Congressional Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Policy Forum (EXPO 2022): The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Energy Modernization

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Congressional Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Policy Forum (EXPO 2022)

Find out more about the briefings in this series below:
Panel 1 The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Energy Modernization
Panel 2 The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Buildings and Workforce
Panel 3 The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Transportation
Panel 4 Energy Security

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and the House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (REEE) Caucuses held the 25th Annual Congressional Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Policy Forum (EXPO 2022) on July 25, 2022. In the first panel, panelists discussed how the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Bipartisan Infrastructure Law) is promoting energy system modernization, with an emphasis on transmission and renewable energy resources.

 

Highlights

 

KEY TAKEAWAYS
  • Through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) (P.L. 117-58), also referred to as the bipartisan infrastructure law, Congress and the Biden-Harris Administration have invested $62 billion in the Department of Energy (DOE). IIJA creates 60 new programs and expands 12 existing programs, tripling DOE’s annual funding.
  • Hydropower and pumped storage are essential parts of a reliable, clean energy grid. Hydropower is a clean energy resource, providing power to about 30 million Americans and representing about 7 percent of U.S. electricity generation and 40 percent of U.S. renewable power generation. It is necessary to have policy parity and federal support for hydropower.
  • The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is a significant opportunity for the power sector, helping utilities to address clean energy needs and climate change. It is important to make sure non-profit, community-owned public power utilities can effectively access IIJA funds.
  • The IIJA contains backstop siting authority for transmission. A 60 percent increase in high-capacity transmission for the energy grid is needed to facilitate the transition to clean energy.

 

Kelly Speakes-Backman, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of Energy (DOE)

  • Through the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) (P.L. 117-58), Congress and the Biden-Harris Administration have invested $62 billion in the Department of Energy (DOE). IIJA creates 60 new programs and expands 12 existing programs, tripling DOE’s annual funding.
  • IIJA gives DOE the opportunity to invest in U.S. infrastructure beyond research and development.
  • DOE opened a joint office with the Department of Transportation to advance electric vehicle charging infrastructure. DOE launched a new Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations and created the “Building a Better Grid” initiative, aimed at engaging stakeholders in the buildup of new transmission lines.
  • DOE has started recruiting 1,000 staffers for the department’s Clean Energy Corps, which will work on projects to accelerate clean energy deployment and cut greenhouse gas emissions.
  • All this work is designed to expand and improve the U.S. electricity grid; enhance clean energy supply chains; research and develop hydrogen, carbon capture, e