PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The Secretary of Energy must send Congress a report by January 1, 2026, and every two years after that. The report must explain money paid or planned for dealing with spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Definitions: High-level radioactive waste — the type named in the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982. Spent nuclear fuel — the used fuel named in that same Act. Standard contract — the specific contract described in federal nuclear waste rules (10 C.F.R. 961.3 or its replacement). The report must cover payments made for partial contract breaches, amounts spent since fiscal year 2008 to lower future payments, total spending so far to store and dispose of waste, projected lifecycle costs (including waste from existing reactors through 2050), ways to track liabilities, recommendations to improve accounting, actions taken on interim storage in the prior fiscal year, and work done to develop or use technologies that make transport or storage safer against earthquakes, floods, and other extreme weather.

Title 42, §10109

The Public Health and Welfare, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Definitions

In this section: (1) High-level radioactive waste

(2)Spent nuclear fuel

The term “spent nuclear fuel” has the meaning given the term in section 2 of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101).

(3)Standard contract

The term “standard contract” has the meaning given the term “contract” in section 961.3 of title 10, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation).

(b)Report

Not later than January 1, 2026, and biennially thereafter, the Secretary of Energy shall submit to Congress a report that describes—

(1)the annual and cumulative amount of payments made by the United States to the holder of a standard contract due to a partial breach of contract under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) resulting in financial damages to the holder;

(2)the cumulative amount spent by the Department of Energy since fiscal year 2008 to reduce future payments projected to be made by the United States to any holder of a standard contract due to a partial breach of contract under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.);

(3)the cumulative amount spent by the Department of Energy to store, manage, and dispose of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste in the United States as of the date of the report;

(4)the projected lifecycle costs to store, manage, transport, and dispose of the projected inventory of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste in the United States, including spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste expected to be generated from existing reactors through 2050;

(5)any mechanisms for better accounting of liabilities for the lifecycle costs of the spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste inventory in the United States;

(6)any recommendations for improving the methods used by the Department of Energy for the accounting of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste costs and liabilities;

(7)any actions taken in the previous fiscal year by the Department of Energy with respect to interim storage; and

(8)any activities taken in the previous fiscal year by the Department of Energy to develop and deploy nuclear technologies and fuels that enhance the safe transportation or storage of spent nuclear fuel or high-level radioactive waste, including technologies to protect against seismic, flooding, and other extreme weather events.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, referred to in subsec. (b)(1), (2), is Pub. L. 97–425, Jan. 7, 1983, 96 Stat. 2201, which is classified generally to chapter 108 (§ 10101 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 10101 of this title and Tables. Codification Section was enacted as part of the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act of 2024, also known as the ADVANCE Act of 2024, and not as part of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 which comprises this chapter.

§10109 Biennial Report on the Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-level Radioactive Waste Inventory in the United States