[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9200 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9200

  To require an evaluation of the nuclear supply chain of the United 
 States to further reduce regulatory barriers and associated costs for 
      nuclear supply chain manufacturers, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 30, 2024

  Mr. Donalds (for himself, Mr. Nehls, and Mr. Williams of New York) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                          Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require an evaluation of the nuclear supply chain of the United 
 States to further reduce regulatory barriers and associated costs for 
      nuclear supply chain manufacturers, 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 ``Atomic Supply Chain Solutions Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The United States remains an esteemed global leader in 
        the area of nuclear safety.
            (2) The strength of the nuclear supply chain of the United 
        States is directly tied to the growth of the nuclear energy 
        sector.

SEC. 3. NUCLEAR SUPPLY CHAIN EVALUATION.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 270 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Energy shall develop and submit 
to the appropriate congressional committees an evaluation of the 
nuclear supply chain of the United States.
    (b) Contents.--
            (1) Building up at the right time.--The evaluation 
        developed and submitted under subsection (a) shall include a 
        general description of--
                    (A) past efforts within the nuclear supply chain of 
                the United States to meet increased demand;
                    (B) the importance of proactively bolstering the 
                nuclear supply chain of the United States in order to 
                meet future demand for nuclear energy; and
                    (C) lessons learned from the construction of Vogtle 
                3 and 4 in Georgia, including an analysis of how the 
                nuclear supply chain of the United States operated 
                during such construction and any improvements that 
                could be made to assist with future nuclear 
                construction projects, including workforce and supply 
                chain considerations.
            (2) Component regulatory challenges.--The evaluation 
        developed and submitted under subsection (a) shall include--
                    (A) an analysis of whether the requirement for an 
                N-stamp is appropriate and necessary, as determined 
                through the use of probabilistic methodology or other 
                similar methods, for certain nuclear components and 
                materials (selected by the Secretary of Energy) that 
                currently require an N-stamp;
                    (B) a general analysis of the costs associated with 
                regulatory requirements relating to--
                            (i) safety-related nuclear components and 
                        materials that receive appropriate ASME 
                        certification;
                            (ii) safety-related nuclear components and 
                        materials that do not receive appropriate ASME 
                        certification but instead receive acceptance by 
                        the Nuclear Regulatory Commission through 
                        commercial grade dedication; and
                            (iii) nonsafety-related nuclear components 
                        and materials that do not have to obtain a 
                        relevant quality assurance requirement;
                    (C) identification of potential ways to streamline 
                the acquisition and maintenance of N-stamps and other 
                similar certifications for entities that already have 
                obtained such N-stamps or other similar certifications; 
                and
                    (D) an analysis of N-stamps being effective for a 
                total of a period of 3 years, whether such period could 
                be increased, and what impact such an increase would 
                have on safety and the cost associated with obtaining 
                an N-stamp.
            (3) Advanced manufacturing and innovative technologies.--
                    (A) In general.--The evaluation developed and 
                submitted under subsection (a) may include an analysis 
                of potential uses and benefits that advanced 
                manufacturing and innovative technologies, such as 3D 
                printing, advanced modeling and simulation, augmented 
                reality training, artificial intelligence, robotics, 
                and drones, can provide to the nuclear supply chain of 
                the United States, if the Secretary determines such 
                analysis to be pertinent.
                    (B) Inclusions.--The analysis under subparagraph 
                (A) may include a general description of--
                            (i) the current status of innovative 
                        technologies described in such subparagraph 
                        with respect to the use of such technologies 
                        within the nuclear supply chain of the United 
                        States;
                            (ii) potential uses for such technologies 
                        within the nuclear supply chain of the United 
                        States, including use for--
                                    (I) reducing cybersecurity 
                                vulnerabilities;
                                    (II) maximizing the efficiency and 
                                effectiveness of transporting nuclear 
                                components and materials;
                                    (III) examining the technology 
                                readiness of individual components, 
                                including structural and thermal 
                                analysis;
                                    (IV) predicting maintenance 
                                schedules and subsequent costs;
                                    (V) training nuclear supply chain 
                                workforce participants;
                                    (VI) identifying counterfeit 
                                nuclear components and materials; and
                                    (VII) any other use that may be 
                                relevant;
                            (iii) economic considerations associated 
                        with such technologies; and
                            (iv) potential challenges associated with 
                        such technologies, including potential 
                        regulatory challenges with respect to the use 
                        of such technologies within the nuclear supply 
                        chain of the United States.
            (4) Allied cooperation.--The evaluation developed and 
        submitted under subsection (a) shall include a general 
        description of--
                    (A) the relationship between the United States and 
                Canada with respect to nuclear components and 
                materials, including recommendations on bolstering 
                nuclear-related collaboration with Canada to extend 
                North American civil nuclear energy leadership around 
                the world; and
                    (B) whether certain nuclear components and 
                materials that are manufactured in the United States, 
                as selected by the Secretary of Energy, are cost 
                competitive with similar nuclear components and 
                materials that are manufactured internationally.
            (5) Advanced nuclear demand.--The evaluation developed and 
        submitted under subsection (a) shall include a description of 
        how advanced nuclear technology, including the anticipated 
        increased demand for advanced nuclear technology, will impact 
        the existing nuclear supply chain of the United States, and 
        recommendations for increasing the resiliency of the nuclear 
        supply chain of the United States to prepare for such increased 
        demand.

SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY ON HALEU.

    It is the policy of the United States to prioritize establishing a 
robust, diversified domestic high-assay, low enriched uranium (HALEU) 
market that will ultimately strengthen the energy independence and 
national security of the United States while reducing procurement and 
national security risks associated with HALEU, especially with the 
anticipated increased demand for advanced nuclear technology.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 
                House of Representatives; and
                    (B) the Committee on Environment and Public Works 
                and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 
                the Senate.
            (2) Artificial intelligence.--The term ``artificial 
        intelligence'' has the meaning given such term in section 5002 
        of the National Artificial Intelligence Initiative Act of 2020 
        (15 U.S.C. 9401).
            (3) ASME.--The term ``ASME'' means the American Society for 
        Mechanical Engineers.
            (4) N-stamp.--The term ``N-stamp'' means the ASME Nuclear 
        Certification.
            (5) Nuclear components and materials.--The term ``nuclear 
        components and materials'' includes--
                    (A) reactor pressure vessels;
                    (B) thermocouples;
                    (C) heat exchangers;
                    (D) pumps;
                    (E) sensors;
                    (F) piping;
                    (G) castings;
                    (H) structural steel;
                    (I) concrete;
                    (J) cabling;
                    (K) nuclear grade graphite;
                    (L) helium;
                    (M) sodium;
                    (N) molten salts;
                    (O) beryllium; and
                    (P) any other component or material determined 
                appropriate by the Secretary of Energy.
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