Amended PL 83-703
- 1956 – Colorado River Storage Project PL 84-485
- 1957 – Atomic Energy Commission Acquisition of Property PL 85-162
- 1957 – Price-Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act PL 85-256
- 1968 – Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act PL 90-481
- 1973 – Mineral Leasing Act Amendments (Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline Authorization) PL 93-153
- 1974 – Energy Reorganization Act PL 93-438 (Split the AEC into the Energy Research and Development Administration and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission)
- 1975 – Energy Policy and Conservation Act PL 94-163
- 1977 – Department of Energy Organization Act PL 95-91 (Dismantled ERDA and replaced it with the Department of Energy)
- 1978 – National Energy Act PL 95-617, 618, 619, 620, 621
- 1980 – Energy Security Act PL 96-294
- 1989 – Natural Gas Wellhead Decontrol Act PL 101-60
- 1992 – Energy Policy Act of 1992 PL 102-486
- 2000 – National Nuclear Security Administration Act PL 106-65
- 2005 – Energy Policy Act of 2005 PL 109-58
- 2007 – Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 PL 110-140
- 2008 – Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 PL 110-234
Budget
President Barack Obama unveiled on May 7, 2009, a $26.4 billion budget request for DOE for fiscal year (FY) 2010, including $2.3 billion for the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). The budget aims to substantially expand the use of renewable energy sources while improving energy transmission infrastructure. It also makes significant investments in hybrids and plug-in hybrids, in smart grid technologies, and in scientific research and innovation.
As part of the $789 billion economic stimulus package in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
of 2009, Congress provided Energy with an additional $38.3 billion for
fiscal years 2009 and 2010, adding about 75 percent to Energy's annual
budgets. Most of the stimulus spending was in the form of grants and
contracts. For fiscal year 2013, each of the operating units of the Department of Energy operated with the following budgets:
| Division | Funding |
|---|---|
| Nuclear Security | $11.5 |
| Energy and Environment | $9.5 |
| Science | $4.9 |
| Management | $0.25 |
| Other | $0.85 |
| Total | $28 |
In March 2018, Energy Secretary Rick Perry testified to a Senate
panel about the Trump administration’s DOE budget request for fiscal
year 2019. The budget request prioritizes nuclear security while making
large cuts to energy efficiency and renewable energy programs. The
proposal is a $500 million in crease in funds over fiscal year 2017. It
"promotes innovations like a new Office of Cybersecurity, Energy
Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) and gains for the Office of
Fossil Energy. Investments would be made to strengthen the National
Nuclear Security Administration and modernize the nuclear force, as well
as in weapons activities and advanced computing." However, the budget
for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy would be
lowered to $696 million under the plan, down from $1.3 billion in fiscal
year 2017. Overall, the department’s energy and related programs would
be cut by $1.9 billion.
Programs and contracts
Energy Savings Performance Contract
Energy Savings Performance Contracts (ESPCs) are contracts under
which a contractor designs, constructs, and obtains the necessary
financing for an energy savings project, and the federal agency makes
payments over time to the contractor from the savings in the agency's
utility bills. The contractor guarantees the energy improvements will
generate savings, and after the contract ends, all continuing cost
savings accrue to the federal agency.
Energy Innovation Hubs
Energy Innovation Hubs are multi-disciplinary
meant to advance highly promising areas of energy science and
technology from their early stages of research to the point that the
risk level will be low enough for industry to commercialize the
technologies.
The Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors (CASL)
was the first DOE Energy Innovation Hub established in July 2010, for
the purpose of providing advanced modeling and simulation (M&S)
solutions for commercial nuclear reactors.
The 2009 DOE budget includes $280 million to fund eight Energy
Innovation Hubs, each of which is focused on a particular energy
challenge. Two of the eight hubs are included in the EERE
budget and will focus on integrating smart materials, designs, and
systems into buildings to better conserve energy and on designing and
discovering new concepts and materials needed to convert solar energy
into electricity. Another two hubs, included in the DOE Office of
Science budget, were created to tackle the challenges of devising
advanced methods of energy storage and creating fuels directly from
sunlight without the use of plants or microbes. Yet another hub was made
to develop "smart" materials to allow the electrical grid to adapt and
respond to changing conditions.
In 2012, The DOE awarded $120 million to the Ames Laboratory to start a new EIH, the Critical Materials Institute, which will focus on improving the supply of rare earth elements, which is controlled by China.
Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy
ARPA-E was officially created by the America COMPETES Act , authored by Congressman Bart Gordon,
within the United States Department of Energy (DOE) in 2007, though
without a budget. The initial budget of about $400 million was a part
of the economic stimulus bill of February 2009.
Other
- State Energy Program
- Weatherization Assistance Program
- Federal Energy Management Program
- GovEnergy - an annual event partly sponsored by the DOE
- Solar Decathlon - international collegiate competition to design and build solar-powered houses
