938 



HISTORY OF THE COMMITT! I ON SCIENCE AND TEC HNOI.OGY 



Among the amendments added by committee members in 1978 

 were the following: 



— Wydler amendment to add $5.4 million to the energy conser- 

 vation area, for R. & D. to improve home heating by oil. 

 Wydler called this his "real world" amendment, that "comes 

 to grips with the real world of energy use, and that's the world 

 in which people burn oil." 

 —Fish amendments to place additional emphasis on "low head" 

 hydroelectric power development, and R. & D. to advance 

 underground transmission lines. 

 — Gammage amendment to add $5 million for gas-fired heat pump 



acceleration. 

 -Thornton amendment to increase authorization for Energy Ex- 

 tension Service from $25 to $35 million. 

 There was a difference of opinion within the committee on the 

 emphasis to be placed on various features of the geothermal R. & D. 

 program. The committee voted an overall increase in most aspects, 

 but a $3 million decrease in the hot dry rock area, viewing too much 

 of this activity as devoted to exploration — the job of the U.S. Geo- 

 logical Survey. But Lujan told the House on July 14: 



I am not satisfied with the level of funding for hot dry rock technology in 

 geothermal energy. 



During the House debate, Goldwater released another blast at 

 DOE. He proclaimed that the administration's energy budget request 

 in 1978 "at best is lackluster and at worst is a national disgrace." The 

 committee forcefully set forth a far more aggressive energy R. & D. 

 package each year. And its recommendations were based on long 

 and careful study, public hearings, field trips, and an effort to assess 

 priorities and the urgency of the situation. 



SPECIAL INQUIRIES BY MCCORMACK SUBCOMMITTEE 



Among the special inquiries undertaken by the McCormack sub- 

 committee were the following: 



—Hearings in April 1977 on "energy demand, conservation poten- 

 tial and probable lifestyle changes." The subcommittee exam- 

 ined projections on growth rates, conservation possibilities, and 

 how they would affect life style. 



—Hearings on December 12, 1977, on "the many lives of re-refined 

 oil." Watkins chaired the hearings held at Seminole Junior 

 College, Seminole, Okla. The objective was to determine the 

 potential of re-refining technology, as well as better disposal 

 methods to meet antipollution standards. 



