Washington, DC - Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI15) made the following remarks after the Committee on Energy and Commerce voted to include his Nuclear and Advanced Technology Amendment in H.R. 2454, The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (ACES).  This amendment, offered by Mr. Dingell with Congressmen Inslee and Gordon would create the Clean Energy Deployment Administration (CEDA).  CEDA would be an independent administration within the Department of Energy with financial expertise and a specific purpose to create an attractive investment environment for the development and deployment of new clean energy technologies.  It would also make key reforms to existing federal loan guarantee programs and add Davis-Bacon prevailing wage protections to the Title XVII program.  The amendment passed on a favorable vote of 51-6.  A summary of the amendment is below.

“I want to thank Congressmen Jay Inslee and Bart Gordon for their efforts on this amendment.  There is no doubt that we need to find new means to satisfy our demand for new energy sources, but there is great debate on how to finance them.  While we approached the need for this amendment on behalf of different energy technologies, Mr. Inslee, Mr. Gordon and I agreed that our current system of federal funding for energy technologies must be more robust and flexible to meet America’s future energy needs.  I think these additions to the American Clean Energy and Security Act will make a good bill even better.  The American people want more clean energy options, more renewable energy and new initiatives in carbon capture and carbon sequestration.  Because of this amendment, we will bring new financial aid to these and other worthy projects.”

Background on the Dingell-Inslee-Gordon Nuclear and Advanced Technologies Amendment
Large-scale deployment of nuclear and advanced technologies is essential to advancing a new, sustainable, and affordable energy future.  This amendment addresses this funding need by making key reforms to existing federal loan guarantee programs and creating a new Clean Energy Deployment Administration at the Department of Energy.
Loan Guarantees. The amendment makes three changes to Title XVII, the loan guarantee title, of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
It clarifies Section 1701 by adding a new section defining a “conditional commitment” to a loan.  The amendment that a final term sheet laying out the terms of a loan guarantee issued by the Secretary is binding, and shall become a final loan guarantee if the conditions in it are met.  Those conditions include having all necessary permits and licenses.
The current Title XVII (also Section 1702, subsection (h)) says that DOE can collect fees sufficient to cover the Administration of the program, and that once collected, those fees can only be used by the program if appropriated to the program.  This amendment makes the change that the fees are to be deposited into a fund at the Treasury and are available to the program without further appropriation.
It adds Davis-Bacon prevailing wage protection to Title XVII (a new subsection added at the end of Section 1702), as a “Term and Condition” for all projects funded under Title XVII.
Clean Energy Deployment Administration (CEDA).  The amendment creates a new entity housed in DOE, the Clean Energy Deployment Administration (CEDA), with financial expertise and with a specific purpose to create an attractive investment environment for the development and deployment of new clean energy technologies. Key features include:
Form. CEDA would be an independent administration within DOE, like the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. It would be governed by a Board of Directors (consisting of a Chair, 7 members, and an ex-officio Secretary) and an Administrator, all of whom would be appointed with the advice and consent of the Senate. CEDA will also have a permanent Technology Advisory Council to advise on the technical aspects of new technologies and to set goals for the administration.
Function. The function of the agency is to provide various types of credit to support deployment of clean energy technologies including loans, loan guarantees, and other credit enhancements as well as secondary market support to develop products such as clean energy-backed bonds that would allow less expensive lending in the private sector. The agency would also seek to accommodate riskier debt and thus provide a mechanism for deployment of the most innovative technologies.
Technologies.  The mission of CEDA is to encourage deployment of technologies that are perceived as too risky by commercial lenders and thus the agency is encouraged to back riskier technologies with a higher potential to address our climate and energy security needs. The agency is to use a portfolio investment approach in order to mitigate risk and is to try and become self-sustaining over the long term by balancing riskier investments with revenues from other services and less risky investments.
Oversight.  CEDA’s activities would be subject to financial oversight, including audits by the Comptroller General and would have to provide access to books and records.