Home > 106th Congressional Bills > S. 1287 (pcs) To provide for the storage of spent nuclear fuel pending completion of the nuclear waste repository, and for other purposes. [Placed on Calendar Senate] ...S. 1287 (pcs) To provide for the storage of spent nuclear fuel pending completion of the nuclear waste repository, and for other purposes. [Placed on Calendar Senate] ...
106th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 1287
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To provide for the storage of spent nuclear fuel pending completion of
the nuclear waste repository, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act
of 2000''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act--
(1) the term ``contract holder'' means a party to a
contract with the Secretary of Energy for the disposal of spent
nuclear fuel or high-level radioactive waste entered into
pursuant to section 302(a) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of
1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(a)); and
(2) the terms ``Administrator'', ``civilian nuclear power
reactor'', ``Commission'', ``Department'', ``disposal'',
``high-level radioactive waste'', ``Indian tribe'',
``repository'', ``reservation'', ``Secretary'', ``spent nuclear
fuel'', ``State'', ``storage'', ``Waste Fund'', and ``Yucca
Mountain site'' shall have the meanings given such terms in
section 2 of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C.
10101).
TITLE I--STORAGE AND DISPOSAL
SEC. 101. PROGRAM SCHEDULE.
(a) In General.--The President, the Secretary, and the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission shall carry out their duties under this Act and
the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 by the earliest practicable date
consistent with the public interest and applicable provisions of law.
(b) Milestones.--(1) The Secretary shall make a final decision
whether to recommend the Yucca Mountain site for development of the
repository to the President by December 31, 2001;
(2) The President shall make a final decision whether to recommend
the Yucca Mountain site for development of the repository to the
Congress by March 31, 2002;
(3) The Nuclear Regulatory Commission shall make a final decision
whether to authorize construction of the repository by January 31,
2006; and
(4) As provided in subsection (c), the Secretary shall begin
receiving waste at the repository site at the earliest practicable date
and no later than eighteen months after receiving construction
authorization from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
(c) Receipt Facilities.--(1) As part of the submission of an
application for a construction authorization pursuant to section 114(b)
of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10134(b)), the
Secretary shall apply to the Commission to receive and possess spent
nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste at surface facilities
within the geologic repository operations area for the receipt,
handling, packaging, and storage prior to emplacement.
(2) As part of the issuance of the construction authorization under
section 114(b) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, the Commission
shall authorize construction of surface facilities described in
subsection (c)(1) and the receipt and possession of spent nuclear fuel
and high-level radioactive waste at such surface facilities within the
geologic repository operations area for the purposes in subsection
(c)(1), in accordance with such standards as the Commission finds are
necessary to protect the public health and safety.
SEC. 102. BACKUP STORAGE CAPACITY.
(a) Subject to section 105(d), the Secretary shall enter into a
contract under this subsection with any person generating or owning
spent nuclear fuel that meets the requirements of section 135(b)(1) (A)
and (B) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10155(b)(1)
(A) and (B)) to--
(1) take title at the civilian nuclear power reactor site
to such amounts of spent nuclear fuel from the civilian nuclear
power reactor as the Commission determines cannot be stored
onsite; and
(2) transport such spent nuclear fuel to, and store such
spent nuclear fuel at, the repository site after the Commission
has authorized construction of the repository without regard to
the Secretary's Acceptance Priority Ranking report or Annual
Capacity report.
SEC. 103. REPOSITORY LICENSING.
(a) Adoption of Standards.--Notwithstanding the time schedule in
section 801(a)(1) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 10141
note), the Administrator shall not publish or adopt public health and
safety standards for the protection of the public from releases from
radioactive materials stored or disposed of in the repository at the
Yucca Mountain site--
(1) except in accordance with this section; and
(2) before June 1, 2001.
(b) Consultation and Reports to Congress.--(1) Not later than 30
days after the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall provide
the Commission and the National Academy of Sciences--
(A) a detailed written comparison of the provisions of the
proposed Environmental Protection Standards for Yucca Mountain,
Nevada, published in the Federal Register on August 27, 1999
(64 Fed. Reg. 46,975) with the recommendations made by the
National Academy of Sciences in its report, Technical Bases for
Yucca Mountain Standards, pursuant to section 801(a)(2) of the
Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 10141 note); and
(B) the scientific basis for the proposed rule.
(2) Not later than April 1, 2001, the Commission and the National
Academy of Sciences shall, based on the proposed rule and the
information provided by the Administrator under paragraph (1), each
submit a report to Congress on whether the proposed rule--
(A) is consistent with section 801(a)(2) of the Energy
Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 10141 note);
(B) provide a reasonably expectation that the public health
and safety and the environment will be adequately protected
from the hazards posed by high-level radioactive waste and
spent nuclear fuel disposed of in the repository;
(C) is based on the best reasonably obtainable scientific
and technical information concerning the need for, and
consequences of, the rule; and
(D) imposes the least burden, consistent with obtaining the
regulatory objective of protecting the public health and safety
and the environment.
(3) In the event that either the Commission or the National Academy
of Sciences finds that the proposed rule does not meet one or more of
the criteria listed in paragraph (2), it shall notify the Administrator
not later than April 1, 2001 of its finding and the basis for such
finding.
(c) Application of Congressional Review Procedures.--Any final rule
promulgated under section 801(a)(1) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992
(42 U.S.C. 10141 note) shall be treated as a major rule for purposes of
chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, and shall be subject to all
the requirements and procedures pertaining to a major rule in such
chapter.
(d) Capacity.--Section 114(d) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of
1982 (42 U.S.C. 10134(d)) is amended by striking ``The Commission
decision approving the first such application . . .'' through the
period at the end of the sentence.
SEC. 104. NUCLEAR WASTE FEE.
The last sentence of section 302(a)(4) of the Nuclear Waste Policy
Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(a)(4)) is amended to read as follows:
``The adjusted fee proposed by the Secretary shall be effective upon
enactment of a joint resolution or other provision of law specifically
approving the adjusted fee.''.
SEC. 105. SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary may, upon the request of any person
with whom he has entered into a contract under section 302(a) of the
Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(a)), enter into a
settlement agreement with the contract holder to--
(1) relieve any harm caused by the Secretary's failure to
meet the Department's commitment, or
(2) settle any legal claims against the United States
arising out of such failure.
(b) Types of Relief.--Pursuant to a settlement agreement entered
into under this section, the Secretary may--
(1) provide spent nuclear fuel storage casks to the
contract holder;
(2) compensate the contract holder for the cost of
providing spent nuclear fuel storage at the contract holders'
storage facility; or
(3) provide any combination of the foregoing.
(c) Scope of Relief.--The Secretary's obligation to provide the
relief under subsection (b) shall not exceed the Secretary's obligation
to accept delivery of such spent fuel under the terms of the
Secretary's contract with such contract holder under section 302(a) of
the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(a)), including
any otherwise permissible assignment of rights.
(d) Waiver of Claims.--(1) The Secretary may not enter into a
settlement agreement under subsection (a) or (f) or a backup contract
under section 102(a) with any contract holder unless the contract
holder--
(A) notifies the Secretary within 180 days after the date
of enactment of this Act of its intent to enter into a
settlement negotiations, and
(B) as part of such settlement agreement or backup
contract, waives any claim for damages against the United
States arising out of the Secretary's failure to begin
disposing of such person's high-level waste or spent nuclear
fuel by January 31, 1998.
(2) Nothing in this subsection shall be read to require a
contract holder to waive any future claim against the United
States arising out of the Secretary's failure to meet any new
obligation assumed under a settlement agreement or backup
storage agreement, including any obligation related to the
movement of spent fuel by the Department.
(e) Source of Funds.--Notwithstanding section 302(d) of the Nuclear
Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(d)), the Secretary may not
make expenditures from the Nuclear Waste Fund for any costs that may be
incurred by the Secretary pursuant to a settlement agreement or backup
storage contract under this Act except--
(1) the cost of acquiring and loading spent nuclear fuel
casks;
(2) the cost of transporting spent nuclear fuel from the
contract holder's site to the repository; and
(3) any other cost incurred by the Secretary required to
perform a settlement agreement or backup storage contract that
would have been incurred by the Secretary under the contracts
entered into under section 302(a) of the Nuclear Waste Policy
Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(a)) notwithstanding their
amendment pursuant to this Act.
(f) Reactor Demonstration Program.--(1) Not later than 120 days
after the date of enactment of the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act
of 2000, and notwithstanding Section 302(a)(5) of the Nuclear Waste
Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(a)(5)), the Secretary is authorized
to take title to the spent nuclear fuel withdrawn from the
demonstration reactor remaining from the Cooperative Power Reactor
Demonstration Program (Pub. L. No. 87-315, Sec. 109, 75 Stat. 679), the
Dairyland Power Cooperative La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor.
Immediately upon the Secretary's taking title to the Dairyland Power
Cooperative La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor spent nuclear fuel, the
Secretary shall assume all responsibility and liability for the interim
storage and permanent disposal thereof and is authorized to compensate
Dairyland Power Cooperative for any costs related to operating and
maintaining facilities necessary for such storage, from the date of
taking title until the Secretary removes the spent nuclear fuel from
the Dairyland Power Cooperative La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor site.
The Secretary's obligation to take title or compensate the holder of
the Dairyland Power Cooperative La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor spent
nuclear fuel under this subsection shall include all of such fuel,
regardless of the delivery commitment schedule for such fuel under the
Secretary's contract with the Dairyland Power Cooperative as the
contract holder under Section 302(a) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of
1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(a)) or the acceptance schedule for such fuel
under section 106 of this Act.
(2) As a condition to the Secretary's taking of title to the
Dairyland Power Cooperative La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor spent
nuclear fuel, the contract holder for such fuel shall enter into a
settlement agreement containing a waiver of claims against the United
States as provided in this section.
(g) Savings Clause.--(1) Nothing in this section shall limit the
Secretary's existing authority to enter into settlement agreements or
address shutdown reactors and any associated public health and safety
or environmental concerns that may arise.
(2) Nothing in this Act diminishes obligations imposed upon the
Federal Government by the United States District Court of Idaho in an
order entered on October 17, 1995 in United States v. Batt (No. 91-
0054-S-EJL). To the extent this Act imposes obligations on the Federal
Government that are greater than those imposed by the court order, the
provisions of this Act shall prevail.
SEC. 106. ACCEPTANCE SCHEDULE.
(a) Priority Ranking.--Acceptance priority ranking shall be
determined by the Department's ``Acceptance Priority Ranking'' report.
(b) Acceptance Rate.--As soon as practicable after construction
authorization, but no later than eighteen months after the year of
issuance of a license to receive and possess spent nuclear fuel and
high-level radioactive waste under section 101(c), the Secretary's
total acceptance rate for all spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste
shall be a rate no less than the following as measured in metric tons
uranium (MTU), assuming that each high-level waste canister contains
0.5 MTU: 500 MTU in year 1, 700 MTU in year 2, 1,300 MTU in year 3,
2,100 MTU in year 4, 3,100 MTU in year 5, 3,300 MTU in years 6, 7, and
8, 3,400 MTU in years 9 through 24, and 3,900 MTU in year 25 and
thereafter.
(c) Other Acceptances.--Subject to the conditions contained in the
license to receive and possess spent nuclear fuel and high-level
radioactive waste issued under section 101(c), of the amounts provided
for in paragraph (b) for each year, not less than one-sixth shall be--
(1) spent nuclear fuel or civilian high-level radioactive
waste of domestic origin from civilian nuclear power reactors
that have permanently ceased operation on or before the date of
enactment of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act Amendments of 2000;
(2) spent nuclear fuel from foreign research reactors, as
necessary to promote nonproliferation activities; and
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