[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3970 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3970

To assist communities affected by stranded nuclear waste, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 5, 2017

Mr. Schneider introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 
   Ways and Means, 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 assist communities affected by stranded nuclear waste, 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 ``Sensible, Timely Relief for 
America's Nuclear Districts' Economic Development Act of 2017'' or the 
``STRANDED Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) in 1982, Congress authorized the Secretary of Energy 
        and the Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to safely 
        manage and dispose of the most highly radioactive nuclear waste 
        of the United States, a responsibility that includes--
                    (A) removing spent nuclear fuel from commercial 
                nuclear power plants for a fee; and
                    (B) transporting the spent fuel to--
                            (i) a permanent geological repository; or
                            (ii) an interim storage facility before 
                        permanent disposal;
            (2) for more than 30 years, nuclear power plants have 
        operated in good faith that the Federal Government would 
        establish a permanent geological repository;
            (3) communities throughout the United States, including 
        communities in the States of California, Connecticut, Florida, 
        Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Vermont, and 
        Wisconsin, are tasked with dealing with stranded nuclear waste;
            (4) communities affected by stranded nuclear waste are in 
        fact interim nuclear waste storage sites;
            (5) the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 
        et seq.)--
                    (A) directed the Secretary to make annual impact 
                assistance payments to States or appropriate units of 
                local government to mitigate the social and economic 
                impacts of the establishment and operation of interim 
                nuclear waste storage capacity within the 
                jurisdictional boundaries of an affected community; and
                    (B) established the rate for impact assistance 
                payments at $15 per kilogram of spent nuclear fuel;
            (6) decommissioning a commercial nuclear power plant is 
        often catastrophic for the host community because nuclear power 
        plants are major employers and the primary source of local tax 
        revenue;
            (7) stranded nuclear waste is a profound obstacle to future 
        economic growth, deterring potential employers and residents 
        from considering the host community;
            (8) stranded nuclear waste prevents economic development in 
        communities in which the stranded nuclear waste is located; and
            (9) it is critical to provide resources to communities 
        that--
                    (A) are challenged by stranded nuclear waste; or
                    (B) will be challenged by stranded nuclear waste 
                during the 10-year period beginning on the date of 
                enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Academy.--The term ``Academy'' means the National 
        Academy of Sciences.
            (2) Affected community.--The term ``affected community'' 
        means a municipality that contains stranded nuclear waste 
        within the boundaries of the municipality, as determined by the 
        Secretary.
            (3) Eligible civilian nuclear power plant.--The term 
        ``eligible civilian nuclear power plant'' means a nuclear power 
        plant that--
                    (A) has been decommissioned; or
                    (B) is in the process of being decommissioned.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Energy.
            (5) Stranded nuclear waste.--The term ``stranded nuclear 
        waste'' means nuclear waste or spent nuclear fuel stored in dry 
        casks or spent fuel pools at a decommissioned or 
        decommissioning nuclear facility.

SEC. 4. INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS STUDY.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall enter into an arrangement under which 
the Academy, in collaboration with the National Laboratories (as the 
term is defined in section 2 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 
U.S.C. 15801)), shall conduct a study to determine whether 
opportunities exist for affected communities to consider alternatives 
to nuclear facilities, generating sites, and waste sites.
    (b) Completion.--The Secretary shall ensure that, not later than 1 
year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Academy--
            (1) completes the study described in subsection (a); and
            (2) submits to the appropriate Committees of Congress a 
        report describing findings and recommendations based on the 
        study.

SEC. 5. STRANDED NUCLEAR WASTE TASK FORCE.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish a task force, to 
be known as the Stranded Nuclear Waste Task Force--
            (1) to conduct a study on existing public and private 
        resources and funding for which affected communities may be 
        eligible; and
            (2) to develop immediate and long-term economic adjustment 
        plans tailored to the needs of each affected community.
    (b) Study.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Stranded Nuclear Waste Task Force shall complete and 
submit to Congress the study described in subsection (a).

SEC. 6. ECONOMIC IMPACT GRANTS.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 60 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish and carry out a 
noncompetitive grant program to provide financial assistance to units 
of local government within the jurisdictional boundary of which an 
eligible civilian nuclear power plant is located to offset the economic 
and social impacts of stranded nuclear waste in affected communities.
    (b) Eligibility.--A unit of local government that is an affected 
community shall be eligible to receive a grant under this section for a 
fiscal year.
    (c) Awards.--
            (1) Amount.--The amount of a grant awarded under subsection 
        (a) shall be equal to $15 for each kilogram of spent nuclear 
        fuel stored at the eligible civilian nuclear power plant in the 
        affected community.
            (2) Number and frequency.--With respect to each eligible 
        civilian nuclear power plant, the Secretary may only award 1 
        grant under subsection (a) to each eligible unit of local 
        government for each fiscal year.

SEC. 7. TAX INCENTIVES FOR AFFECTED COMMUNITIES.

    (a) New Markets Tax Credit.--Section 45D of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986 is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(1)(B), by inserting ``or qualified 
        nuclear affected community investments'' before the comma;
            (2) in subsection (b)(3), by inserting ``or qualified 
        nuclear affected community investments'' before the period;
            (3) in subsection (c)(1)(A), by striking ``for,'' and all 
        that follows and inserting ``for--
                            ``(i) low-income communities or low-income 
                        persons, or
                            ``(ii) nuclear affected communities or 
                        individuals residing in nuclear affected 
                        communities,'';
            (4) in subsection (c)(1)(B), by inserting ``or nuclear 
        affected communities, whichever is applicable,'' after ``low-
        income communities'';
            (5) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) by striking ``Low-income Community'' in the 
                heading;
                    (B) by striking ``In general'' in the heading of 
                paragraph (1) and inserting ``Qualified low-income 
                community investment''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(4) Qualified nuclear affected community investment.--The 
        term `qualified nuclear affected community investment' means 
        any investment, loan, loan purchase, or service which would be 
        a qualified low-income community investment if paragraphs (1), 
        (2), and (3) were applied by substituting `nuclear affected 
        community' and `nuclear affected communities' for `low-income 
        community' and `low-income communities', respectively, each 
        place they appear.'';
            (6) in subsection (e)--
                    (A) by inserting ``and Nuclear Affected Community'' 
                after ``Community'' in the heading;
                    (B) by striking ``In general'' in the heading of 
                paragraph (1) and inserting ``Low-income community'';
                    (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ``In'' and 
                inserting ``For purposes of paragraph (1), in''; and
                    (D) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(6) Nuclear affected community.--The term `nuclear 
        affected community' means an affected community as defined in 
        section 3(2) of the STRANDED Act of 2017 and any other 
        municipality which borders on a municipality where a commercial 
        nuclear power plant which has been decommissioned or is in the 
        process of being decommissioned is located.''; and
            (7) in subsection (f)(2)(B), by inserting ``or qualified 
        nuclear affected community investments'' after ``qualified low-
        income community investments''.
    (b) First-Time Homebuyer Credit.--
            (1) In general.--Section 36 of the Internal Revenue Code of 
        1986 is amended--
                    (A) by inserting ``for nuclear affected 
                communities'' after ``credit'' in the heading;
                    (B) in subsection (a), by striking ``in the United 
                States'' and inserting ``in a nuclear affected 
                community'';
                    (C) in subsection (b), by striking paragraphs (2) 
                and (3) and redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph 
                (2);
                    (D) in subsection (c), by striking paragraph (4) 
                and by inserting after paragraph (3) the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(4) Nuclear affected community.--The term `nuclear 
        affected community' means an affected community, as defined in 
        section 3(2) of the STRANDED Act of 2017.''; and
                    (E) by striking subsections (f), (g), and (h).
            (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections for subpart 
        C of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code is 
        amended by striking the item relating to section 36 and 
        inserting the following new item:

``Sec. 36. First-time homebuyer credit for nuclear affected 
                            communities.''.
    (c) Effective Dates.--
            (1) New markets tax credit.--The amendments made by 
        subsection (a) shall apply to allocations of credits under 
        section 45D of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 in calendar 
        years beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.
            (2) First-time homebuyer credit.--The amendments made by 
        subsection (b) shall apply to the purchase of a principal 
        residence after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry 
out this Act $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2024.
    (b) No Offset.--None of the funds made available under this section 
may be used to offset the funding for any other Federal program.
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