The U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly to pass a key piece of legislation to bolster the country’s nuclear energy sector.
The bill passed by a vote of 88-2 with Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) opposing the measure. The nuclear package was combined with another bill that reauthorized the U.S. Fire Administration and grant programs for firefighters. This combined package will also go to the president’s desk.
“We benefit from more tools in the toolbox as we take on the climate crisis—with the urgency the moment demands,” Zaidi added.
The measure aims to speed up the process of approving the construction of new nuclear plants as many of the country’s existing plants reach the end of their serviceable lives. In addition, it cuts the licensing fees that power companies must pay to begin projects. It also mandates the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to prepare a report examining ways to simplify and expedite the environmental review process.
“Hopefully it will be history-making in terms of small modular reactors, which is the future of nuclear,” Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) told reporters Thursday before senators voted.
Supporters of the measure say it’s a tremendous boost for the nation’s nuclear power sector.
“It’s a facilitator of the process by which industry has to get approvals for building these projects,” Lesley Jantarasami, managing director of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s energy program, told The Hill.
The measure is not without critics, however.
Edwin Lyman, the director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists, believes that a provision altering the mission of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to prevent it from “unnecessarily” restricting nuclear power will make the nation’s power station fleet less safe.
“I just see this as inviting the industry to challenge every decision that the commission tries to make that has the potential to impose more than this minimum amount of regulation and could essentially paralyze it from actually working to improve nuclear safety and security,” he told The Hill.
The vast majority of House members also advanced the bipartisan nuclear-fire bill, in a 393-13-1 vote, with Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a far-left Michigan Democrat, voting “present” to show support for the fire provision but opposition to the nuclear portion.
“I voted present in objection to the ridiculous decision to tie the reauthorization of vital firefighting programs for our communities together with poison pills that undermine nuclear safety and were strongly opposed by leading grassroots environmental organizations,” she told The Hill.
The Trump administration has placed an extreme focus on “unleashing American energy.”
The Department of Energy posted a release noting 11 top wins in the first 100 days of the Trump Administration:
1. Restarting the Palisades Nuclear Plant
2. Unleashing American-Made SMRs
3. Dow and X-Energy Seek Advanced Reactor Construction Permit
4. HALEU Headed to 5 Advanced Reactor Developers
5. First Higher Enriched Fuel in U.S. Commercial Reactor
6. First Fast Reactor Fuel Safety Test of the 21st Century
7. Reducing Dependence on China-Sourced Cobalt
8. New Testbed Propels Research on Nuclear-Powered Rockets
9. First-of-a-Kind Molten Salt Test Loop Unveiled
10. Cracking the Code on Molten Salt Fuel Production
11. Advancing an American Civil Nuclear Deal in Poland
“Nuclear energy is off to a fast start in the first 100 days of the Trump Administration. Several major milestones have already been announced since President Trump took office in January, from strengthening our nuclear fuel supply chain to supporting the nation’s first restart of a retired nuclear power plant,” the press release from the Energy Department stated.
“The long-awaited nuclear renaissance is right around the corner thanks to President Trump as the Administration works to restore American energy dominance to bring more reliable, secure, and affordable power back to U.S. taxpayers,” it added.
