[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 67 (Wednesday, April 17, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S2829]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. PADILLA (for himself, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Booker, Mr. Young, 
        and Mrs. Murray):
  S. 4151. A bill to amend the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 and the 
Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act to clarify existing 
requirements relating to fusion machines, and for other purposes; to 
the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
  Mr PADILLA. Madam President, I rise to introduce the Fusion Energy 
Act of 2024, which will accelerate the development of commercial fusion 
energy by codifying the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's regulatory 
authority.
  As a former engineer, I have long been a strong supporter of fusion 
research and development. The critical investments that our country has 
made over nearly six decades in the Department of Energy's National 
Laboratory System have led to incredible fusion discoveries. In 
December 2022, in my home State of California, Lawrence Livermore 
National Labnatory became the first facility in the world to 
demonstrate fusion ignition. As good engineers do, they of course 
repeated their experiment--achieving ignition at least three times.
  This bill would ensure that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has the 
clear statutory authority it needs to provide a stable regulatory 
environment, streamline the creation of commercial facilities, and 
support the development of American fusion energy.
  Fusion reactions are at the heart of our very universe. In stars like 
our own Sun, small atoms like hydrogen combine together into larger 
ones like helium and release energy. If we can unlock these types of 
reactions in a commercial facility, we would gain access to a nearly 
unlimited, clean, safe, reliable, and carbon-free source of electricity 
for the entire Nation.
  That is why Congress must do everything in its power to ensure 
continued U.S. leadership in developing commercial fusion energy 
facilities. The Fusion Energy Act would provide regulatory certainty 
for investors as the NRC develops and streamlines frameworks for such 
facilities.
  I want to thank Representative Lori Trahan of Massachusetts for 
leading the House companion. I hope all of our colleagues will join us 
in supporting this bill to advance the future of clean energy through 
the science of fusion.

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