Title 42 › Chapter CHAPTER 73— - DEVELOPMENT OF ENERGY SOURCES › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION › § 5821
All money given to the Energy Research and Development Administration or its head must be approved each year under the normal authorization laws. Money labeled for “Operating expenses” can pay to build or buy research facilities or major equipment at sites outside the Administration, and can fund grants to organizations to build research facilities. But the Administration cannot spend those funds on any facility costing more than $5,000,000 or any piece of equipment costing more than $2,000,000 unless the proper House and Senate committees already approved it, or the Administrator sends the committees a report describing the project, its purpose, and its estimated cost and then waits 30 calendar days (not counting long congressional breaks) unless the committees say they have no objection. Up to 1% of operating funds may be used to build, expand, or change labs or buy land at Administration-controlled sites if the Administrator finds it urgently needed because of program changes or new science, but the Administrator must give the committees a full report and wait the same 30 days or get their written no-objection. Appropriated money cannot be used for any program in excess of what was authorized or for a program that was not presented to Congress. Reprogramming cannot cut the combined funds for certain energy categories (coal; petroleum and natural gas; oil shale; solar; geothermal; non-weapons nuclear energy; environment and safety; and conservation) by more than 10% of their total. When an appropriation act says so, operating and plant funds can be merged with similar funds from other laws (but plant money cannot be merged into operating), and such funds can be made available until spent. The Administrator may do design work ahead of time for urgent construction projects already sent to Congress. When an appropriation act allows, fees and other receipts may be kept and used for operating expenses (with certain exceptions), and operating funds may be transferred to other agencies to perform the work and merged with their appropriations.
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The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
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Reference
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 5821
Title 42 — The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73