WASHINGTON, DC - The House of Representatives today passed four bipartisan Energy and Commerce Committee bills that will modernize our nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve and address key challenges facing America’s nuclear energy industry.
Passing the House today was:
H.R. 6511, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Reform Act, authored by committee Vice Chairman Joe Barton (R-TX) and Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL), preserves and upgrades the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) infrastructure by requiring the Secretary of Energy to carry out a pilot program to lease underutilized SPR capacity that will become available under current, mandated drawdowns. H.R. 6511 passed the House by voice vote.
H.R. 1320, the Nuclear Utilization of Keynote Energy Act, authored by #SubDCCP Vice Chairman Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) and Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA), revises the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) fee recovery structure and increases the predictability, transparency, and efficiency of the NRC’s regulatory processes. H.R. 1320 passed the House by voice vote.
H.R. 2278, the Responsible Disposal Reauthorization Act, authored by Rep. Scott Tipton (R-CO), amends the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978 to extend the authorization of the Secretary of Energy to continue operating the disposal site in Mesa County, Colorado (known as the Cheney disposal cell) for receiving and disposing of residual radioactive material from processing sites from 2023 to 2030. H.R. 2278 passed the House by voice vote.
H.R. 2389, to reauthorize West Valley demonstration project, authored by Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY), reauthorizes Department of Energy cleanup of nuclear waste at the West Valley Demonstration Project located in West Valley, New York. Additionally, the legislation requires a study to help identify a disposal pathway for the project’s radioactive waste. H.R. 2389 passed the House by voice vote.
“Our focus has been and will continue to be advancing thoughtful solutions to modernize the Department of Energy to ensure the long-term security and prosperity of Americans," said Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR), #SubEnvironment Chairman John Shimkus (R-IL), and #SubEnergy Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI). “The Nuclear Utilization of Keynote Energy Act will make targeted reforms to the NRC’s fee structure and streamline certain licensing and regulatory actions, which in turn helps ratepayers who pay for regulatory costs of nuclear energy."
The committee leaders continued, “Building on the committee’s work on nuclear waste management, passing the House are two important pieces of legislation that will reauthorize certain environmental remediation projects at DOE. Last but not least, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Reform Act will make significant upgrades to the SPR so it’s more resilient and better equipped to respond to potential energy supply disruptions. These are important bipartisan policies that enhance America’s national, economic, and energy security, and we urge our Senate colleagues to swiftly follow our efforts."
