LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Congress has returned
ECA Staff | 9/9/2020
Both the House and the Senate have returned from the August recess following Labor Day weekend. As discussed during the Pre-Election webinar hosted by ECA at the end of August, it is nearly certain that we will see a continuing resolution (CR) through December. Given that there are not many legislative days left in the calendar year, it is unknown if there will be separate COVID funding legislation or if money will be thrown
into the CR. It is likely that DOE and NNSA will operate under a long-term CR.
Currently, some Senate Republicans are floating a $500 billion+ proposal for an economic stimulus package. Democrats have called for at least $2 trillion in another stimulus bill.
| Follow the latest DOE budget updates with ECA's budget tracker
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Don't forget to register for the 2020 National Cleanup Workshop!
The 2020 National Cleanup Workshop will be held virtually on Wednesday, September 16, 2020, from 12:00 - 5:00 PM ET.
Hear exclusive insights from our list of speakers, headlined by:
Paul Dabbar, DOE Under Secretary for Science
William "Ike" White, Senior Advisor for Environmental Management to the Under Secretary for Science
Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.)
Registration for this event is $75.
There are currently over 750 paid registrations - reserve your spot today! The virtual workshop will bring together senior DOE officials, state and local government officials, and industry leaders to discuss key issues facing the DOE complex in the year ahead.
Please contact Autumn Bogus at abogus@la-inc.com or (865) 294-5129 with any questions about registration. For more information, please visit cleanupworkshop.com.
Thank you to our sponsors:
ENERGY COMMUNITIES ALLIANCE
For Efficiency Safety and Security NNSA should separate the Oak Ridge and Pantex M&O Contract
ECA Staff | 9/8/2020
Yesterday, Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) submitted a letter to the NNSA Administrator concerning the M&O contract for Y-12 and Pantex. ECA believes NNSA should allow one contractor to focus on the critical missions at the Y-12 National Security Complex and one contractor to focus on the Pantex Plant. The plan to keep the
sites under one combined Management & Operating (M&O) contract may not fully support the critical national security missions at each site.
ECA is asking NNSA:
- Has NNSA looked at having two contracts again?
- What are the real issues at the site that is causing the shakeup?
- Does one contract between two very different sites still make sense?
Chuck Hope, Oak Ridge City Councilman, noted that local officials in Oak Ridge have felt this was a mistake when the first joint M&O contract went out, and still believe it is a mistake today. Hope continued to say "it is very difficult to combine two very different programs in two different states into one contract. You are putting too much of a burden on the people managing the contract. Y-12 should be one contract and
Pantex should be another contract, this will allow DOE and NNSA to be able to adapt to certain changes more rapidly in the future."
SMALL MODULAR REACTOR
NUCLEAR WASTE
Read about DOE's High Level Waste Interpretation
Have questions about DOE’s recent high-level waste (HLW) interpretation? Download ECA’s Key Points and FAQs on the issue to better understand what ECA believes are the potential benefits of implementation.
Interested in learning more? Read the ECA report “Making Informed Decisions on DOE's Proposed High Level Waste Definition” at www.energyca.org/publications
Stay Current on Activities in the DOE World
Read the latest edition of the ECA Bulletin, a regular newsletter providing a detailed brief of ECA activities, legislative news, and major events from across the DOE complex. Have suggestions for future editions? Email bulletin@energyca.org.
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Learn More about Cleanup Sites with ECA's DOE Site Profiles
ECA's new site profiles detail DOE's 13 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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