HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE RELEASES FY25 NDAA LANGAUGE
ECA Staff | 05/15/2024 The House Armed Services Committee (HASC) released its version of the Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) earlier this week. The NDAA is considered a must-pass bill, as it authorizes all defense activities. The HASC does not recommend an increase in the defense topline. They’re proposing $849.8 billion, which is close to the amount requested by the Pentagon. In their version of the bill, $33.8 billion is included for defense spending at other federal agencies, like Department of Energy. DOE, Atomic Energy Defense Activities highlights from this NDAA version include: - $24.9 billion total for National Nuclear Security Administration; including $19.98 billion for weapons activities. Under the $19.9 billion
authorized for Weapons Activities, the NDAA includes the following for DOE activities:
- $1.3 billion for the Savannah River Site (SRS) Plutonium Modernization, including the SRS's Plutonium Processing Facility and Plutonium Operations.
- $1.5 billion for the Los Alamos Plutonium Modernization mission, including, their operations, and their plutonium pit production mission, as well as their reinvestment
project.
- $7 billion for Defense Environmental Cleanup - this does not include non-defense cleanup. ECA will update our budget charts in the coming weeks to reflect the breakdown of cleanup sites.
- $150 million for Nuclear Energy for the Idaho Office's sitewide safeguards and security
- $205 Million for the
Office of Legacy Management
- $2.4 billion total for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, including:
- $1.9 billion to go to Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Programs
The NDAA also includes concerns
following the transition between DOE-EM and NNSA, as highlighted below: - The committee believes it is important to carefully track the transition of primary responsibility for the Savannah River Site from the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (EM) to the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) to ensure the site’s vital mission, workforce, and the surrounding community avoid undue disruption. However, the committee
notes that structural differences between the budget documents submitted by EM and NNSA do not provide a clear picture of transitioning activities. For example, EM’s budget request for Community and Regulatory Support for the Savannah River Site is about $7.0 million less than the amount provided for the previous fiscal year. 37 Although NNSA’s budget does not contain an equivalent account, it has informed the committee that additional funds for the same activities are contained in its request
for funds for Operations of Facilities at the Savannah River Site. Accordingly, the committee directs the Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration to provide a briefing to the House Committee on Armed Services by December 1, 2024, detailing the transfer of responsibility for activities and associated funding from EM to NNSA. Further, the committee encourages NNSA to include more detailed information in this respect in future budget submissions.
Next Steps On May 22nd, the Senate Committee on Armed Services,
Strategic Forces Subcommittee will receive testimonies from Secretary Jill Hruby, Senior EM Advisor Ike White, Deputy Administrator Admiral William Houston, Deputy Administrator Marvin Adams, General Thomas Bussiere, and Vice Admiral Johnny Wolfe, on DOE's Atomic Energy Defense Activities and Department of Defense Nuclear Weapons Program in Review of the NDAA FY25 Request. The hearing will take place at 4:45pm on May 22nd and can be viewed using this link.
Full bill language can be read here. ECA will continue to provide updates as we begin to see authorization and appropriation language move through. Numbers for non-defense cleanup
ADVANCED ENERGY ACT MOVES TO SENATE FOR CONFIRMATION
ADVANCE ENERGY ACT ECA Staff | 05/15/2024 Last week, the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act (ADVANCE Act) was passed in an overwhelmingly bipartisan 393-19 vote in the House, as a
package in the Fire Grants and Safety Act (S. 870). Highlights of the ADVANCE Act include… - A provision to for the NRC to develop framework to license and regulate micro-reactors
- A regulatory framework
to research and support the development of nuclear facilities at former fossil fuel facilities
- Financial awards for first-of-a-kind (FOAK) reactors in five different categories.
- The NRC can no longer charge mission-indirect program support and agency support fees to advanced nuclear reactor applicants.
- The NRC can no longer charge pre-application activity and
early site permit review fees on DOE sites
- Amendments to facilitate increased international cooperation on the development of nuclear facilities, technologies, and supply chain
Now, the Act will move to the Senate, where it will be subject to
fast-track procedure for final approval. You can take a look at the full text of the Act here. ECA will continue to look out for and keep you updated on developments on the ADVANCE Act.
RUSSIAN URANIUM BAN WILL SPEED UP DEVELOPMENT OF U.S. NUCLEAR FUEL SUPPLY CHAIN
DOE-NE | 05/14/2024 President Biden recently signed bipartisan legislation to ban the import of uranium products from Russia, marking a monumental shift for our civil nuclear energy sector. This is truly a transformative time for nuclear energy. We’re restarting old reactors, building new ones, and working to deploy advanced reactors to help us meet our clean energy goals. All of those will need fuel, and we can no longer rely on bad actors like Russia to supply it. This ban is essential to strengthening our nation’s energy security and supports the development of uranium conversion and enrichment services right here in the United States that will result in thousands of new jobs for Americans across the country. A Closer Look at the BanThe ban goes into effect 90 days after it was signed into law and prohibits any imported unirradiated low-enriched uranium (LEU) produced in the Russian Federation or by a Russian entity. The Biden-Harris Administration does not take this decision lightly. Russia has roughly 44% of the world’s uranium enrichment capacity and supplies approximately 35% of our imports for nuclear fuel. We recognize that a transition away from Russian-sourced fuel will not happen overnight. The Department of Energy estimates that U.S. utilities have roughly three years of LEU available through existing inventory or pre-existing contracts. To ensure our plants do not experience
any disruptions, we’re creating a waiver process to allow some imports of LEU from Russia to continue for a limited time. In the meantime, we’re taking aggressive steps to establish a secure and reliable uranium supply market. The passage of this ban unlocks the $2.72 billion Congress recently appropriated to increase production of LEU and high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) to support existing and new advanced nuclear reactors.
NEW MEDIA: Gone Fission Nuclear Report: K-25 Reunion: Recalling Nuclear History May 6, 2024 | S4 E9 On April 27, 2024, more than 650 former workers at the historic K-25 gaseous diffusion plant in Oak Ridge, TN, came together for their first-ever reunion. As Daniel Dassow wrote in the Knoxville
News-Sentinel, it was the first time many had driven their private cars into the complex, the first time they weren’t required to show a badge and perhaps the first time they had seen K-25 as a field site with no large buildings left. In this week’s Gone Fission Nuclear Report podcast, Host Michael Butler takes a look at this unique get-together and joins attendees in remembering their historic careers. Our guest is former K-25 Plant Manager Harold Conner.
UPCOMING EVENTS: National Academies: Leveraging Community Benefit Frameworks: Empowering Communities to Benefit from Federally Funded Energy Projects May 16-17, 2024 | Washington, D.C. Register Here |
Agenda 2024 National Cleanup Workshop September 16-18, 2024 | Crystal Gateway Marriott (Arlington, VA) More Information Here
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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.
Interactive guide for communities and governments to help navigate nuclear waste cleanup The Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) recently released the Guide to Successful Environmental Cleanup, an interactive online resource that provides frequently asked questions, case studies, and recommendations regarding nuclear waste cleanup. To assist local government officials, their communities, and federal agencies in deciphering
the complexities of the environmental cleanup process, ECA developed this guide to facilitate future successful cleanups.
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Learn More about Cleanup Sites with ECA's DOE Site Profiles ECA's new site profiles detail DOE's active Environmental Management cleanup sites and national
laboratories, highlighting their history, missions, and priorities. The profiles are a key source for media, stakeholders, and the public to learn more about DOE site activities, contractors, advisory boards, and their surrounding local governments.
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