§10156 Interim Storage Fund

Summary

Allows the Secretary to make contracts, from after January 7, 1983 until January 1, 1990, with people or companies that own spent nuclear fuel from civilian reactors to store that fuel in federally provided interim storage up to the law’s available capacity. Under those contracts the federal government will take title at the reactor site to fuel the Nuclear Regulatory Commission says cannot stay onsite, move it to a federally owned away-from-reactor storage facility, and keep it there until it is processed, stored long-term, or disposed of. Contracts must require payment of fees and say how much storage is provided. The Secretary must study fees and report to Congress within 180 days after January 7, 1983, set annual charges to start on or before January 1, 1984, publish them in the Federal Register at least 30 days before they take effect, and keep each charge in place for 12 months. Fees must be fair, based on each party’s share of costs (like buying, building, operating, and maintaining facilities). The Secretary must write rules for how storage services are offered and, except as otherwise provided, does not have to get a license or permit just to own or hold the fuel. Creates an Interim Storage Fund in the U.S. Treasury made up of receipts from those fees and related payments, any congressional appropriations, and unspent balances available on January 7, 1983. The Fund can pay for finding and building sites, licensing, operating, closing and monitoring facilities, transportation, program administration, and impact assistance to communities. Starting the first fiscal year after January 7, 1983, the Secretary must make annual impact payments to States and local governments affected by a storage site to lessen social or economic harm; payments cannot exceed 10% of certain costs or $15 per kilogram of spent fuel, whichever is less, must be allocated fairly to the hardest-hit places, and may only be used for planning, public services, services linked to the storage, or compensation for lost taxable property. Payments come only from the fees. The Treasury holds the Fund and reports yearly to Congress; the Secretary sends a three-year Fund budget to OMB every three years. If extra money is available, it may be invested in U.S. obligations; if money is short, the Secretary may issue obligations to the Treasury up to amounts provided by law, and any appropriations used must be repaid to the general Treasury with interest. A "unit of local government" means a county, parish, township, municipality, including Alaska boroughs that existed on January 7, 1983, and other lower-level government units the Secretary recognizes.