Federal

Nuclear Waste Informed Consent Act

Source: Congress.gov · 498 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill requires the Secretary of Energy to get written permission from state governments, local governments and Native American tribes before spending money from the Nuclear Waste Fund on a nuclear waste repository (a facility that stores radioactive waste). The bill is called the "Nuclear Waste Informed Consent Act."

Who It Affects

The Secretary of Energy, state governors, local government units, neighboring local governments that nuclear waste might travel through, and affected Native American tribes.

Key Provisions

• The Secretary of Energy cannot spend money from the Nuclear Waste Fund for certain nuclear waste activities unless the Secretary signs a written agreement with the state governor where the repository would be located (Sec. 3(a)(1)) • The Secretary must get written agreements from each affected local government unit before spending Nuclear Waste Fund money (Sec. 3(a)(2)) • The Secretary must get written agreements from neighboring local governments if spent nuclear fuel or high-level radioactive waste will be transported through their area to reach the repository (Sec. 3(a)(3)) • The Secretary must get written agreements from each affected Native American tribe (Sec. 3(a)(4)) • Any agreement must be written, signed by all parties, binding, and can only be changed if everyone agrees to the change (Sec. 3(b))

What Changes

The Secretary of Energy gains a new requirement to obtain written, binding agreements with multiple government and tribal entities before spending Nuclear Waste Fund money on a repository.

Important Definitions

The bill states that key terms like "affected Indian tribe," "affected unit of local government," "high-level radioactive waste," "repository," "Secretary," "spent nuclear fuel," and "unit of general local government" have the meanings given in section 2 of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982. Specific definitions are not stated in this bill.

Effective Date

Not specified in bill text

II 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 404 To require the Secretary of Energy to obtain the consent of affected State and local governments before making an expenditure from the Nuclear Waste Fund for a nuclear waste repository, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES FEBRUARY 14, 2023 Ms. CORTEZ MASTO (for herself and Ms. ROSEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works A BILL To require the Secretary of Energy to obtain the consent of affected State and local governments before making an expenditure from the Nuclear Waste Fund for a nu- clear waste repository, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Nuclear Waste In- 4 formed Consent Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 6 In this Act, the terms ‘‘affected Indian tribe’’, ‘‘af- 7 fected unit of local government’’, ‘‘high-level radioactive 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:37 Feb 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S404.IS S404 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 404 IS waste’’, ‘‘repository’’, ‘‘Secretary’’, ‘‘spent nuclear fuel’’, 1 and ‘‘unit of general local government’’ have the meanings 2 given the terms in section 2 of the Nuclear Waste Policy 3 Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101). 4 SEC. 3. CONSENT-BASED APPROVAL. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may not make an 6 expenditure from the Nuclear Waste Fund established 7 under section 302(c) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 8 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(c)) for the costs of the activities 9 described in paragraphs (4) and (5) of section 302(d) of 10 that Act (42 U.S.C. 10222(d)) unless the Secretary has 11 entered into an agreement for a repository with— 12 (1) the Governor of the State in which the re- 13 pository is proposed to be located; 14 (2) each affected unit of local government; 15 (3) any unit of general local government contig- 16 uous to the affected unit of local government if 17 spent nuclear fuel or high-level radioactive waste will 18 be transported through that unit of general local 19 government for disposal at the repository; and 20 (4) each affected Indian tribe. 21 (b) CONDITIONS ON AGREEMENT.—Any agreement 22 for a repository under this Act— 23 (1) shall be in writing and signed by all parties; 24 (2) shall be binding on the parties; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:37 Feb 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S404.IS S404 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 404 IS (3) shall not be amended or revoked except by 1 mutual agreement of the parties. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:37 Feb 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S404.IS S404 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS

Important: This plain English summary was generated by AI and is provided for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice. Always consult the official bill text on Congress.gov or a qualified attorney for legal matters.