A senior U.S. Army official on Wednesday struggled to explain the reasoning for the Trump administration’s plan to return management of a nuclear cleanup program from the Army Corps of Engineers to the Department of Energy.
“I really think that DOE wanted that program back, and I can’t answer why on that,” R.D. James, assistant Army secretary for civil works, said during a budget hearing before the House Appropriations energy and water subcommittee.
Panel Ranking Member Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) noted that Congress removed the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) from the Energy Department in 1997 because it was not satisfied with its management
“I just find it very bizarre. I haven’t had any complaints about how the program is being run now, how the Army Corps of Engineers is running it. My Dad said when something isn’t broken don’t try to fix it,” Simpson told James.
The Trump administration’s fiscal 2020 budget proposal calls for shifting management of FUSRAP, and all of its budget, from the Army Corps to DOE’s Office of Legacy Management. However, the department would pay the Army Corps “on a reimbursable basis” to continue performing on-site remediation activities.
“Consolidating cleanup programs under a single agency will allow DOE to consider the full range of cleanup responsibilities in prioritizing work each fiscal year,” the Energy Department said in its budget in brief document.
James, who oversees policy and management of all Army Corps Civil Works operations, said there was thought that moving FUSRAP to DOE could create an opportunity for more funding than it can presently secure. The Energy Department is seeking $141 million for the program in the budget year that begins Oct. 1, down from the current $150 million appropriation.
Neither DOE nor the Army Corps responded by deadline Thursday to queries for further explanation of the purpose and function of the planned program transfer.
