[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 99 (Wednesday, July 26, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Page S7674]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. NICKLES:
  S. 2933. A bill to amend provisions of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 
relating to remedial action of uranium and thorium processing sites; to 
the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.


          to amend provisions of the energy policy act of 1992

  Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce a bill to amend 
provisions of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 relating to remedial action 
of active uranium and thorium processing sites. On October 24, 1992, 
President Bush signed the National Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPACT) 
into law. Title X of EPACT authorized the Department of Energy to 
reimburse uranium and thorium processing licensees for the portion of 
the costs incurred in the remediation of mill tailings, groundwater and 
other by-product material generated as a result of sales to the federal 
government pursuant to the Atomic Energy Commission's procurement 
program.
  The Title X reimbursement program has worked very well. The licensees 
have completed much of the surface reclamation at the Title X sites. 
However, increasingly stringent remediation standards and groundwater 
decontamination programs have significantly increased the cost and time 
necessary to complete remediation at many sites. Under current law, in 
order for a licensee to be eligible to recover the federal share of 
remediation costs incurred subsequent to December 31, 2002, the 
licensee must describe and quantify all costs expected to be incurred 
throughout the remainder of the site's cleanup in a plan for subsequent 
remedial action. This plan must be submitted to the Department of 
Energy before December 31, 2001 and approved prior to December 31, 
2002.
  This bill would amend Title X to extend the date, from 2002 to 2007, 
through which licensees can submit claims for reimbursement under the 
procedures now in place and extend the date until December 31, 2007 
that licensees must submit their plans for subsequent remedial action 
to the Department of Energy. This legislation does not seek any 
increase in the existing authorization. It merely provides the time 
necessary to prepare the plans on a more informed basis and avoid the 
unintended hardship which would likely result from the 2002 deadline.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be printed in 
the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 2933

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. REMEDIAL ACTION AT ACTIVE URANIUM AND THORIUM 
                   PROCESSING SITES.

       Section 1001(b) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 
     2296a(b)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1)(B)--
       (A) in clause (i), by striking ``2002'' and inserting 
     ``2007''; and
       (B) in clause (ii), by striking ``placed in escrow not 
     later than December 31, 2002,'' and inserting ``incurred by a 
     licensee after December 31, 2007,''; and
       (2) in paragraph (2)(E)(i), by striking ``July 31, 2005'' 
     and inserting ``December 31, 2008''.
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