LEGISLATIVE
House passes “Phase 4” coronavirus relief bill with new local government funding
ECA Staff | 5/18/2020
On Friday the House passed the HEROES Act (H.R. 6800), a new round of coronavirus response legislation that includes funding for states, counties, and smaller local governments.
The CARES Act (Phase 3), which passed in late March, included $150 billion in assistance for state and local governments by creating the Coronavirus Relief Fund. However, that legislation did not specifically provide direct funding for local governments with populations fewer than 500,000 people, which meant many communities that are hosts to DOE sites were not guaranteed any of that assistance.
The HEROES Act includes $375 billion for local governments, $56 billion of which is allocated for smaller local governments such as cities, towns, and villages (identified in the bill as general local governments in nonentitlement areas). Additionally, $187.5 billion would be provided for all U.S. counties, distributed proportionally based on population size. $131 billion would be allocated for metropolitan cities.
House Appropriations Committee Chair Nita Lowey, who sponsored the bill, noted, “This is critical funding to States, counties and cities, villages, and towns of every size throughout America to preserve jobs and essential services for their citizens this year and years to come… This fund is essential to keeping local economies afloat as the nation grapples with the pandemic and its economic fallout for years to come.”
While the bill does not include any specific requirements or new funding for DOE, there are provisions that would impact DOE contractors. One section would require federal agencies to allow contractor personnel to continue to telework; another section would require the federal government to make accelerated payments for their prime contracts.
The bill now heads to the Senate, although Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said the chamber will not pass the legislation as is, and the White House issued a veto threat on Thursday. The bill will ultimately function as an initial proposal from the House to negotiate with the administration and the Senate.
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CONTRACTS
DOE Awards Hanford Tank Closure Contract
U.S. Department of Energy | 5/14/2020
Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) awarded the Tank Closure Contract (TCC) that will provide a variety of services at the Hanford Site in Richland, Washington, to Hanford Works Restoration, LLC, located in Lynchburg, Virginia. The Hanford Works Restoration members are BWXT Technical Services Group, Inc. (Lynchburg, Virginia), Fluor Federal Services, Inc. (Greenville, South Carolina), INTERA, Inc. (Austin,
Texas), and DBD, Inc. (Richland, Washington). This is an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract under which firm-fixed-price and/or cost reimbursement task orders may be issued. The total estimated value of the contract is up to approximately $13 billion over a 10-year ordering period.
Read about DOE's High Level Waste Interpretation
Have questions about DOE’s recent high-level waste (HLW) interpretation? Download ECA’s Key Points and FAQs on the issue to better understand what ECA believes are the potential benefits of implementation.
Interested in learning more? Read the ECA report “Making Informed Decisions on DOE's Proposed High Level Waste Definition” at www.energyca.org/publications
Stay Current on Activities in the DOE World
Read the latest edition of the ECA Bulletin, a regular newsletter providing a detailed brief of ECA activities, legislative news, and major events from across the DOE complex. Have suggestions for future editions? Email bulletin@energyca.org.
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Learn More about Cleanup Sites with ECA's DOE Site Profiles
ECA's new site profiles detail DOE's 13 active Environmental Management cleanup sites and national laboratories, highlighting their history, missions, and priorities. The profiles are a key source for media, stakeholders, and the public to learn more about DOE site activities, contractors, advisory boards, and their surrounding local
governments.
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