# 119-s-243: Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act

119-s-243, Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Hawley, Josh [R-MO] (R-MO); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-08-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-243
- As of: 2026-08-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-243
- Congress: 119
- Title: Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-01-24
- Sponsor: Sen. Hawley, Josh [R-MO] (R-MO)
- Cosponsors: 8
- Policy area: Labor and Employment
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-08-11

## Summary

**Expands compensation and eligibility for people harmed by radiation.** The bill raises award amounts, adds covered jobs and places, and extends deadlines and program authority to help more exposed individuals get payments and care. - Families and survivors: Living individuals with Manhattan Project waste–related specified cancers are eligible for a base payment of at least $50,000 and surviving spouses or children can receive $25,000 when criteria are met. - Uranium workers and downwind communities: Miners, millers, core drillers, and ore transporters can combine work histories to meet exposure rules, covered employment dates extend to December 31, 1990, and many atmospheric and specified-disease claims increase to $100,000. - Process, research, and local safeguards: Claim filing windows extend to 5 years and the RECA Fund is extended to 6 years after enactment. The bill funds epidemiological grants at $3 million per year for FY2025–FY2027 and requires a cooperative agreement to safeguard Amchitka, Alaska with tribal participation.

## Cosponsors (8)

- Sen. Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM] (D-NM), 2025-01-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Schmitt, Eric [R-MO] (R-MO), 2025-01-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Heinrich, Martin [D-NM] (D-NM), 2025-01-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Kelly, Mark [D-AZ] (D-AZ), 2025-01-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Crapo, Mike [R-ID] (R-ID), 2025-01-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Hickenlooper, John W. [D-CO] (D-CO), 2025-01-27T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Rosen, Jacky [D-NV] (D-NV), 2025-04-01T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ] (D-AZ), 2025-06-16T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Higher payouts for nuclear test illnesses: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would raise fixed awards for many nuclear atmospheric-test disease claims to $100,000. It would move several cutoff dates to November 6, 1962 and add one-year physical-presence windows for many subcategories. The bill expands the listed affected areas to include several Western…
- Payments for Manhattan Project exposures: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would create a new payment program for people exposed to Manhattan Project waste. You would need at least two years of presence after January 1, 1949 in listed ZIP codes and a listed disease after that period. Living claimants would get the greater of $50,000 or their full elig…
- More cancer coverage for uranium workers: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would expand who qualifies for worker cancer coverage. It would require that covered cancers occur after employment began and extend qualifying mine and mill work through December 31, 1990. The bill adds a defined "core driller" job and may treat some remediation workers as ore…
- More time and easier proof for claims: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would lengthen the RECA fund termination to 6 years after enactment. It would extend the filing window from 2 years to 5 years. Denied claimants could resubmit up to three times after enactment. People who already got payments could ask for any extra money to which they become…
- Grants and monitoring for uranium sites: benefit, low. If enacted, the Department of Energy would award a cooperative agreement by September 30, 2025 to an eligible Alaska association to help monitor and safeguard Amchitka. The agreement would fund research, monitoring, and local workforce development and should include Indigenous knowledge and tribal…

## Related bills

- 119-s-1547: America the Beautiful Act
- 119-sres-913: A resolution relating to the death of the Honorable Nancy Kassebaum, former United States Senator for the State of Kansas.
- 119-sres-897: A resolution honoring the life, service, and legacy of the Honorable Jon Llewellyn Kyl, former Senator for the State of Arizona.
- 119-sres-801: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of the Honorable Lindsey Olin Graham, a Senator from the State of South Carolina.
- 119-sres-755: A resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Donald W. Riegle, Jr., former Senator for the State of Michigan.
- 119-sres-739: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of John Seymour, the late Senator for the State of California.

## Sources
- [119-s-243 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/243)

## Related
- [119-s-1547: America the Beautiful Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1547)
- [119-sres-913: A resolution relating to the death of the Honorable Nancy Kassebaum, former Uni…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-913)
- [119-sres-897: A resolution honoring the life, service, and legacy of the Honorable Jon Llewel…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-897)
- [119-sres-801: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of the Honorable Lindsey Olin Graham,…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-801)
- [119-sres-755: A resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Donald W. Riegle, Jr., former S…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-755)
- [119-sres-739: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of John Seymour, the late Senator for…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-739)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-243 (as of 2026-08-11).