Washington, D.C. – Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today was named chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development. The subcommittee’s jurisdiction includes the Department of Energy, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Department of the Interior water programs.

Senator Feinstein released the following statement:

“I’m honored to serve as chairman of the Energy and Water Subcommittee. This subcommittee is tasked with funding and oversight for some of the country’s most important infrastructure and job-creating sectors.

The importance of energy to our country is immense, with each American spending more than $4,000 on energy each year, a total of $1.2 trillion annually, or 8.8 percent of our GDP.

The Energy Department plays an essential role in developing the science we need to tackle our toughest challenges, from climate change to air and water pollution to nuclear proliferation. National labs and universities in California, which receive more than $1 billion annually from the Energy Department’s Basic Energy Sciences budget, play a key role in areas such as renewable energy development and next-generation biofuels.

Two other agencies under the subcommittee’s jurisdiction, the Bureau of Reclamation and the Army Corps of Engineers, are also vital to California. The subcommittee will continue to weigh in on important issues such as water supply, levee safety, and ecosystem restoration.

I look forward to working with the subcommittee’s ranking member, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), to address many of the country’s most pressing issues.”

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