Technology companies may soon get another source of funding for cutting-edge energy-related projects, as Congress nears a decision about whether to create the Advanced Research Projects Agency for the Energy Department, the Washington Business Journal reported.

Advocates of the effort say such an office would spur innovation and help reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil. But the Bush administration and Republicans in Congress oppose the measure, saying it would create a new layer of bureaucracy.

The measure would authorize $3.4 billion in funding over five years for the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, which would work with companies to develop technologies aimed at alleviating U.S. dependence on foreign energy sources.

The funding for the new agency, under the House bill, would come from an Energy Independence Acceleration Fund, which would be tapped for contracts, grants and cooperative agreements between the government and companies for joint development of energy technologies. The measure doesn’t specify what technologies the fund should promote.