WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Jon C. Porter announced today the passage of an amendment he authored that stripped language creating an Assistant Secretary of Energy for Nuclear Projects within the Department of Energy.  The amendment was passed by voice vote during consideration of H.R. 1533, the Federal Energy Management Improvement Act of 2005, in the House Government Reform Committee.
 
“I am pleased that both Republicans and Democrats on the committee accepted this common sense amendment,” said Porter.  “As we’ve seen in recent days, the Department of Energy suffers from significant management issues.  Creating yet another layer of bureaucracy in this already poorly managed department is the last thing the country needs.  Congress must take action in correcting the already existing problems in the Department of Energy before adding new positions.”  Porter, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Federal Workforce and Agency Organization, has been investigating allegations of fraud in the Department of Energy’s quality assurance program for the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository.
 
Congressman Porter’s amendment removed language from H.R. 1533 that upgraded a current position within the Department of Energy to the level of Assistant Secretary.  This position would have been in addition to the six Assistant Secretaries currently serving in the department.

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