WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) has been selected to represent Louisiana on five key committees in the 117^th Congress. He will also lead the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development as the subcommittee’s top Republican.

This subcommittee funds the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Department of Energy, two agencies vital to Louisiana workers and families. Kennedy remains the only member of the Louisiana delegation serving on an appropriations committee in Congress. 

Kennedy will serve on the following committees:

• Committee on Appropriations, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
• Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
• Committee on the Budget 
• Committee on the Judiciary
• Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship

“In only a few weeks, President Biden has managed to make a mockery of the thousands of hardworking Louisianans in the energy industry by enforcing an energy ban that will cost many thousands of Louisianian jobs by next year. The people of Louisiana want to keep working hard and caring for their families. They want to use their talents and liberties to strengthen our economy through energy independence.

“Leading the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development means that Louisiana will have a front seat in shaping energy policies that are critical to every corner of our state and country. I intend to use my position on this subcommittee to stop President Biden’s war on energy jobs and keep America energy independent. As part of committees that defend America’s economic and religious freedoms, I’ll continue to represent Louisianians and their values,” said Kennedy. 

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development has jurisdiction over an array of issues, including those related to: 

• The Department of Energy and its Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and Strategic Petroleum Reserve,
• the Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
• the Corps of Engineers, 
• the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army, which has authority over civil works, and
• the Delta Regional Authority.

FY 2021 funding for the Army Corps of Engineers, passed in December, provided $7.8 billion, an increase of $145 million above the FY 2020 level and $1.8 billion more than the budget request.

FY 2021 funding for the Department of Energy provided $39.6 billion for the department, an increase of $1 billion above the FY 2020 level and $4.5 billion above the budget request.

Last Congress, Kennedy chaired the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government in addition to serving on the Banking, Budget, Judiciary and Small Business Committees.

In addition to being ranking member on the Energy and Water Development subcommittee, Kennedy will also serve as a member of the following Senate Appropriations subcommittees:

• Financial Services and General Government
• Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies
• Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies
• Homeland Security
• Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies