HB1365, titled the America First Energy Act, would amend the Research and Development, Competition, and Innovation Act to impose citizenship and immigration-status restrictions on the Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation at the Department of Energy. The bill would bar Department of Energy employees from serving as voting members of the Foundation’s board and would require voting board members, the executive director, and all officers and employees of the Foundation to be U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, refugees admitted under federal immigration law, or lawful permanent residents.
The bill also adds a security requirement directing that the section be carried out in accordance with existing federal security provisions, including subtitle D of the relevant title and section 223 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. In practical terms, the measure would narrow who may govern and work for the Foundation and align its operations more closely with federal security rules.
Impact
If enacted, HB1365 would amend 42 U.S.C. 19281, the statutory section governing the Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation, by adding eligibility limits for board membership and employment and by incorporating additional security compliance language. It would affect the Foundation’s governance structure, hiring authority, and potentially its pool of qualified board members and staff, while leaving the broader Department of Energy and underlying research-and-development framework intact.
Sentiment
There is limited recorded legislative sentiment available because the bill has only been introduced and referred to committee, with no committee transcript or vote history provided. Based on the bill text and title, the measure appears to be framed as a national-security and “America First” governance restriction rather than a policy expansion, suggesting support from sponsors favoring tighter domestic control over the Foundation’s leadership and operations.
Contention
The main point of contention is likely to be the bill’s exclusionary eligibility rules for board members and employees, particularly the prohibition on Department of Energy employees serving as voting board members and the requirement that personnel meet specified citizenship or immigration-status criteria. Supporters would likely argue these restrictions protect security and ensure domestic control, while critics may view them as unnecessarily limiting the talent pool, duplicative of existing federal vetting, or potentially discriminatory toward otherwise qualified noncitizens.
America First ActThis bill limits the eligibility of certain non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) for various federal benefits and grants, makes permanent the child tax credit increase, and requires individuals to provide evidence of satisfactory immigration status prior to receiving specified benefits.The bill prohibits asylees, parolees, and individuals withheld from removal from receiving certain federal benefits, including Medicaid, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), and Supplemental Security Income. The bill further restricts on the basis of immigration status benefits under federal health programs such as Medicare, emergency disaster relief, housing assistance, food assistance, early childhood assistance, student aid, and Community Development Block Grants.The bill also makes permanent the increase in the child tax credit set to expire at the end of 2025. In addition, this tax credit and the earned income tax credit are not available to asylees, parolees, individuals granted temporary protected status, individuals withheld from removal, individuals granted deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA) status, and non-U.S. nationals with employment-based immigrant visas.Federal aid is reduced for elementary and secondary education by 50% annually to jurisdictions that do not assist federal immigration enforcement actions (deemed sanctuary jurisdictions under the bill).The bill also removes statutory exemptions for Haitian entrants that allows such entrants to receive various aid.Certain benefits are prohibited, including Medicaid and SNAP, until an applicant’s satisfactory immigration status is proved.The bill prohibits tax-exempt 501(c)(3) charitable organizations from using federal funds to support certain non-U.S. nationals.