What This Bill Does
This bill creates a government-wide strategy for the United States to cooperate with other countries and export nuclear technology and materials. It establishes a new White House office to coordinate U.S. nuclear energy policies and creates several working groups to develop plans for expanding nuclear trade with allied nations and countries beginning their nuclear programs.
##
Who It Affects
- U.S. nuclear energy companies involved in building reactors, fuel services, and related technologies
- Countries developing or expanding nuclear energy programs (called "embarking civil nuclear nations")
- U.S. government agencies including the Departments of State, Energy, and Commerce
- Allied nations and partner countries of the United States
- The international nuclear industry and finance organizations
##
Key Provisions
- The President shall establish an office within the White House called the "Office of the Assistant to the President and Director for International Nuclear Energy Policy" to coordinate nuclear export policies and develop strategies for nuclear cooperation with foreign governments (Sec. 3(a)(1))
- A "Nuclear Exports Working Group" composed of senior officials from multiple U.S. agencies shall establish a 10-year civil nuclear trade strategy with targets for exporting nuclear reactors, equipment, materials, and fuel (Sec. 3(b)(5))
- The President shall launch an international initiative to provide financial assistance to countries developing nuclear programs, including grants of no more than $5,500,000 per country per year (Sec. 8(b))
- The Secretary of State shall conduct meetings with at least 5 allied or partner nations within 2 years to develop collaborative agreements on advanced nuclear reactor research, development, and deployment (Sec. 6(a))
- The bill authorizes funding of $50,000,000 for fiscal years 2023 through 2027 for the international nuclear program support initiative (Sec. 8(e))
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What Changes
If this bill becomes law, the United States government will create new coordinating structures for nuclear exports and international cooperation. A new White House office will be established to lead this effort and ensure different government agencies work together on nuclear trade issues. The government will actively support U.S. nuclear companies selling technology and reactors abroad by arranging financing, providing technical assistance, and negotiating agreements with other countries. Countries new to nuclear energy will receive grants to help them develop safety frameworks and regulatory systems. The government will also hold biennial (every two years) international conferences on nuclear safety and security and may establish a center to help developing nations set up nuclear programs.
##
Important Definitions
- **Advanced nuclear reactor**: A nuclear fission reactor with significant improvements compared to reactors operating on October 19, 2016, including better safety features, less waste, improved fuel performance, and ability to integrate with renewable energy sources; also includes fusion reactors and radioisotope power systems (Sec. 2(1))
- **Ally or partner nation**: Any country that is a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the Republic of India, or any country designated as an ally or partner by the Secretary of State (Sec. 2(2))
- **Embarking civil nuclear nation**: A country developing or expanding a nuclear energy program, selecting advanced reactors, or having an annual per capita gross domestic product of not more than $28,000 in 2020; excludes China, Russia, Belarus, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, and Burma (Sec. 2(8))
- **Civil nuclear**: Activities relating to nuclear plant construction, fuel services, energy financing, plant operations and regulation, nuclear medicine, safety, waste disposal, environmental safeguards, and nonproliferation (Sec. 2(7))
- **U.S. nuclear energy company**: A company organized under U.S. law that works in the nuclear energy industry (Sec. 2(12))
##
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 826
To facilitate the development of a whole-of-government strategy for nuclear
cooperation and nuclear exports.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MARCH 15, 2023
Mr. MANCHIN (for himself and Mr. RISCH) introduced the following bill; which
was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
A BILL
To facilitate the development of a whole-of-government
strategy for nuclear cooperation and nuclear exports.
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 ‘‘International Nuclear
4
Energy Act of 2023’’.
5
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
6
In this Act:
7
(1) ADVANCED NUCLEAR REACTOR.—The term
8
‘‘advanced nuclear reactor’’ means—
9
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(A) a nuclear fission reactor, including a
1
prototype plant (as defined in sections 50.2 and
2
52.1 of title 10, Code of Federal Regulations
3
(or successor regulations)), with significant im-
4
provements compared to reactors operating on
5
October 19, 2016, including improvements such
6
as—
7
(i) additional inherent safety features;
8
(ii) lower waste yields;
9
(iii) improved fuel and material per-
10
formance;
11
(iv) increased tolerance to loss of fuel
12
cooling;
13
(v) enhanced reliability or improved
14
resilience;
15
(vi) increased proliferation resistance;
16
(vii) increased thermal efficiency;
17
(viii) reduced consumption of cooling
18
water and other environmental impacts;
19
(ix) the ability to integrate into elec-
20
tric applications and nonelectric applica-
21
tions;
22
(x) modular sizes to allow for deploy-
23
ment that corresponds with the demand
24
for electricity or process heat; and
25
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(xi) operational flexibility to respond
1
to changes in demand for electricity or
2
process heat and to complement integra-
3
tion with intermittent renewable energy or
4
energy storage;
5
(B) a fusion reactor; and
6
(C) a radioisotope power system that uti-
7
lizes heat from radioactive decay to generate
8
energy.
9
(2) ALLY
OR
PARTNER
NATION.—The term
10
‘‘ally or partner nation’’ means—
11
(A) the Government of any country that is
12
a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-
13
operation and Development;
14
(B) the Government of the Republic of
15
India; and
16
(C) the Government of any country des-
17
ignated as an ally or partner nation by the Sec-
18
retary of State for purposes of this Act.
19
(3)
APPROPRIATE
COMMITTEES
OF
CON-
20
GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con-
21
gress’’ means—
22
(A) the Committees on Foreign Relations
23
and Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen-
24
ate; and
25
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(B) the Committees on Foreign Affairs
1
and Energy and Commerce of the House of
2
Representatives.
3
(4) ASSISTANT.—The term ‘‘Assistant’’ means
4
the Assistant to the President and Director for
5
International Nuclear Energy Policy described in
6
section 3(a)(1)(D).
7
(5) ASSOCIATED
ENTITY.—The term ‘‘associ-
8
ated entity’’ means an entity that—
9
(A) is owned, controlled, or operated by—
10
(i) an ally or partner nation; or
11
(ii) an associated individual; or
12
(B) is organized under the laws of, or oth-
13
erwise subject to the jurisdiction of, a country
14
described in paragraph (2), including a corpora-
15
tion that is incorporated in a country described
16
in that paragraph.
17
(6) ASSOCIATED INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘asso-
18
ciated individual’’ means a foreign national who is a
19
national of a country described in paragraph (2).
20
(7) CIVIL NUCLEAR.—The term ‘‘civil nuclear’’
21
means activities relating to—
22
(A) nuclear plant construction;
23
(B) nuclear fuel services;
24
(C) nuclear energy financing;
25
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•S 826 IS
(D) nuclear plant operations;
1
(E) nuclear plant regulation;
2
(F) nuclear medicine;
3
(G) nuclear safety;
4
(H) community engagement in areas in
5
reasonable proximity to nuclear sites;
6
(I) infrastructure support for nuclear en-
7
ergy;
8
(J) nuclear plant decommissioning;
9
(K) nuclear liability;
10
(L) safe storage and safe disposal of spent
11
nuclear fuel;
12
(M) environmental safeguards;
13
(N) nuclear nonproliferation and security;
14
and
15
(O) technology related to the matters de-
16
scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (N).
17
(8) EMBARKING CIVIL NUCLEAR NATION.—
18
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘embarking
19
civil nuclear nation’’ means a country that—
20
(i) does not have a civil nuclear en-
21
ergy program;
22
(ii) is in the process of developing or
23
expanding a civil nuclear energy program,
24
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•S 826 IS
including safeguards and a legal and regu-
1
latory framework, for—
2
(I) nuclear safety;
3
(II) nuclear security;
4
(III) radioactive waste manage-
5
ment;
6
(IV) civil nuclear energy;
7
(V) environmental safeguards;
8
(VI) community engagement in
9
areas in reasonable proximity to nu-
10
clear sites;
11
(VII) nuclear liability; or
12
(VIII) advanced nuclear reactor
13
licensing;
14
(iii) is in the process of selecting, de-
15
veloping, constructing, or utilizing ad-
16
vanced light water reactors, advanced nu-
17
clear reactors, or advanced civil nuclear
18
technologies; or
19
(iv) had an annual per capita gross
20
domestic product of not more than
21
$28,000 in 2020.
22
(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘embarking
23
civil nuclear nation’’ does not include—
24
(i) the People’s Republic of China;
25
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•S 826 IS
(ii) the Russian Federation;
1
(iii) the Republic of Belarus;
2
(iv) the Islamic Republic of Iran;
3
(v) the Democratic People’s Republic
4
of Korea;
5
(vi) the Republic of Cuba;
6
(vii) the Bolivarian Republic of Ven-
7
ezuela;
8
(viii) the Syrian Arab Republic;
9
(ix) Burma; or
10
(x) any other country—
11
(I) the property or interests in
12
property of the government of which
13
are blocked pursuant to the Inter-
14
national Emergency Economic Powers
15
Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); or
16
(II) the government of which the
17
Secretary of State has determined has
18
repeatedly provided support for acts
19
of international terrorism for purposes
20
of—
21
(aa) section 620A(a) of the
22
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961
23
(22 U.S.C. 2371(a));
24
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(bb) section 40(d) of the
1
Arms Export Control Act (22
2
U.S.C. 2780(d));
3
(cc) section 1754(c)(1)(A)(i)
4
of the Export Control Reform
5
Act
of
2018
(50
U.S.C.
6
4813(c)(1)(A)(i)); or
7
(dd) any other relevant pro-
8
vision of law.
9
(9) NUCLEAR
SAFETY.—The term ‘‘nuclear
10
safety’’ means issues relating to the design, con-
11
struction, operation, or decommissioning of nuclear
12
facilities in a manner that ensures adequate protec-
13
tion of workers, the public, and the environment, in-
14
cluding—
15
(A) the safe operation of nuclear reactors
16
and other nuclear facilities;
17
(B) radiological protection of—
18
(i) members of the public;
19
(ii) workers; and
20
(iii) the environment;
21
(C) nuclear waste management;
22
(D) emergency preparedness;
23
(E) nuclear liability; and
24
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(F) the safe transportation of nuclear ma-
1
terials.
2
(10)
SECRETARY.—The
term
‘‘Secretary’’
3
means the Secretary of Energy.
4
(11) SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL.—The term ‘‘spent
5
nuclear fuel’’ has the meaning given the term in sec-
6
tion 2 of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42
7
U.S.C. 10101).
8
(12) U.S. NUCLEAR ENERGY COMPANY.—The
9
term ‘‘U.S. nuclear energy company’’ means a com-
10
pany that—
11
(A) is organized under the laws of, or oth-
12
erwise subject to the jurisdiction of, the United
13
States; and
14
(B) is involved in the nuclear energy indus-
15
try.
16
SEC. 3. CIVIL NUCLEAR COORDINATION AND STRATEGY.
17
(a) WHITE HOUSE FOCAL POINT ON CIVIL NUCLEAR
18
COORDINATION.—
19
(1) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—Given the critical
20
importance of developing and implementing, with
21
input from various agencies throughout the executive
22
branch, a cohesive policy with respect to inter-
23
national efforts related to civil nuclear energy, it is
24
the sense of Congress that—
25
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•S 826 IS
(A) there should be a focal point within the
1
White House, which may, if determined to be
2
appropriate, report to the National Security
3
Council, for coordination on issues relating to
4
those efforts;
5
(B) to provide that focal point, the Presi-
6
dent should establish, within the Executive Of-
7
fice of the President, an office, to be known as
8
the ‘‘Office of the Assistant to the President
9
and Director for International Nuclear Energy
10
Policy’’ (referred to in this subsection as the
11
‘‘Office’’);
12
(C) the Office should act as a coordinating
13
office for—
14
(i) international civil nuclear coopera-
15
tion; and
16
(ii) civil nuclear export strategy;
17
(D) the Office should be headed by an in-
18
dividual appointed as an Assistant to the Presi-
19
dent with the title of ‘‘Director for Inter-
20
national Nuclear Energy Policy’’; and
21
(E) the Office should—
22
(i) coordinate civil nuclear export poli-
23
cies for the United States;
24
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•S 826 IS
(ii) develop, in coordination with the
1
officials described in paragraph (2), a co-
2
hesive Federal strategy for engagement
3
with foreign governments (including ally or
4
partner nations and the governments of
5
embarking civil nuclear nations), associ-
6
ated entities, and associated individuals
7
with respect to civil nuclear exports;
8
(iii) coordinate with the officials de-
9
scribed in paragraph (2) to ensure that
10
necessary framework agreements and trade
11
controls relating to civil nuclear materials
12
and technologies are in place for key mar-
13
kets; and
14
(iv) develop—
15
(I) a whole-of-government coordi-
16
nating strategy for civil nuclear co-
17
operation;
18
(II) a whole-of-government strat-
19
egy for civil nuclear exports; and
20
(III) a whole-of-government ap-
21
proach to support appropriate foreign
22
investment in civil nuclear energy
23
projects supported by the United
24
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States in embarking civil nuclear na-
1
tions.
2
(2) OFFICIALS
DESCRIBED.—The officials re-
3
ferred to in paragraph (1)(E) are—
4
(A) the appropriate officials of—
5
(i) the Department of State;
6
(ii) the Department of Energy;
7
(iii) the Department of Commerce;
8
(iv) the Department of Transpor-
9
tation;
10
(v) the Nuclear Regulatory Commis-
11
sion;
12
(vi) the Department of Defense;
13
(vii) the National Security Council;
14
(viii) the National Economic Council;
15
(ix) the Office of the United States
16
Trade Representative;
17
(x) the Office of Management and
18
Budget;
19
(xi) the Office of the Director of Na-
20
tional Intelligence;
21
(xii) the Export-Import Bank of the
22
United States;
23
(xiii) the United States International
24
Development Finance Corporation;
25
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(xiv) the United States Agency for
1
International Development;
2
(xv) the United States Trade and De-
3
velopment Agency;
4
(xvi) the Office of Science and Tech-
5
nology Policy; and
6
(xvii) any other Federal agency that
7
the President determines to be appro-
8
priate; and
9
(B) appropriate officials representing for-
10
eign countries and governments, including—
11
(i) ally or partner nations;
12
(ii) embarking civil nuclear nations;
13
and
14
(iii) any other country or government
15
that the Assistant (if appointed) and the
16
officials described in subparagraph (A)
17
jointly determine to be appropriate.
18
(b) NUCLEAR EXPORTS WORKING GROUP.—
19
(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a
20
working group, to be known as the ‘‘Nuclear Ex-
21
ports Working Group’’ (referred to in this subsection
22
as the ‘‘working group’’).
23
(2) COMPOSITION.—The working group shall be
24
composed of—
25
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(A) senior-level Federal officials, selected
1
internally by the applicable Federal agency or
2
organization, from—
3
(i) the Department of State;
4
(ii) the Department of Commerce;
5
(iii) the Department of Energy;
6
(iv) the Department of the Treasury;
7
(v) the Export-Import Bank of the
8
United States;
9
(vi) the United States International
10
Development Finance Corporation;
11
(vii) the Nuclear Regulatory Commis-
12
sion;
13
(viii) the Office of the United States
14
Trade Representative; and
15
(ix) the United States Trade and De-
16
velopment Agency; and
17
(B) other senior-level Federal officials, se-
18
lected internally by the applicable Federal agen-
19
cy or organization, from any other Federal
20
agency or organization that the Secretary deter-
21
mines to be appropriate.
22
(3) REPORTING.—The working group shall re-
23
port to the appropriate White House official, which
24
may be the Assistant (if appointed).
25
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(4) DUTIES.—The working group shall coordi-
1
nate, not less frequently than quarterly, wit
[Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]