MARCH DEADLINES LOOMING AS LAWMAKERS ARE FACED WITH POLICY RIDERS

ECA Staff | 02/13/2024 

As the March 1 and 8 deadlines approach, lawmakers have quietly and continuously worked on appropriation bills to fund the government for FY24. Lawmakers face deadlines on March 1 and 8 to avoid partial government shutdowns. Four bills which make up about 20% of the discretionary funding face the first deadline, March 1. The rest of the eight bills have a March 8 deadline. While top-line numbers have been agreed upon for a few weeks, leaders are faced with policy riders. 

The graphic below courtesy of Bloomberg Government depicts the specific bills and their deadline.

Policy riders are measures that are used to block or change federal policies beyond the regular focus on dollar amount. On January 7, House and Senate leaders made a high-;evel deal on top-line defense and non-defense funding levels, but there was no agreement on the approach to policy measures. 

As March is approaching with these two deadline, it is important to recall the provision in the  Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) negotiated last year between President Biden and House Republicans. Congress faces an automatic sequestration of 1% across all agencies' budget on May 1 if Congress has not yet approved full-year funding. This was designed to incentivize lawmakers to complete their budgeting work. The FRA would result in nearly a 10% cut across the board which could impact almost every agency. With most appropriation subcommittees declining meetings until bills pass, it can be expected for lawmakers to prioritize and do their best to reach the March deadlines.

While lawmakers continue to work towards FY24 appropriations bills to fund the government through September 30, FY25’s budget request is pushed further down. President Biden announced that his FY25 budget request will be released March 11, 2024. 

ECA will continue to provide updates as appropriation bills continue to move forward. 

ECA WEBINAR: ADVANCED NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT: AN INTRODUCTORY CONVERSATION WITH U.S. DOE & U.S. NRC

In coordination with the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), ECA is excited to host the first in a new series of educational webinars, "Advanced Nuclear Technology Deployment: An Introductory Conversation with U.S. DOE & U.S. NRC" on Wednesday, February 21st at 2pm EST.

This webinar series is designed for any local, State, Tribal governments and communities interested in learning more about advanced reactors developments, demonstrations, and deployments.

We hope you will join ECA's Director of Nuclear Policy, Kara Colton, in this important discussion featuring:

• Dr. Kathryn Huff, Assistant Secretary, Office of Nuclear Energy, DOE
• John Lubinski, Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, NRC

The webinar is open to all interested participants and will have time for audience Q&A. There is no fee to participate but registration is required in advance. 

We hope you can join us and please contact ECA Program Director, Faith Sanchez, (faiths@energyca.org) with any questions.

WESTINGHOUSE BEGINS UK LICENSING PROCESS FOR AP300

World Nuclear News | 02/13/2024

The company has formally submitted an application to the UK Department of Energy Security and Net Zero for approval to enter the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) for the AP300 small modular reactor. 

Westinghouse is one of six small modular reactor (SMR) suppliers shortlisted in October 2023 to bid for support from the UK government as part of plans to quadruple the country's nuclear energy capacity to 24 GW by 2050, and earlier this month announced it has signed an agreement with Community Nuclear Power Limited to build four AP300s in northeast England. This would be the UK's first privately-financed SMR fleet.

The 300 MWe reactor design is based on Westinghouse's AP1000 technology, a design which is already licensed in the UK. AP1000 units have regulatory approval - and are in operation - in China and the USA and the design is also compliant with European Utility Requirements standards for nuclear power plants. Westinghouse says this brings licensing advantages and substantially reduces delivery risk for customers.

"The AP300 SMR builds on the pedigree of the already approved AP1000, and we are very optimistic that the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero will approve our GDA application," Westinghouse Energy Systems President David Durham said. "The UK regulators are already very familiar with the AP300 SMR's underpinning technology, so we look forward to working with them to progress the timely development and deployment of this advanced, proven technology in the UK."

Utilising the AP1000 engineering, components and supply chain enables streamlined licensing and leverages available technical skills, the company says. The projects will also leverage Westinghouse's 75-year history of nuclear manufacturing operations in the UK at its facility in Springfields, Lancashire.

Continue reading >>

REGISTRATION IS LIVE FOR ECA's New Nuclear Forum: Building Nuclear Partnerships and Projects, May 8-9, 2024 in Kennewick, WA

ECA is excited to be hosting its third New Nuclear Forum, the only meeting designed to bring together DOE, federal, state, local and tribal governments and policymakers with developers, utilities, regulators, industry, and academia to identify opportunities, challenges and to build the partnerships necessary to support nuclear development.

Communities across the country are considering nuclear projects for many reasons - from diversifying regional economies, creating clean energy jobs or meeting carbon reduction goals, to increasing energy security and rebuilding the U.S. supply chain.  Some communities have a familiarity with nuclear energy projects, while others are just beginning to evaluate potential interest.  The ECA Forum is designed to enable shared learning so that local, State and Tribal governments evaluating nuclear projects can be meaningfully engaged - and prepared - to match the strengths and needs of their communities with new nuclear opportunities.  

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
The ECA Forum is open to communities, State, Tribal and local policymakers, industry, utilities, developers, experts, financiers, state legislators, community groups, and economic development organizations working to build capacity and support for new nuclear development in the U.S.

MEETING GOALS:
This meeting is part of ECA's New Nuclear Initiative to define the role of local governments in supporting the development of the new nuclear technologies, and answer three core questions:

• What do communities need to know to attract and support new nuclear development/missions?
• How can communities support industry, national laboratories, state, and federal governments and how should they communicate about local resources and development opportunities?
• What hurdles and challenges will communities face - along with industry and developers - and who can we work with to overcome them?

AGENDA:
ECA, with support from the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy, has developed an agenda that continues to look holistically at the what a nuclear project entails: from the front-end of the fuel-cycle to the back-end of the fuel cycle, from building local support, to state support and enabling legislation, from identifying the right public-private partnerships, to understanding regulatory oversight. Session topics include:

• How to Build Community Acceptance
• Reusing Energy Sites for New Nuclear Development
• Understanding Industrial Applications of Nuclear Energy
• Pursuing a Reliable, Domestic Nuclear Fuel Supply
• Rebuilding the U.S. Nuclear Supply

OPTIONAL OPPORTUNITIES:
Tuesday, May 7, 2024: ECA is offering an optional "Nuclear 101" for participants new to nuclear energy.
Friday, May 10, 2024: ECA is offering an optional tour:  Historic Hanford Tour / Future of Nuclear around Hanford Tour.  Additional registration will be required and openings are limited.

QUESTIONS?
For any questions, comments, or to learn more about the ECA New Nuclear Forums, please contact Kara Colton, ECA Director of Nuclear Policy, at kara.colton@energyca.org or Faith Sanchez, ECA Program Director, at faiths@energyca.org.

NEW MEDIA:

Gone Fission Nuclear Report: The Birth of the Nuclear Cleanup Caucus

February 12, 2024 | S4E3

Consistent, reliable Congressional funding is an essential element of success in the Department of Energy’s environmental cleanup program. In this week’s episode of the Gone Fission Nuclear Report podcast, host Michael Butler interviews two former members of Congress who were instrumental in creation of the Nuclear Cleanup Caucus in the mid-1990s. Our guests are former Washington State Congressman Doc Hastings, whose district included the Hanford site, and former Tennessee Congressman Zach Wamp who represented Oak Ridge. Over the past 30 years, the Caucus has worked diligently to educate fellow members about the importance of cleanup and to keep funding flowing to meet site cleanup priorities across the country.

UPCOMING ECA EVENTS: 

ECA Webinar: Advanced Nuclear Technology Deployment: An Introductory Conversation with U.S. DOE & U.S. NRC

February 21, 2024 at 2pm EST | Zoom Webinar

Register Here

ECA Forum: Building Nuclear Partnerships & Projects

May 8-9, 2024 | Kennewick, WA

Register Here | Agenda | Sponsorship Information

2024 National Cleanup Workshop

September 16-18, 2024 | Crystal Gateway Marriott (Arlington, VA)

More Information Here

Check out ECA's latest report! 

DISPOSAL DRIVES CLEANUP: RE-ENERGIZING MOMENTUM FOR DISPOSAL SOLUTIONS FOR RADIOACTIVE WASTE

This report calls on the Department of Energy to launch the initiative to develop the actual waste disposition approaches. The Department could potentially save hundreds of billions of dollars in cleanup costs by using its available tools and implementing the report’s recommendations.