§10173a Content of agreements

Summary

The Secretary must make set payments to any State or tribe that signs a benefits agreement for a monitored retrievable storage facility (MRS) or a repository. For an MRS the schedule is $5 million a year before the first receipt of spent fuel, $10 million when the facility first takes spent fuel, and $10 million a year after that until the facility closes. For a repository the amounts are $10 million a year before first receipt, $20 million at first receipt, and $20 million a year after until closure. “MRS” means a monitored retrievable storage facility. “Spent fuel” means high‑level radioactive waste or spent nuclear fuel. “First spent fuel receipt” does not count testing or demonstrations. Annual pre‑receipt payments start when the agreement is signed and repeat each anniversary. Post‑receipt annual payments come on the anniversary of the first receipt. If the first‑receipt payment comes less than six months after the last pre‑receipt annual payment, it is reduced by one‑twelfth of the pre‑receipt annual amount for each full month under six. No payment may be made before January 1, 1989. Payments come from the Waste Fund and the Secretary’s signature on an agreement promises the U.S. will pay. The Secretary generally cannot limit how the money is used, but the State must give at least one‑third of each payment to affected local governments and include a transfer plan in the agreement. The agreement must also set up a Review Panel, have the State or tribe waive its right to disapprove a site, require sharing licensing information, involve the State or tribe in facility design and health/safety documents, and have the State or tribe waive any rights to impact assistance under sections 10136(c)(1)(B)(ii), 10136(c)(2), 10138(b)(2)(A)(ii), and 10138(b)(3).