August 15, 1974
Page 28660
ENERGY REORGANIZATION ACT OF 1974
The Senate continued with the consideration of the bill (S. 2744) to reorganize and consolidate certain functions of the Federal Government in a new Energy Research and Development Administration and in a Nuclear Energy Commission in order to promote more efficient management of such functions.
Mr. MUSKIE. I am happy to respond to the distinguished Senator from Illinois. I share his concern that the work in this field will fail. One of the frustrations I have experienced over the years since the 1970 Clean Air Act was adopted was the failure to act with funds for the developmental programs which are essential if we are to achieve breakthroughs in technology necessary to deal with the air pollution problem.
My concern with this part of the bill, as it was presented, was not that the developmental work or the developmental research was placed in ERDA, but rather that, in the process of putting the developmental work in ERDA, all of the regulatory research with which EPA has been vested was also taken with it, so that EPA is left without even bare bones to deal with the important problem of evaluating automobile technology, stationary source technology, and other technology.
I wanted to be sure that EPA's interests were protected in two ways: One, that it retain sufficient research capability to do its regulatory work; and two, that even in the developmental work, appropriate emphasis is given to developing low-emission characteristics as well as energy-efficient characteristics. They could be identical, but they could also be separate.
I say to the distinguished Senator from Illinois that, following much discussion on the floor of the Senate and in committee, I have had discussion at the staff level and personally with the Office of Management and Budget. I think we are close to an agreement and I think that an agreement can be worked out that can be implemented in the Congress, or prior to that time. The House language contains the original language that was deleted from the Senate bill. So if there is nothing in the Senate bill, we have the full range of options open to us.
I have been persuaded by the Office of Management and Budget that we can preserve both objectives, the one that the distinguished Senator from Illinois is principally concerned with, and also, the concerns which I have expressed. I assure the distinguished Senator from Illinois of my desire to work it out. I am not interested in obstruction or delay or trying to sneak an end run on anybody. I am committed to working with him and to the Office of Management and Budget on working on this problem. I am confident that we can.
If we are now, in conference, in a position to engage the attention of the House conferees, I am confident that we can do it.