Nuclear Energy Policy

Abstract

Nuclear energy policy issues facing Congress include the implementation of federal incentives for new commercial reactors, radioactive waste management policy, research and development priorities, power plant safety and regulation, and security against terrorist attacks. The Bush Administration has called for an expansion of nuclear power. For Department of Energy (DOE) nuclear energy research and development and infrastructure, the Administration is requesting $801.7 million for FY2008, a nearly 30% increase from the FY2007 appropriation. The request would boost funding for the Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative (AFCI) from $167.5 million in FY2007 to $395.0 million in FY2008 as the primary component of the Administration's Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP). The House Appropriations Committee recommended cutting AFCI to $120.0 million while providing a total funding level of $835.2 million (H.R. 2641, H.Rept. 110-185). The Senate Appropriations Committee recommended $242.0 million for AFCI and $795.5 million for nuclear energy overall (S. 1751, S.Rept. 110-127). Significant incentives for new commercial reactors are included in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-58), signed by the President on August 8, 2005. These include production tax credits, loan guarantees, insurance against regulatory delays, and extension of the Price-Anderson Act nuclear liability system. Together with higher fossil fuel prices and the possibility of greenhouse gas controls, the federal incentives for nuclear power have helped spur renewed interest by utilities and other potential reactor developers. Plans for about 30 reactor license applications have been announced, although no commitments have been made to build the plants. No reactor has been ordered in the United States since 1978, and all orders since 1973 were subsequently canceled.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jul 12, 2007
Accession Number
ADA471339

Entities

People

  • Mark Holt

Organizations

  • Library of Congress

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Chemical Reactions
  • Climate Change
  • Energy
  • Environment
  • Environmental Protection
  • Fission
  • Greenhouse Effect
  • Greenhouse Gases
  • Law
  • Nuclear Energy
  • Nuclear Fuels
  • Nuclear Materials
  • Nuclear Power Plants
  • Nuclear Reactors
  • Personnel Management
  • United States
  • Waste Management

Fields of Study

  • Physics
  • Political science

Readers

  • Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy Engineering.
  • Nuclear Non-Proliferation and International Security
  • Public Financial Management and Budgeting