Trump's cuts to energy innovation would hit Chicago area hard

Did you know that the Chicago area is a world leader in energy technology research? This enviable status is fueled in part by federal Department of Energy (DOE) investments in two national laboratories in the suburbs and government research grants to our local universities. But President Trump's budget threatens all of this, along with the thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic growth these federal investments create across Illinois.

Take the DOE's Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, for example. The Trump Administration's own documents propose over $100 million in cuts in science and energy research at Argonne. Scientists at Argonne are currently working on next generation batteries for our cars, homes and electrical grid. They are developing tomorrow's biofuels, safer nuclear power plants, and using the brightest x-rays in the U.S. to push the bounds of science.

Or how about the $3.5 million small business loan RedWave Energy in Wheaton received last May from DOE's Advanced Research Projects Agency for Energy? RedWave is using an innovative technology to turn excess heat at factories and power plants directly into usable energy. This technology could mean major advances in fighting climate change, yet President Trump has proposed eliminating the entire program at DOE.

Consider how the $20 million Lisle-based semi-truck maker Navistar won DOE's "Supertruck II" competition last August to double the fuel efficiency of big rigs. In September, they received their first $5 million installment. But President Trump has proposed slashing the funding for DOE's Vehicles Office by 73 percent. Worse yet, he proposes eliminating the "Supertruck II" program entirely, even though it promises to help truckers and consumers across the country save money, reduce air pollution, cut our oil addiction, and create jobs right here in Illinois.

It is not just one or two initiatives on the chopping block. President Trump wants to cut basic science funding by 20 percent, nuclear power R&D by 30 percent, grid modernization and fossil energy innovation by 40 percent and energy efficiency and renewable energy research - including on wind turbines and solar panels - by 70 percent.

These cuts are mindless, will turn back the clock on American energy innovation, and mean the loss of good paying science and technology jobs throughout the Chicago area.

Most of our suburban congressional delegation has consistently supported high energy R&D funding levels. They should be commended, because they know that only the federal government has the ability to fund these kinds of early-stage innovation efforts. They've heard the private sector tell them that they don't have the budgets to make these kinds of bipartisan, job-creating, energy-saving, long-term investments.

But two of our suburban representatives - Rep. Randy Hultgren and Rep. Peter Roskam - have waffled in the past. They generally say the right things, but then vote to cut federal funding for Chicago area institutions. In May, Rep. Hultgren even praised President Trump's budget, calling it a "good blueprint."

But Hultgren and Roskam's support for President Trump's budget threaten our local economy. If Trump's budget passes, the Chicago area will lose top talent as scientists and engineers are laid off. Groundbreaking experiments will be halted before they have produced results. Companies and inventors will choose to operate in rapidly-growing countries like China and India, which are desperate for private sector partners.

America needs the Chicago area if we are to succeed in the global clean energy race. In turn, the Chicago area needs our representatives in Congress to support robust energy research and development funding. As citizens and voters, it's up to all of us to make sure our representatives in Washington understand that.

Tarak Shah grew up in Glendale Heights and worked at the U.S. Department of Energy in Washington D.C. as Chief of Staff for Science and Energy from 2014 to 2017.