Part 3 of 3 Parts (Please read Parts 1 and 2)
This legislative salvo into advanced reactors will be kicked off by a House Energy and Commerce legislative hearing this month focused solely on nuclear energy according to a committee spokesperson. Sean Kelly is a House E&C spokesperson. She said that the hearing will “discuss additional solutions that help advance American leadership in nuclear energy and technology, which is a top priority for Chairs Rodgers and Duncan.”
Duncan has long sought to move his bill, the “Modernize Nuclear Reactor Environmental Reviews Act,” H.R. 1559, through Congress. He wants to speed up the timeline of environmental reviews of reactors much more dramatically than the ADVANCE Act by expanding the use of categorical exclusions and generic environmental impact statements.
Representative Buddy Carter (R-Ga.) has legislation that would establish a DOE training program for foreign nuclear energy exports. It also presses other agencies to restrict nuclear fuel associated with China. According to Duncan, all of those bills could comprise a comprehensive legislative package in the House. Duncan said, “I’d really like to have a whole nuclear week on the floor.”
Despite efforts to pass bills on their own or attach provisions to novel vehicles, the classic approach of attaching legislation to the National Defense Authorization Act may end up as the most likely way that nuclear bills get passed in this Congress. The massive package that authorizes funds for the military has historically taken in nuclear energy riders in previous versions. House lawmakers are already signaling the energy source may have a spot in the upcoming defense bill.
Authors of the House version of the bill promoted the benefits of clean, reliable energy for military operations. Some call the development of microreactors “critical to the fight”. The bill is on the floor of the House this week.
John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) also said that he would be pushing to include legislation like the Nuclear Fuel Security Act, S. 452. This bill would provide hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for domestic uranium production. Rodgers also indicated openness to having her uranium ban bill attached to the military authorization bill. Barrasso said, “We’re gonna look everywhere to attach it to, but the NDAA is an option.”
A Senate EEPW aide who was granted anonymity to speak candidly said that the committee is looking at Schumer’s China bill as an option. The NDAA is still the best and most likely option for the ADVANCE Act to get passed. However, lawmakers will need to jump into action. Separate version of the NDAA have already been passed in the House and Senate Armed Services Committees. The Senate aide said it was still not clear how Armed Services Chair Jack Reed (D-R.I.) felt about nuclear provisions in the bill.
The 2024 NDAA may be the last chance for significant nuclear legislation to be passed in the near future. Sponsors of legislation like the ADVANCE Act are hoping to find a better vehicle and avoid having to pass it as a stand alone bill. Capito said, “I don’t anticipate [the ‘ADVANCE Act’] to be a singular bill, but if we keep going at this pace, it just might be.”