Jennifer Granholm lays out need for funding for clean energy, fossil fuel research near Pittsburgh

WASHINGTON — Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm outlined her agency's $46.3 billion budget request — a 10% bump from the previous year — before House lawmakers on Thursday as a necessary investment in clean energy technology, while boosting funding for fossil fuel research at federal laboratories near Pittsburgh.

Ms. Granholm told lawmakers the Energy Department is working on a plan to revitalize the U.S. economy by taking on climate change, “bringing America to the forefront of clean energy innovation” while “investing in communities that have been left behind.”

The secretary pointed to actions taken by the department this year: A promise to cut the cost of solar energy by 60% in 10 years, a national offshore wind goal to power 10 million homes and support 77,000 jobs, and an additional $109.5 million in funding for carbon capture, critical mineral recovery, and geothermal energy projects to create jobs in coal communities.

“We declared to the world that America is back at the table for climate action, and followed it up with new funding opportunities for technologies ranging from carbon capture to geothermal energy to extracting critical minerals from coal waste,” Ms. Granholm testified.

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