Ed Whitfield: “Well, thank you, Chairman McKeon, and I certainly want to thank you and Mr. Smith and your staffs for the hard work to…”

“Well, thank you, Chairman McKeon, and I certainly want to thank you and Mr. Smith and your staffs for the hard work to complete this 51st consecutive defense authorization bill. As you know, the Energy and Commerce Committee has an interest in a number of provisions included in the bill. One of the provisions is section 3113, which modifies section 4102 of the Atomic Energy Defense Act. My understanding of the Armed Services Committee's intention with regard to section 3113 is that, one, you want to reinvigorate a dormant statutory council by updating it and transforming it; and, two, you want to clean up the U.S. Code by eliminating obsolete language referring to the Assistant Secretary of Energy for Defense Programs. Is that your understanding, as well? Mr. McKEON. That's correct. This council will be an important mechanism for improving communication, and the rest of section 4102 is defunct.”