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Title 50 — War and National DefenseRelease 119-73not60

§2527 Nuclear Test Ban Readiness Program

Title 50 › Chapter 42— ATOMIC ENERGY DEFENSE PROVISIONS › Subchapter II— NUCLEAR WEAPONS STOCKPILE MATTERS › Part A— Stockpile Stewardship and Weapons Production › § 2527

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary of Energy must create and run a program to keep U.S. nuclear weapons safe, reliable, and a deterrent if a low-threshold or comprehensive ban on nuclear explosives testing is negotiated and ratified as part of an agreement between the United States and the Russian Federation. The program has three main goals: keep strong stockpile inspection and non‑explosive testing to find problems; make sure materials, parts, processes, and trained people exist to remanufacture or replace warheads if needed; and support research to keep technical knowledge about weapons design and effects. The Department of Defense, the weapons production sites, and the national security labs must take part.

Full Legal Text

Title 50, §2527

War and National Defense — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Secretary of Energy shall establish and support a program to assure that the United States is in a position to maintain the reliability, safety, and continued deterrent effect of its stockpile of existing nuclear weapons designs in the event that a low-threshold or comprehensive ban on nuclear explosives testing is negotiated and ratified within the framework agreed to by the United States and the Russian Federation.
(b)The purposes of the program under subsection (a) shall be the following:
(1)To assure that the United States maintains a vigorous program of stockpile inspection and non-explosive testing so that, if a low-threshold or comprehensive test ban is entered into, the United States remains able to detect and identify potential problems in stockpile reliability and safety in existing designs of nuclear weapons.
(2)To assure that the specific materials, components, processes, and personnel needed for the remanufacture of existing nuclear weapons or the substitution of alternative nuclear warheads are available to support such remanufacture or substitution if such action becomes necessary in order to satisfy reliability and safety requirements under a low-threshold or comprehensive test ban agreement.
(3)To assure that a vigorous program of research in areas related to nuclear weapons science and engineering is supported so that, if a low-threshold or comprehensive test ban agreement is entered into, the United States is able to maintain a base of technical knowledge about nuclear weapons design and nuclear weapons effects.
(c)The Secretary of Energy shall carry out the program provided for in subsection (a). The program shall be carried out with the participation of representatives of the Department of Defense, the nuclear weapons production facilities, and the national security laboratories.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was formerly set out as a note under section 2121 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, prior to renumbering by Pub. L. 108–136.

Amendments

2013—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 113–66, § 3146(c)(4)(A)–(C), redesignated subsec. (b) as (a), substituted “Russian Federation” for “Soviet Union”, and struck out former subsec. (a) which related to congressional findings regarding negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union on nuclear test ban verification measures. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 113–66, § 3146(c)(4)(B), (D), redesignated subsec. (c) as (b) and substituted “subsection (a)” for “subsection (b)” in introductory provisions. Former subsec. (b) redesignated (a). Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 113–66, § 3146(c)(4)(B), (E), redesignated subsec. (d) as (c) and substituted “subsection (a)” for “subsection (b)” and “national security laboratories” for “national nuclear weapons laboratories”. Former subsec. (c) redesignated (b). Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 113–66, § 3146(c)(4)(B), redesignated subsec. (d) as (c). 2003—Pub. L. 108–136, § 3141(e)(8)(D), made technical amendment to section catchline. 1997—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 105–85 struck out heading and text of subsec. (e). Text read as follows: “The Secretary of Energy shall submit to Congress each year an unclassified report (with a classified annex as necessary) that describes the progress made to the date of the report in achieving the purposes of the program required to be established under subsection (b).”

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

50 U.S.C. § 2527

Title 50 — War and National Defense

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60