Department of Energy budget figures have been released with the Trumpian headline, “Unleashing a Golden Era of Energy Dominance and Energy Innovation and Protecting the Nation.” However, 65% of the DOE’s proposed $46 billion budget is earmarked for its nuclear weapons section known as the National Nuclear Security Administration. In turn, more than 80% of the NNSA’s proposed fiscal year 2026 funding is for nuclear weapons research and production programs, with a 25% funding increase over FY 2025. In addition, the Trump administration is adding another $4.8 billion from so-called “reconciliation” funding, bringing the NNSA’s “total weapons activities” to just under $30 billion. Taken together, the nuclear weapons budget is 53% above FY 2025. To help pay for this extravaganza, nuclear nonproliferation and cleanup programs are being cut by 5%, cyber-security and emergency response by 25%, and energy efficiency and renewable energy programs by 74%.
— Nuclear Watch New Mexico; and New York Times, June 3, 2025
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