Energy Department

Secretary of Energy

Why It Matters

The U.S. Department of Energy, established in 1977 under President Carter, implements the policies that bring energy to U.S. homes and businesses, engages in the sometimes contradictory goals of weapons development for the U.S. military and delves into research to improve the country's energy future and cleaning up the environment.

This cabinet-level organization is responsible for research-and-development of energy technology - from electric cars to such sustainable energy projects as clean-coal production - energy conservation, nuclear cleanup from the Cold War era, energy data collection and selling government-made power to the public.

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Background

At a Glance

# of Employees: 14,671 (as of Oct. 2009)
2010 Budget: request $26.4 billion

History

In its more than 30-year history, the DOE's focus and relevance have changed with the country's needs. The federal government, looking to centralize several energy-related offices, created the DOE in an effort to unify the national energy organization and planning in response to the energy crisis of the early 1970s.

The government's stake in energy policy took hold in the 1940s during World War II. The U.S. established the Atomic Energy Commission in 1946 to oversee the Manhattan Project, a top-secret U.S. program to develop atomic weapons before any other country. Congress killed the commission in the early 1970s and instead created two new agencies: the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Energy Research and Development Administration. These agencies regulated the nuclear power industry and managed new developments in nuclear weapons, naval reactors and overall energy.

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Offices

Office of the Secretary
- Deputy Secretary
  - Energy Information Administration
  - National Nuclear Security Administration
  - Office of the Under Secretary for Energy
    - Legacy Management
    - Nuclear Energy
    - Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management
    - Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability
    - Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
    - Office of Environmental Management
    - Office of Fossil Energy
  - Power Marketing Administration
  - Under Secretary for Science
    - Office of Science