Secretary of Energy Chris Wright announced an executive order on March 27, 2025, to improve the efficiency of the National Laboratories and to reduce bureaucratic kludge at these key federal research and development centers. Secretary Wright has been clear that he wants to drive the President’s agenda to “unleash American energy”, and this is a strong step in that direction.
The order consists of four provisions. The first revises DOE Order 413.3B, which governs the Department of Energy’s management of capital asset projects. The revisions will permit a much greater delegation of authority over midsized projects. Sec. Wright’s order also dictates the expansion of the “OSHA-Plus” framework, which is used at the National Nuclear Security Administration to the national labs. This provision will streamline compliance with worker safety regulations. The third provision of the order is to assess the removal of construction labor agreement provisions from national lab contracts. The fourth provision of the order is to remove requirements from employee contracts that are not mandated by statute or regulation “or are not necessary to monitor DOE’s financial liabilities.”
These actions will streamline the management of contracts and the workforce at national labs, making them more attractive to contractors. By enabling the national labs to be more effective and efficient in conducting research, fostering discovery, supporting innovation, and ensuring security, the Secretary has helped open up the pathway to American energy dominance.
A further step would be to take up the suggestions of Special Compute Zones advocated by the Institute for Progress and the Foundation for American Innovation and do so on DOE land as advocated for by Drew Bond, President of C3 Solutions.
Secretary Wright should be applauded for his tremendous work supporting American energy, particularly at National Laboratories. As he described, DOE’s labs are “national gems” that have long been shackled by bureaucracy; this order is a step towards these gems shining at their full brilliance.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.
