[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 86 (Thursday, May 24, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S2918]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             CONFIRMATION OF ANNIE CAPUTO AND DAVID WRIGHT

  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate Annie 
Caputo and David Wright on their confirmation as members of the Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission.
  Regrettably, it has taken almost a year for the Senate to confirm 
these excellent nominees. This is yet another example of how broken the 
Senate's confirmation process is and why we need to change the rules so 
we can process nominees in a timely manner.
  Annie and David will make outstanding commissioners. For over a 
decade, Annie has served as a top adviser on nuclear energy issues to 
members of the House of Representatives and the Senate. She has worked 
on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Environment 
and Public Works Committee, advising the committees' chairmen, 
including former Chairman Jim Inhofe and, now, me.
  Here on Capitol Hill, Annie is considered the dean of nuclear energy 
policy. More than any other staff member, she knows the nuclear power 
sector. As a nuclear engineer, Annie knows the physics behind nuclear 
power. She also knows the challenges it faces and the bright future it 
can have if we make the right decisions here in Washington. Likewise, 
Annie knows our Nation's nuclear regulatory agencies, especially the 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission. She understands how the NRC can be 
improved, how it can be more responsive to the public and its 
licensers, and the best way to accomplish that goal.
  Prior to becoming chairman, I found Annie to be instrumental in 
helping me conduct oversight of the nuclear industry and the NRC. She 
was particularly helpful following Fukushima. Since becoming chairman, 
I have seen how she is an invaluable part of the Environment and Public 
Works staff. For example, Annie was largely responsible for drafting S. 
512, the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act. This is a 
bill that will help facilitate the licensing of advanced reactors and 
reform how the NRC collects fees from its shrinking pool of licensees. 
It is a bill that we need if this country is going to allow nuclear 
power to succeed in the future. Last year, the committee passed this 
bill by a broad bipartisan vote of 18 to 3. It remains a top priority 
of mine and is legislation Congress should send to the president by the 
end of the year.
  Beyond the area of policy, I want to thank Annie for the role she 
played at the committee office. I want to thank her for helping my 
other staff, especially the way in which she served as a mentor to 
them. They are better staffers for the time they spent learning from 
and alongside Annie. I know other Members of Congress in the House and 
Senate feel the same way and share my gratitude to her.
  So congratulations, again, Annie. Congress will be a poorer place 
without you. But our loss will be the NRC's gain.
  While I do not know David on a personal level, I also believe he will 
be an asset to the NRC. For about a decade, David served as a member 
and chairman of South Carolina's Public Service Commission. He also 
served as the president of the National Association of Regulatory 
Utility Commissioners. David is held in high esteem among those who 
work on nuclear issues.
  Like Annie, he is a dedicated public servant. I wish the two of them 
the very best in their new roles on the Commission.
  Thank you.

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