Senate Bill Includes Nuclear Loan Guarantee Money

WASHINGTON – The Senate would provide $8 billion in new loan guarantees for nuclear power plant construction under a large omnibus year-end spending bill. That’s a bit more than the $7 billion the House approved last week – but far less than the $36 billion President Barack Obama requested in his budget.  The bill includes $4 billion in loan guarantees for fossil fuels and $405 million in credit subsidy funding for renewable energy projects.  And it would spend about $7 billion on the nuclear weapons program. Overall, the bill would provide $34.5 billion for the Energy Department, the Interior Department’s water programs, and the Army Corps of Engineers. The bill would restore funding for 172 Corps projects in 41 states that Obama’s budget proposed canceling.