MORGANTOWN – The U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed legislation that includes a bill to advance deployment of nuclear power led by Sen. Shelley Moore Capito and two Democratic colleagues.
Capito’s bill is the ADVANCE Act: Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy. The act is included in S. 870, the Fire Grants and Safety Act, which passed the House 393-13 last month. It passed 88-2 on Tuesday and heads to the president’s desk for his signature.
Speaking on the Senate floor before the vote, Capito said the ADVANCE Act “provides a significant boost for the future of nuclear energy in America. After a lot of hard work and negotiations, I am thrilled to be on the floor today as we are on the cusp of getting this bill across the finish line.”
It also will boost the economy, she said, along with benefiting U.S. energy security and the environment.
Nuclear energy makes up 20% of the national energy portfolio, she said. “Importantly, it’s emissions-free electricity that is 24/7, 365 days a year.”
Capito and her colleagues introduced the bill in March 2023. The Senate passed it as part of the National Defense Authorization Act that July. A Senate-House negotiated version was included in the Fire Grants and Safety Act, which updates the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to authorize appropriations for the U.S. Fire Administration and firefighter assistance grant programs.
The bill, Capito said, “preserves the United States as the destination for innovation and expansion, ensuring that we are what we should be, which is the global nuclear leader for decades to come.”
Capito is ranking member of the Environment and Public Works Committee. Joining her in leading the bill were EPW Chairman Tom Carper, D-Del., and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I. Sen. Joe Manchin also was an ADVANCE Act co-sponsor.
Some of the bill’s provisions:
- Empowers the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to lead in international forums to develop regulations for advanced nuclear reactors.
- Reduces regulatory costs for companies seeking to license advanced reactor technologies.
- Requires the NRC to develop a pathway to enable the timely licensing of nuclear facilities at brownfield and retired fossil-fuel energy generation sites.
- Modernizes outdated rules that restrict international investment.
- Tasks the NRC to identify and incorporate advanced manufacturing techniques to build nuclear reactors better, faster, cheaper, and smarter.
- Provides the NRC Chairman the tools to hire and retain exceptionally well-qualified individuals to successfully and safely review and approve advanced nuclear reactor licenses.
- Directs the Department of Energy (DOE) to improve its process to approve the export of American technology to international markets.
- Directs the NRC to establish an accelerated licensing review process to site and construct reactors at existing nuclear sites.
- Requires the NRC to update its Mission Statement to ensure the NRC does not limit the beneficial use of radioactive material and nuclear energy.
- Directs the NRC to enhance preparedness to qualify and license advanced nuclear fuels.
Email: dbeard@dominionpost.com
