# Presentation: 800601

## Update on the Department’s Science Programs

***Raymond L. Orbach***
**Under Secretary for Science**
**Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee **
**August 3, 2006**

**Update on the Department’s Science Programs**

## EPAct, the ACI and the FY 2007 Budget

- The Energy Policy Act (EPAct) of 2005 was signed one year ago.  Passage of EPAct facilitated the President’s American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) and Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI) in the FY 2007 request.
- The Appropriations Committees in both Houses of Congress have largely supported the President’s request for FY 2007, indicating a favorable reception for the President’s ACI.
- The House Appropriations Committee maintained funding for DOE SC at the President’s 2007 request level (congressionally directed funding is above the President’s request).  The Energy and Water Development Appropriations Bill passed the House overwhelmingly.
- The Senate Appropriations Committee reported the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Bill to the floor.  SC funding is at the President’s 2007 request level (congressionally directed funding is above the President’s request).  No date has been set for a floor vote.

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## FY 2007 Budget Process

- It appears increasingly likely that the Department will be operating under a continuing resolution (CR) for part of FY 2007.
- The effects of any CR depend on how it is drafted.  We will need to quickly assess the CR to see how they may affect the implementation of the President’s ACI and AEI.

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## Role of the Under Secretary for Science

- 	According to EPAct Section 1006
- (4) The Under Secretary for Science shall--
- (A) serve as the Science and Technology Advisor to the Secretary;
- (B) monitor the research and development programs of the Department in order to advise the Secretary with respect to any undesirable duplication or gaps in the programs;
- (C) advise the Secretary with respect to the well-being and management of the multipurpose laboratories under the jurisdiction of the Department;
- (D) advise the Secretary with respect to education and training activities required for effective short- and long-term basic and applied research activities of the Department;
- (E) advise the Secretary with respect to grants and other forms of financial assistance required for effective short- and long-term basic and applied research activities of the Department;
- (F) advise the Secretary with respect to long-term planning, coordination, and development of a strategic framework for Department research and development activities; and
- (G) carry out such additional duties assigned to the Under Secretary by the Secretary relating to basic and applied research, including supervision or support of research activities carried out by any of the Assistant Secretaries designated by section 203 of this Act, as the Secretary considers advantageous.

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## The Under Secretary for Science

- On May 26th, I was confirmed in my new position as Under Secretary for Science, a position established in Section 1006 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
- The Secretary of Energy, in his July 3, 2006 Memorandum for the Under Secretary for Science stated that, “the primary responsibility of the Under Secretary for Science is to advance the science portfolio at the Department of Energy and to strengthen the contributions of science to all of the Department’s activities in collaboration with the Under Secretary and the Under Secretary for Nuclear Security.”
- The Secretary also directed the Undersecretary for Science to:
- “work with the applied research programs to understand their long-term goals, identify the technical risks and challenges associated with achieving these goals, and work with those programs to develop approaches to mitigating these risks.”
- “work collaboratively with the Under Secretary and Under Secretary for Nuclear Security to review all applied research programs in the Department to better coordinate these programs with the Department’s basic research programs. . .”
- work “with the Under Secretary and Under Secretary for Nuclear Security to review the operations of our National Laboratories to ensure that they are helping the Department to meet its overall strategic objectives in energy, science, and national security.”

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## The Under Secretary for Science, cont’d.

- Is “dual-hatted” as Acting Director of the Office of Science.
- Is involved in all aspects of the science mission of the Department, including the science functions of NNSA.
- Identifies crosscutting research areas between the Office of Science and the Department’s applied programs.
- Is committed to maintaining the integrity of the basic and applied research programs in the Department.
- Will work to improve the coupling between the between basic and applied research and to strengthen applied research programs.

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## A Few Examples of Collaboration and Coordination

- The Under Secretary for Science, in support of the American Competitiveness Initiative and Advanced Energy Initiative, is involved in a number of exciting areas in the Department that require collaboration and coordination between basic and applied research programs in DOE and other federal agencies, including:
- Advanced nuclear energy systems in support of the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP)
- Alternative energy, including genomic approaches to cellulosic ethanol and solar to fuels processes
- Hydrogen
- Materials for fission, fusion, energy storage, superconductivity, and combustion
- High-performance computing across the government
- Carbon sequestration and understanding the terrestrial carbon cycle

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