Congresswoman Heather Wilson, First Congressional District of New Mexico
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| Wilson`s Nuclear Energy Bill Cleared for House Passage by Commerce Committee Approval |
November 01, 2001 |
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| Washington, DC - The House Committee on Energy and Commerce today passed legislation introduced by Representative Heather Wilson that would extend the Price-Anderson nuclear liability system. Today`s action by the Committee clears the way for a vote on the bill by the full House of Representatives, which is expected within the next few weeks.
“A balanced long-term energy plan must include nuclear energy. The Price-Anderson liability system has been in place for 44 years. It works and allows people to be confident that anyone hurt will be compensated promptly,” Wilson said.
The Price Anderson Act expires in August 2002. "We need to reauthorize the Act to make sure that the Department of Energy (DOE) can continue to engage top drawer contractors to run government nuclear facilities, such as those at Los Alamos and Sandia," she said
The Price-Anderson Act has encouraged the development of nuclear energy and ensured that, in the unlikely event of an accident, there is sufficient funding to compensate the public for injury or damage. The Act requires nuclear power producers to purchase the maximum amount of insurance available, currently $200 million per reactor. The reactor operators participate in a mutual insurance pool, so the total amount of financial protection for a nuclear incident is about $9.5 billion. Beyond that level, Congress must provide additional funds.
Nuclear power currently produces about 20 percent of the nation`s electricity. |
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