Detailed Summary

New Manhattan Project for Energy Independence - Requires the President to convene a summit to review the progress and promise of, the interrelationship of, and the additional funding needed to accelerate the progress of: (1) developing alternative technology vehicles that are not more than 10% more expensive than comparable model year vehicles; (2) developing and building energy efficient buildings that use no more than 50% of the energy of buildings of similar size and type; (3) constructing a large scale solar thermal power plant or solar photovoltaic power plant capable of generating 300 megawatts or more at a cost of 10 cents or less per kilowatt-hour; (4) developing and producing biofuel that does not exceed 105% of the cost for the energy equivalent of unleaded gasoline; (5) developing and implementing a carbon capture and storage system for a large scale coal-burning power plant that does not increase operating costs more than 15% compared to a baseline design without carbon capture and storage while providing an estimated chance of carbon dioxide escape of no greater than 1% over 5,000 years; (6) developing both a process to remediate radioactive waste so that it is not harmful for at least 5,000 years and a model that accounts for the effects of nuclear waste in that process; and (7) developing a sustainable nuclear fusion reaction capable of providing a large-scale sustainable source of electricity for residential, commercial, or government entities.

Requires the Secretary of Energy to implement: (1) a program to support such technologies; and (2) a program to competitively award cash prices to advance the research, development, demonstration, and commercial application necessary to advance such technologies.

Establishes the New Manhattan Project Commission on Energy Independence and sets forth its duties, including recommending to Congress steps to achieve 50% energy independence within 10 years and 100% energy independence within 20 years and assessing the impact of foreign energy dependence on national security.

Status of the Legislation

Latest Major Action: 1/14/2009: Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Science and Technology.

Points in Favor

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Points Against

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