MATSUI AND LEVIN REINTRODUCE THE STORE NUCLEAR FUEL ACT

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Doris Matsui (CA-07) and Congressman Mike Levin (CA-49) reintroduced the Storage and Transportation of Residual and Excess (STORE) Nuclear Fuel Act. This bill creates a legislative framework to develop a consolidated interim storage program for spent nuclear fuel at the Department of Energy. It allows for both active and decommissioned nuclear power plants, with priority given to decommissioned plants, to move spent nuclear fuel and other high-level radioactive material to off-site interim storage facilities.

"For years, negotiations around a long-term solution for storing spent nuclear fuel have been stalled in Congress, creating an unsustainable burden on local communities," said Congresswoman Matsui. "Local utilities, like SMUD in Sacramento, have been forced to spend millions to temporarily store spent fuel, waiting for the federal government to take possession of the waste. The STORE Nuclear Fuel Act would authorize the federal government to move this radioactive waste to a consolidated interim storage site, allowing communities with shutdown power plants to fully decommission these sites and reuse the sites for new purposes."

"There are over 3.5 million pounds of spent nuclear fuel stored at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station right now. The fuel is sitting on the eroding coastline, on an active fault line, right on Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, and just miles away from millions of people. It's clear that we need a better solution for our spent nuclear fuel, and fast," said Congressman Levin. "This bill will give the Department of Energy the authority it needs to advance consent-based solutions to move this spent fuel out of our communities and into a consolidated interim storage facility as quickly and safely as possible."

"SMUD applauds Rep. Matsui's ongoing leadership in championing a safe and responsible solution for the interim storage of spent nuclear fuel," said Paul Lau, CEO of SMUD. "The STORE Nuclear Fuel Act addresses the burdensome financial and mitigation disposal challenges utilities like SMUD face and provides communities with greater certainty on the federal government's efforts to manage the nation's spent fuel."

The Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) - Sacramento's public utility - stores spent nuclear fuel at the site of the former Rancho Seco Nuclear Generating Station, which SMUD operated until 1989. Congresswoman Matsui's legislation would, if enacted, provide a path to remove spent nuclear fuel from the Rancho Seco site and release SMUD from its responsibility to safely store this material. Currently, SMUD, like many other utilities, must periodically sue the federal government to recover the cost of storing spent nuclear fuel and other radioactive waste from the former power plant.

Full text of the bill is available HERE.

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