David Victor Quoted in Technology Review
Dim Prospects for Energy R&D Funding
12/10/2010
Kevin Bullis,
Technology Review, MIT
As Congress rushes to finish its business before the year's end, it is likely to pass one of two spending bills to keep the government running in 2011. Either way, funding for energy R&D is expected to be stagnant next year and decrease in 2012.
On Wednesday, the House passed a $1.1 trillion spending bill. If the Senate follows suit, which is by no means certain, overall funding for energy R&D will remain level—but some specific research programs could take a significant funding hit. Congress may yet pass another version of the spending bill that will rescue some of these programs. However, the outlook for energy R&D remains bleak, especially for 2012.
All this comes after a year of rhetoric from the White House and key members of Congress about the urgent need for more energy R&D. But Congress failed to pass comprehensive climate and energy legislation that would have directly funded new energy projects, leaving funding to the regular budget, which has been limited. Congress also hasn't passed a single appropriations bill yet this year—the government has been running on temporary spending bills since October—and it is running out of time to pass one in the current session.
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David Victor is Director of the Laboratory on International Law and Regulation (ILAR). Looking across a wide array of issues from environment and energy to human rights, trade and security, the Laboratory explores when (and why) international laws actually work.
