[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5360 Introduced in House (IH)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5360

 To enhance the management and disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-
  level radioactive waste, to assure protection of public health and 
    safety, to ensure the territorial integrity and security of the 
         repository at Yucca Mountain, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 11, 2006

Mr. Barton of Texas (by request): introduced the following bill; which 
 was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition 
to the Committees on Resources, Transportation and Infrastructure, and 
   Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To enhance the management and disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-
  level radioactive waste, to assure protection of public health and 
    safety, to ensure the territorial integrity and security of the 
         repository at Yucca Mountain, 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 Fuel Management and Disposal 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 Definitions.--For purposes of 
this Act:
            (1) ``Commission'',
            (2) ``disposal'',
            (3) ``Federal agency'',
            (4) ``high-level radioactive waste'',
            (5) ``repository'',
            (6) ``Secretary'',
            (7) ``State'',
            (8) ``spent nuclear fuel'', and
            (9) ``Yucca Mountain site'',
have the meaning given those terms in section 2 of the Nuclear Waste 
Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101).
    (b) Other Definitions.--For purposes of this Act--
            (1) ``Withdrawal'' means the geographic area consisting of 
        the land described in section 3(c);
            (2) ``Secretary concerned'' means the Secretary of the Air 
        Force or the Secretary of the Interior, or both, as 
        appropriate; and
            (3) ``Project'' means the Yucca Mountain Project.

SEC. 3. LAND WITHDRAWAL AND RESERVATION.

    (a) Land Withdrawal, Jurisdiction, and Reservation.--
            (1) Land withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights, and 
        except as provided otherwise in this Act, the lands described 
        in subsection (c) are withdrawn permanently from all forms of 
        entry, appropriation, and disposal under the public land laws, 
        including without limitation the mineral leasing laws, the 
        geothermal leasing laws, and the mining laws.
            (2) Jurisdiction.--Except as otherwise provided in this 
        Act, jurisdiction over the Withdrawal is vested in the 
        Secretary. These are transferred to the Secretary the lands 
        within the Withdrawal under the jurisdiction of the Secretary 
        concerned on the date of enactment of this Act.
            (3) Reservation.--The Withdrawal is reserved for use by the 
        Secretary for the development, preconstruction testing and 
        performance confirmation, licensing, construction, management 
        and operation, monitoring, closure, post-closure, and other 
        activities associated with the disposal of high-level 
        radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel under the Nuclear 
        Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.).
    (b) Revocation and Modification of Public Land Orders and Rights of 
Way.--
            (1) Public land order revocation.--Public Land Order 6802 
        of September 25, 1990, as extended by Public Land Order 7534, 
        and any conditions or memoranda of understanding accompanying 
        those land orders, are revoked.
            (2) Right of way reservations.--Project right-of-way 
        reservations N-48602 and N-47748 of January 5, 2001, are 
        revoked.
    (c) Land Description.--
            (1) Boundaries.--The lands and interests in lands withdrawn 
        and reserved by this Act comprise the approximately 147,000 
        acres of land in Nye County, Nevada , as generally depicted on 
        the Yucca Mountain Project Map, YMP-03-024.2, entitled 
        ``Proposed Land Withdrawal'' and dated July 21, 2005.
            (2) Legal description and map.--As soon as practicable 
        after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 
        Interior shall--
                    (A) publish in the Federal Register a notice 
                containing a legal description of the Withdrawal; and
                    (B) file copies of the maps described in paragraph 
                (1) and the legal description of the Withdrawal with 
                the Congress, the Governor of the State of Nevada, and 
                the Archivist of the United States.
            (3) Technical corrections.--The maps and legal descriptions 
        referred to in this subsection have the same force and effect 
        as if they were included in this Act. The Secretary of the 
        Interior may correct clerical and typographical errors in the 
        maps and legal description.
    (d) Relationship to Other Reservations.--The provisions of subtitle 
A of title XXX of the Military Lands Withdrawal Act of 1999 (sections 
3011-3023 of Public Law No. 106-65) and of Public Land Order 2568 do 
not apply to the lands withdrawn and reserved by subsection (a). This 
Act does not apply to any other lands withdrawn for use by the 
Department of Defense under subtitle A of title XXX of the Military 
Lands Withdrawal Act of 1999.
    (e) Management Responsibilities.--
            (1) General authority.--The Secretary shall manage the 
        lands withdrawn by subsection (a) consistent with the Federal 
        Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et 
        seq.), this Act, and other applicable law. The Secretary shall 
        consult with the Secretary concerned in discharging that 
        responsibility.
            (2) Management plan.--
                    (A) Development.--The Secretary, after consulting 
                with the Secretary concerned, shall develop a 
                management plan for the use of the Withdrawal. Within 3 
                years after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
                Secretary shall submit the management plan to the 
                Congress and the State of Nevada.
                    (B) Priority of yucca mountain project-related 
                issues.--Subject to subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E), 
                any use of the Withdrawal for activities not associated 
                with the Project is subject to conditions and 
                restrictions that the Secretary considers necessary or 
                desirable to permit the conduct of Project-related 
                activities.
                    (C) Department of the air force uses.--The 
                management plan may provide for the continued use by 
                the Department of The Air Force of the portion of the 
                Withdrawal within the Nellis Air Force Base Test and 
                Training Range under terms and conditions on which the 
                Secretary and the Secretary of the Air Force agree 
                concerning Air Force activities.
                    (D) Nevada test sites.--The Secretary may allow the 
                National Nuclear Security Administration to continue to 
                use the portion of the Withdrawal on the Nevada Test 
                Site and may impose any conditions on that use that the 
                Secretary considers necessary to minimize any effect on 
                either Project or Administration activities.
                    (E) Other non-yucca mountain project uses.--The 
                management plan shall provide for the maintenance of 
                wildlife habitat and shall provide that the Secretary 
                may permit non-Project-related uses that the Secretary 
                considers appropriate, including domestic livestock 
                grazing and hunting and trapping in accordance with the 
                following requirements:
                            (i) Grazing.--The Secretary may permit 
                        grazing to continue where established before 
                        the date of enactment of this Act, subject to 
                        regulations, policies, and practices that the 
                        Secretary, after consulting with the Secretary 
                        of the Interior, determines to be necessary or 
                        appropriate. The management of grazing shall be 
                        conducted in accordance with applicable grazing 
                        laws and policies, including--
                                    (I) the Act commonly known as the 
                                ``Taylor Grazing Act'' (43 U.S.C. 315 
                                et seq.);
                                    (II) title IV of the Federal Land 
                                Policy Management Act of 1976 (43 
                                U.S.C. 1751 et seq.); and
                                    (III) the Public Rangelands 
                                Improvement Act of 1978 (43 U.S.C. 1901 
                                et seq.).
                            (ii) Hunting and trapping.--The Secretary 
                        may permit hunting and trapping within the 
                        Withdrawal where established before the date of 
                        enactment of this Act, except that the 
                        Secretary, after consulting with the Secretary 
                        of the Interior and State of Nevada, may 
                        designate zones where, and establish periods 
                        when, no hunting or trapping is permitted for 
                        reasons of public safety, national security, 
                        administration, or public use and enjoyment.
                    (F) Mining.--
                            (i) In general.--Except as provided in 
                        subparagraph (B), surface or subsurface mining 
                        or oil or gas production, including slant 
                        drilling from outside the boundaries of the 
                        Withdrawal, is not permitted at any time on 
                        lands on or under the Withdrawal. The Secretary 
                        of the Interior shall evaluate and adjudicate 
                        the validity of all mining claims on the 
                        portion of the Withdrawal that, on the date of 
                        enactment of this Act, was under the control of 
                        the Bureau of Land Management. The Secretary 
                        shall provide just compensation for the 
                        acquisition of any valid property right.
                            (ii) Cind-r-lite mine.--Patented Mining 
                        Claim No. 27-83-0002, covering the Cind-R-Lite 
                        mine, shall not be affected by establishment of 
                        the Withdrawal, unless the Secretary, after 
                        consulting with the Secretary of the Interior, 
                        determines that the mine's acquisition is 
                        required in furtherance of the reserved use of 
                        the Withdrawal set forth in subsection (a)(3). 
                        In that event, the Secretary shall provide just 
                        compensation.
                    (G) Limited public access.--The management plan may 
                provide for limited public access to the portion of the 
                Withdrawal under Bureau of Land Management control on 
                the date of enactment of this Act. Permitted uses may 
                include continuation of the Nye County Early Warning 
                Drilling Program, utility corridors, and other uses the 
                Secretary, after consulting with the Secretary of the 
                Interior, considers consistent with the purposes of the 
                Withdrawal.
            (3) Closure.--If the Secretary, after consulting with the 
        Secretary concerned, determines that the health and safety of 
        the public or the common defense and security require the 
        closure of a road, trail, or other portion of the Withdrawal, 
        or the airspace above the Withdrawal, the Secretary may effect 
        and maintain the closure and shall provide notice of the 
        closure.
            (4) Implementation.--The Secretary and the Secretary 
        concerned shall implement the management plan developed under 
        paragraph (2) under terms and conditions on which they agree.
    (f) Immunity.--The United States and its departments and agencies 
shall be held harmless and shall not be liable for damages to persons 
or property suffered in the course of any mining, mineral leasing, or 
geothermal leasing activity conducted on the Withdrawal.
    (g) Land Acquisition.--The Secretary may acquire lands and 
interests in lands within the Withdrawal. Those lands and interests in 
lands may be acquired by donation, purchase, lease, exchange, easement, 
rights-of-way, or other appropriate methods using donated or 
appropriated funds. The Secretary of the Interior shall conduct any 
exchange of lands within the Withdrawal for Federal lands outside the 
Withdrawal.

SEC. 4. APPLICATION PROCEDURES AND INFRASTRUCTURE ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Application.--Section 114(b) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 
1982 (42 U.S.C. 10134 (b)) is amended by adding the following sentence 
after ``such application.'': ``An application for construction 
authorization need not contain information on surface facilities other 
than surface facilities necessary for initial operation of the 
repository.''
    (b) Application Procedures and Infrastructure Activities.--Section 
114(d) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10134(d)) is 
amended by--
            (1) inserting ``(1)'' after ``Action.--'';
            (2) striking the last two sentences; and
            (3) inserting the following new paragraphs (2) and (3) 
        after paragraph (1) as designated and amended in paragraphs (1) 
        and (2) of this subsection:
    ``(2) If the Commission approves an application for construction 
authorization and the Secretary submits an application to amend the 
authorization to obtain permission to receive and possess spent nuclear 
fuel and high-level radioactive waste, or to undertake any other action 
concerning the repository, the Commission shall consider the 
application using expedited, informal procedures, including discovery 
procedures that minimize the burden on the parties to produce documents 
that the Commission does not need to render a decision on an action 
under this section. The Commission shall issue a final decision on 
whether to grant permission to receive and possess, or on any other 
application, within one year of submission of the application, except 
that the Commission may extend that deadline by not more than six 
months if, not less than 30 days before the deadline, the Commission 
complies with the reporting requirements of subsection (e)(2).
    ``(A) At any time before or after the Commission issues a final 
decision on an application from the Secretary for construction 
authorization under this subsection, the Secretary may undertake 
infrastructure activities that the Secretary deems are necessary or 
appropriate to support construction or operation of a repository at the 
Yucca Mountain site or transportation to such site of spent nuclear 
fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Infrastructure activities 
include, but are not limited to, safety upgrades; site preparation; the 
construction of a rail line connect the Yucca Mountain site with the 
national rail network, including any facilities to facilitate rail 
operations; and construction, upgrade, acquisition, or operation of 
electrical grids or facilities, other utilities, communication 
facilities, access roads, rail lines, and non-nuclear support 
facilities.
    ``(B) The Secretary shall comply with all applicable requirements 
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.) with respect to an infrastructure activity undertaken under this 
paragraph. If the Secretary determines that an environmental impact 
statement is required in connection with an infrastructure activity 
undertaken under this paragraph, the Secretary need not consider the 
need for the action, alternative actions, or a no-action alternative. 
To the extent a Federal agency must consider the potential 
environmental impact of an infrastructure activity undertaken under 
this paragraph, the agency shall adopt, to the extent practicable, an 
environmental impact statement prepared under this paragraph without 
further action. Adoption satisfies the responsibilities of the adopting 
agency under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 
4321 et seq.), and no further action is required by the agency.
    ``(C) The Commission may not deny construction authorization, 
permission to receive and possess spent nuclear fuel and high-level 
radioactive waste, or any other action concerning the repository on the 
grounds that the Secretary undertook an infrastructure activity under 
this paragraph.''.
    (c) Connected Actions.--Section 114(f)(6) of the Nuclear Waste 
Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10134(f)(6)) is amended by striking 
``or'' and inserting before the period ``, or an action connected or 
otherwise related to the repository to the extent the action is 
undertaken outside the geologic repository operations area and does not 
require and license from the Commission''.
    (d) Expedited Authorizations.--Section 120 of the Nuclear Waste 
Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10140) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1) by inserting ``or an 
        infrastructure activity'' after ``repository'', by inserting 
        ``, State, local, or Indian tribe'', after ``Federal'' both 
        places it appears, and by striking ``repositories'' and 
        inserting ``a repository or infrastructure activity'';
            (2) in subsection (b) by striking ``, and may include terms 
        and conditions permitted by law''; and
            (3) by adding after subsection (b) the following new 
        subsections (c) and (d):
    ``(c) An agency or officer that fails to grant authorization within 
one year of receiving an application or request from the Secretary 
subject to subsection (a) shall submit a written report to Congress 
explaining the reason for not meeting this deadline or rejecting the 
application or request.
    ``(d) For purposes of applying any Federal, State, local, or Tribal 
law or requirement, the taking of an action related to a repository or 
an infrastructure activity is considered to be beneficial and not 
detrimental to the public interest and interstate commerce and 
consistent with the public convenience and necessity.''.

SEC. 5. NUCLEAR WASTE FUND.

    (a) Crediting Fees.--Beginning on October 1, 2007, and continuing 
through the end of the fiscal year when construction is complete for 
surface facilities for the fully operational repository as described in 
the license application and for the Nevada rail line, fees collected by 
the Secretary and deposited in the Nuclear Waste Fund under the Nuclear 
Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) shall be credited to 
the Nuclear Waste Fund as discretionary offsetting collections each 
year in amounts not to exceed the amounts appropriated from the Nuclear 
Waste Fund for that year.
    (b) Fund Uses.--Section 302 (d)(4) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act 
of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10222(d)(4)) is amended by inserting 
``infrastructure activities that the Secretary deems are necessary or 
appropriate to support construction or operation of a repository at the 
Yucca Mountain site or transportation to such site of spent nuclear 
fuel and high-level radioactive waste, and'' after ``with''.

SEC. 6. REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Material Requirements.--Notwithstanding any other law, no 
Federal, State, interstate, or local requirement, either substantive or 
procedural, that is referred to in section 6001(a) of the Solid Waste 
Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6961(a)), applies to--
            (1) any material owned by the Secretary if the material is 
        transported or stored in a package, cask, or other container 
        that the Commission has certified for transportation or storage 
        of that type of material; or
            (2) any material located at the Yucca Mountain site for the 
        disposal if the management and disposal of the material is 
        subject to a license issued by the Commission.
    (b) Permits.--The Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency shall be the permitting agency for purposes of issuing, 
administering, or enforcing any new or existing air quality permit or 
requirement applicable to a Federal facility or activity subject to the 
requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 
et seq.). A State or unit of local government shall not issue, 
administer, or enforce a new or existing air quality permit or 
requirement affecting a Federal facility or activity in the Withdrawal 
and subject to the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 
1982.

SEC. 7. TRANSPORTATION.

    The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) is 
amended by inserting the following new section after section 180:
    ``Sec. 181. (a) The Secretary is authorized to determine the extent 
to which any transportation done in carrying out the Secretary's 
functions under this Act that is regulated under the Hazardous 
Materials Transportation Authorization Act of 1994 shall instead be 
regulated exclusively under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954.
    ``(b) On request by the Secretary, the Secretary of Transportation 
is authorized to determine pursuant to section 5125 of title 49, United 
States Code, that any requirement of a State, political subdivision of 
a State, or Indian tribe regarding transportation done by or on behalf 
of the Secretary in carrying out this Act is preempted, irrespective of 
whether the transportation otherwise is or would be subject to 
regulation under the Hazardous Materials Transportation Authorization 
Act of 1994.''.

SEC. 8. WATER RIGHTS.

    Section 124 of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 
10144) is amended by inserting ``(a) Water Rights Acquisition Effect.--
'' after the section number and by adding the following new subsection 
(b):
    ``(b) Beneficial Use of Water.--Notwithstanding any other Federal, 
State, or local law, the use of water from any source in quantities 
sufficient to accomplish the purposes of this Act to carry out 
Department functions under this Act is declared to be a use that is 
beneficial to interstate commerce and that does not threaten to prove 
detrimental to the public interest. A State shall not enact or apply a 
law that discriminates against this use. The Secretary, through 
purchase or otherwise, may obtain water rights necessary to carry out 
Department functions under this Act.''.

SEC. 9. WASTE CONFIDENCE.

    Notwithstanding any other law, in deciding whether to permit the 
construction or operation of a nuclear reactor or any related 
facilities, the Commission shall deem, without further consideration, 
that sufficient capacity will be available in a timely manner to 
dispose of the spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste 
resulting from the operation of the reactor and any related facilities.
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