The Climate Playbook wrap-up contains information on changes to The Climate Playbook including bill updates, Committee and House votes, and new bills.

Bills that Passed the House

H.R. 9- Climate Action Now Act

• H.R. 9, the Climate Action Now Act, passed the full House of Representatives on Thursday. This legislation would direct President Trump to develop a plan to meet environmental goals individually assigned in the Paris Climate Agreement. 

Watch Rep. Peters speak in support of H.R. 9, the Climate Action Now Act, here.

Bills that Passed Committees

•  H.R. 34, the Energy and Water Research Integration Act, passed out of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee. It now can be considered on the House floor. This legislation creates an Energy-Water Subcommittee of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. This change is intended to guarantee efficient, reliable, and sustainable delivery of energy and clean water resources. The bill also encourages strategic planning from agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and local, state, and federal governments to meet technical milestones.
• H.R. 1921, the Ocean Acidification Innovation Act, also passed out of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee. It now can be considered on the House floor. This legislation allows the federal government to create prizes to encourage innovation in ocean acidification research and responses to the environmental impact.
• H.R. 2156, the RECLAIM Act of 2019, passed out of the Natural Resources Committee. It now can be considered on the House floor. This legislation funds clean up of abandoned coal mines and captures any leaking methane. It also repurposes the mines for economic use, which can create clean jobs.

Bills Added to the Playbook

• S. 2256, the Tax Extender Act of 2017 (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. The bill extends energy efficiency tax credits and extends credits for energy property, production from advanced nuclear power facilities, and carbon dioxide sequestration.
• H.R. 4137, the Renewable Electricity Tax Credit Equalization Act (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. It extends tax credits for biomass, hydropower, geothermal, and other facilities, which encourages continued investments in a level playing field for renewable energy that extends beyond wind technology.
• 1094, the Driving America Forward Act, was added to the Playbook. This bill increases the number of consumers eligible for a tax credit after purchasing a qualifying car.
• 859, the RIVER Act, was added to the Playbook. This legislation reauthorizes the existing Department of Energy program that provides funding to modify existing dams and river conduits with new electricity-generating technology.
• 407, the Carbon Capture Modernization Act, was added to the Playbook. This bill aims to encourage the use of Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) technology by relaxing the efficiency requirements for new or retrofit projects if they include CCS.
• H.R. 5745, the Fossil Energy Research and Development Act of 2018 (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. The bill reauthorizes the research done by the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy with a focus on clean energy technology to help maintain the status of the United States as a world energy leader.
• H.R. 6538, the Renewable Energy Certainty Act (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. The legislation authorizes certain long-term contracts for Federal purchases of energy.
• H.R. 3043, the Hydropower Policy Modernization Act of 2017 (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. This bill revises the hydropower relicensing process by allowing the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to extend a preliminary permit for an additional four years and includes the possibility of another four years beyond the extension. It also directs the FERC to establish a schedule for applicants following the filing of their license application.
• S.3376, the Advancing Grid Storage Act (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. The bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish energy programs that will help advance grid storage. The programs include an energy storage research program, a technical assistance and grant program, DOE workshops, and an energy storage system demonstration and deployment program.
• S.1455, the Better Energy Storage Technologies (BEST) Act & Energy Storage Goals and Demonstration Projects Act (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. This bill amends the United States Storage Competitiveness Act of 2007 to require the establishment of new goals for the Department of Energy relating to energy storage and to carry out energy storage demonstration projects to improve grid-scale energy storage technologies.
• H.R. 1633, the Smart Manufacturing Leadership Act, was added to the Playbook. This bill aides small and medium-sized American manufacturers with less than $100 million in sales and fewer than 500 employees with adopting smart manufacturing technologies by expanding existing technical assistance programs to provide education and awareness of opportunities in smart technology to those companies. It also expands the Industrial Assessment Centers within the Department of Energy to include smart technologies and practices in their training and tools to better serve manufacturers.
• H.R. 960, the Public Infrastructure Renewal Act (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. This bill allows qualified government buildings to be eligible for “exempt facility bonds,” encouraging energy efficiency.
• H.R. 3507, the Extension of the 179D (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. The bill addresses energy efficient commercial buildings by amending the Internal Revenue Code to make the deduction for these buildings permanent. It also allows 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations and Indian tribal governments to allocate the deduction to a person primarily responsible for designing the property.
• H.R. 1497, the Water Quality Protection and Job Creation Act of 2019, was added to the Playbook. This bill renews the federal commitment to addressing local water quality challenges by providing federal assistance to construct, repair, and replace the nation’s network of wastewater and stormwater conveyance and treatment facilities. This bill increases the amount of federal assistance to approximately $23.5 billion and makes it available to states and local communities through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund program.
• H.R. 729, the Tribal Coastal Resiliency Act, was added to the Playbook. This bill would expand the Coastal Zone Management Act to provide necessary tools tribes by expanding grants to protect their people and landmarks from changing landscapes and weather events.
• 876, the Energy Jobs for Our Heroes Act, was added to the Playbook. This bill assists servicemembers and Veterans with the transition back to civilian life by connecting them with good-paying jobs in clean, renewable energy. The bill calls for the development of the “Energy Ready Vets Program” that the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Defense work together to develop.
• H.R. 7196, the Energy Sector Innovation Credit Act of 2018 (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. This bill will encourage energy innovation in the U.S. energy market. It creates a tech-neutral tax credit to incentivize new energy technologies. The credit will phase out over time to ensure that unprofitable or inefficient energy technology is not supported.
• S.1457, the Advanced Nuclear Energy Technologies Act (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. The bill amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and directs the Department of Energy (DOE) to further the research and development of domestic advanced, affordable, and clean nuclear energy. The DOE must participate in at least one contract that establishes at least four advanced nuclear reactor demonstration projects. Further, the DOE must establish goals relating to the research of advanced nuclear reactors.
• H.R. 4378, the Nuclear Energy Research Infrastructure Act of 2018 (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. The bill instructs the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a versatile reactor-based fast neutron source to function as a national user facility, which must be fully operational by December 31, 2025. The DOE is required to consult with the private sector as well as universities, national laboratories, and any relevant federal agencies so that the source will meet federal research needs in relation to the study of neutron irradiation services. The bill also directs the DOE to ensure the national user facility provides specific capabilities including the ability for upgrades to handle new or expanded research needs.
• H.R. 6140, the Advanced Nuclear Fuel Availability Act (115^th Congress), was added to the Playbook. The bill establishes a public-private partnership to make advancements that will lead to the development, manufacturing, and transportation of next generation fuels and the advanced nuclear reactors that they will power.

Playbook Updates

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