Richland’s PNNL to Share in Nearly $17 Billion Funding Increase for National Laboratories Secured by Cantwell
Funding will support cutting-edge clean energy research, critical to combatting climate change and enhancing U.S. national security; Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is the largest single employer in the Tri-Cities, and one of the largest in Eastern Washington
WASHINGTON, D.C.— This week, the U.S. Senate and House passed the CHIPS and Science Act, authorizing $250 billion to advance key technologies of the future.
U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Chair of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, is one of the primary architects of the bill, which is currently awaiting President Biden’s signature. The bill was led through a Congressional Conference Committee by Sen. Cantwell and will include $16.9 billion in additional funding to support research on key technology areas at Department of Energy (DOE) National Laboratories, including the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland.
“PNNL scientists and researchers are developing the technologies we need to reduce greenhouse gases and mitigate the impacts of climate change,” said Sen. Cantwell. “This investment will supercharge their important work, and bolster the lab’s $1.6 billion contribution to the Washington state economy.”
READ A LIST OF THE TOP 10 PRIORITIES OF THE CHIPS AND SCIENCE ACT HERE
“This bill is an important commitment to the kind of technological innovation that is key to our national competitiveness and security – the kind of innovation for which the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is known. Once funded, it will help advance U.S. scientific leadership in computing, artificial intelligence, quantum information science, biotechnology, advanced materials for energy storage and other clean energy technologies, in addition to increasing the domestic production of much-needed semiconductors. It will do so by investing in and leveraging the world class research staff and facilities at PNNL and the other national labs. As chair of the conference committee responsible for this landmark legislation, Senator Cantwell deserves our thanks for her leadership and commitment to science,” said Dr. Steven F. Ashby, Director of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
PNNL maintains one-of-a-kind, world-class research capabilities that support sustainable energy and U.S. national security -- particularly innovation in areas like energy storage, grid modernization, and carbon capture. While the United States is a leader in these technologies, federal energy R&D spending has declined from 0.14% of GDP in 1978 to just 0.04% in 2019. Thirteen other countries invest more in energy R&D as a share of their economies than the United States. With passage of this Act, new investments will be targeted toward key technology areas such as nuclear power, cleaner fossil fuels, and sustainable energy projects.
With approximately 5,000 employees, PNNL is the largest single employer in the Tri-Cities region and one of the largest in Eastern Washington. In total, the lab’s economic impact is responsible for $1.59 billion in economic activity, 7,580 direct or indirect jobs, and $651 million in Washington state wages.
Sen. Cantwell is an architect of this legislation and a longtime champion of boosting America’s competitiveness in research, development and manufacturing.
SENATOR CANTWELL’S 7/27 REMARKS ON THE SENATE FLOOR AVAILABLE HERE, AUDIO HERE, AND FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE.
SENATOR CANTWELL’S BIPARTISAN 7/27 PRESS CONFERENCE REMARKS ARE AVAILABLE HERE, AUDIO HERE, AND FULL TRANSCRIPT HERE.
SUMMARY OF CHIPS AND SCIENCE ACT AVAILABLE HERE
SECTION BY SECTION AVAILABLE HERE
In 2021, Cantwell advanced the U.S. Innovation and Competition bill in the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, which culminated in a 24-4 bipartisan vote, and then managed the bill on the floor of the United States Senate, where it passed with a 68-32 vote.
On May 13, 2022, Cantwell chaired the kickoff meeting of the Conference Committee to negotiate differences between Senate’s United States Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) and the House’s America COMPETES Act.
For months, Cantwell has called on Congress to act on the bill. She spoke on the Senate floor on March 28, 2022; March 24, 2022; March 21, 2022; February 10, 2022, and February 4, 2022 encouraging her colleagues to move the bill forward. The Senator previously chaired a Commerce Committee hearing with tech and trucking industry CEOs on the importance of U.S. investment in America’s domestic semiconductor manufacturing and research and organized multiple classified briefings on the impact of the chip shortage on national and economic security.
The Energy Department funding was added by an amendment led by Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) to the USICA when the legislation was revised by the Commerce Committee. In addition to Senator Cantwell (D-WA), the bipartisan amendment was cosponsored by U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and John Thune (R-SD).
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