My concern is is it does appear that we're directing an additional $2 million for yet a follow on study to one that you have agreed and I would agree was a pretty good study.

Senator Wyden and I have had an opportunity to be in discussion about some of that.

I believe that there is a useful role to be played in the financing and the deployment of our advanced energy technologies.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I certainly classify hydro power as a renewable resource and want to work to make sure that is clear in our policies.

I think the concern is that the funding is pretty anemic in not only the conventional but in the marine and hydro kinetic technologies as well.

I do, Mr. Chairman. Thank you. Thank you for your patience, Secretary.

we are dealing with the Transportation bill, and let me say I hope we truly deal with the Transportation bill eventually because there has been a great deal of work on this measure by the chairman and the ranking members of the relevant…

most of our roads, when we are talking about the IRR roads, are not necessarily roads that are going to carry a vehicle. These are roads that will carry pedestrians, a four-wheeler, a snow machine. These are the ways that Alaska's Native…

I have other concerns with this Transportation bill. I have mentioned the Denali Commission several times today. I have joined my colleague, Senator Begich, in filing an amendment to this bill that would restore the Denali Commission's…

it is with great sadness that I come to the floor concerning the passing of Frank Cushing, one of the true public servants that the Congress has known. Frank served as a legislative aide to Senator Jim McClure of Idaho prior to joining the…

It would seem to me that not only is this ceding some authority from the Congress to the executive branch, but, in fact, you are adding additional time, additional delays, and, of course, that translates to additional costs for whatever…

So, we would not then--we, the American public, would not see that benefit there in terms of----

Yes, 14 years, and that is not only time, but as I mentioned earlier, that is considerable resources.

I think it is pretty unusual, and I would like to understand from the Administration's perspective where we are going as a policy initiative.

I do think, Mr. Chairman, that this is an issue that we as a committee are going to have to figure out how we work through this.

I think Senator Kyl led, or laid it out relatively clearly in terms of the ceding of jurisdiction, ceding of authority here.

Taxpayers thus far have paid over $2 billion in damages resulting from the government's failure to take title to the used nuclear fuel.

But the important thing that I think your question raises is the linkage between the storage and the disposal.

we want to give to that future generation the options... to make their choices and make this work out all well.

any attempt to force a solution, top-down, a federally mandated solution... is going to take longer, it's going to cost more, and you're going to have less--fewer odds of success.

You do have to give that promise or make good on that promise that it will have a permanent repository.

But if you structure it as has been proposed with access to the funding that you have recommended, do you have any suggestions as to how we insulate such an entity to prevent the politics from being a driving force within the…

Of course you do have some apprehension out there now as we look at some of these quasi-Federal agencies that have this independence and this autonomy, and have created some serious problems.

we have a fundamental obligation. It's a legal obligation; it's an ethical obligation to the generation that follows us.