Chairman Chuck Fleishmann’s Fiscal Year 2026 Energy and Water Bill Passes House

Washington, DC – U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann (TN-03), Chairman of Energy and Water Appropriations, released the following statement following passage of the Fiscal Year 2026 Energy and Water Appropriations Act in the House of Representatives. The House voted to pass Chairman Fleischmann’s bill by a vote of 397 to 28.

“As part of President Trump’s and House Republicans’ mission to renew our great nation, we promised to unleash American-made energy, invest in our military, and modernize infrastructure nationwide. The Fiscal Year 2026 Energy and Water Appropriations Act, which I led and successfully passed in the House, strengthens America by investing in our nuclear deterrent to counter aggression from Russia and China, funding essential upgrades for our ports and waterways infrastructure – including full funding for the Chickamauga Lock: a critically important project for Tennessee, and strengthening our electrical grid to enhance its resiliency,” said Energy and Water Chairman Fleischmann.

“The Energy and Water bill also makes historic commitments to decrease our reliance on China’s monopoly of critical minerals, makes America the global leader in the technologies of tomorrow like AI, quantum, and supercomputing, continues to provide robust funding for America’s next-generation Nuclear Navy, and ensures that we continue unleashing American energy dominance to lower energy prices. I am proud that the FY26 Energy and Water bill puts America First and delivers for our great nation. I thank the Trump Administration, Chairman Cole, and my bipartisan colleagues in the House and Senate for their collaboration and support to pass my Energy and Water bill. I look forward to President Trump signing my bill into law.”

Energy and Water Chairman Fleischmann’s remarks on the House Floor in support of the FY26 Energy and Water bill are available HERE.

Key Takeaways:

• Champions America’s nuclear deterrent and strengthens national security by:
  • Providing $20.38 billion for the continued modernization of the nuclear weapons stockpile and infrastructure.
  • Providing $2.13 billion to support the U.S. Navy’s nuclear fleet by investing in infrastructure and new technologies to maintain America’s advantage over our adversaries.
  • Providing $2.37 billion to reduce the danger of hostile nations or terrorist groups acquiring nuclear weapons.
  • Prohibiting the sale of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to the Chinese Communist Party.
  • Prohibiting access to U.S. nuclear weapons production facilities by citizens of China and Russia.

  • Prohibiting the Department of Energy from providing financial assistance to any foreign entity of concern.

     

• Restores American energy dominance and bolsters the national economy by:

  • Supporting one of the largest investments focused on mining production technologies for critical minerals extraction in decades, reducing reliance on foreign sources.

  • Robustly funding small modular reactor and advanced reactor demonstration projects, as well as increasing funding for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to expand capacity for the review, licensing, and oversight of new nuclear reactors.

    • These investments are key to regaining international dominance in the nuclear market and achieving the Trump Administration’s goal to expand nuclear energy capacity to 400 gigawatts by 2050.

  • Facilitating the efficient transport of goods and commodities through improvements and maintenance of America’s ports and waterways.
  • Increasing investments to develop new baseload geothermal energy sources to capitalize on our vast domestic resources.

  • Strongly funding cybersecurity efforts that enable a resilient, reliable, and secure electric grid.

     

• Safeguards American taxpayer dollars and preserves core functions by:
  • Eliminating the Biden-era Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations.
  • Including zero funds for the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Justice and Equity.
  • Refocusing applied energy technology program funding to ensure taxpayer resources are directed to the highest priority research and development efforts.

The detailed funding summary of the FY26 Energy and Water Appropriations Act can be found HERE.

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