Up on Capitol Hill, a few congressional committees with jurisdiction over the Energy Department’s legacy nuclear cleanup and nuclear arsenal programs officially got new leaders for the new Congress this week.
Most of the changes announced so far are in the Republican-controlled House, where the GOP has instituted term limits for chairs of standing committees such as the Energy and Commerce Committee that writes DOE legislation. Senate Republicans have the same term limits.
It’s worth clarifying, for those outside the Beltway, that the majority party in either chamber controls committees through the chairmanship. The party on the outs — Democrats, in the case of the current 115th Congress — appoint a ranking member to organize and speak for the minority on committee matters.
House and Senate Democrats do not set terms limits on their committee leaders.
One last thing: Neither Senate Democrats nor Republicans had announced subcommittee assignments for the new Congress by deadline for Weapons Complex Monitor. Neither had House Democrats. While subcommittees broadly follow the lead of their committee chairs, it is the subcommittee that produces the first draft of legislation and controls the finer points of the lawmaking that affects federal agencies.
With all that said, here’s a breakdown of the leadership of committees and subcommittees with jurisdiction over the Energy Department. Where a gavel has changed hands, we’ve noted both the current and former chair. We’ve also noted instances in which incumbents remained in their posts.
House
Energy and Commerce Committee:
Purpose: Writes policy bills for DOE, authorizes non-defense DOE spending.
Chairman: Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) replaces Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.).
Ranking Member: Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), incumbent.
Energy and Commerce energy and power subcommittee:
Chairman: Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) replaces Rep. Pete Olson (R-Texas), who had been chairman in the previous Congress.
Ranking Member: Not yet announced; previously Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.).
Energy and Commerce environment and economy subcommittee:
Chairman: Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.), incumbent.
Ranking Member: Not yet announced; previously Rep. Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.).
Appropriations Committee:
Purpose: Writes the first draft of the annual appropriations bills that fund all federal agencies.
Chairman: Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.) replaces Rep. Hal Rogers (R-Ky.).
Ranking Member: Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.).
Appropriations defense subcommittee:
Chairwoman: Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas), replaces Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.).
Ranking Member: Not yet announced; previously Rep. Pete Visclosky (D-Ind.).
Appropriations energy and water subcommittee:
Chairman: Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), incumbent.
Ranking Member: Not yet announced; previously Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio).
Appropriations interior, environment and related agencies subcommittee:
Chairman: Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.), incumbent.
Ranking Member: Not yet announced; previously Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.).
Senate:
In the Senate, a body whose constitutional charter favors institutional stability over institutional upheaval, there was less churn among committee leaders than in the House.
Armed Services Committee:
Purpose: Authorizes annual military spending, including the budget for DOE’s nuclear weapons and legacy nuclear cleanup programs.
Chairman: Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), incumbent.
Ranking Member: Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), incumbent.
Energy and Natural Resources Committee:
Purpose: Writes DOE policy bills, and authorizes funding for DOE’s non-defense programs.
Chairman: Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), incumbent.
Ranking Member: Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), incumbent.
Appropriations Committee:
Purpose: Writes the annual appropriations bills that fund all federal agencies.
Chairman: Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), incumbent.
Ranking Member: Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), replaces Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), who retired from the Senate this year after 30 years representing Maryland.
Environment and Public Works Committee:
Purpose: Writes policy bills and authorizes spending for the Environmental Protection Agency: administrator of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act that governs cleanup of hazardous waste — including DOE nuclear waste — at the federal level.
Chairman: Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), incumbent.
Ranking Member: Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), replaces Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who retired this year after 24 years representing California.
