WASHINGTON D.C. (KOLO) – U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen and Catherine Cortez Masto have reintroduced a bill to prevent the storage of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain.

The Nuclear Waste Informed Consent Act would ensure that state, tribal, and local officials are given a say in the decision-making process when a nuclear waste repository is proposed in their community.

Representatives Dina Titus, Steven Horsford and Susie Lee introduced companion legislation in the House.

The legislation is based on recommendations from the Department of Energy’s 2012 Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Energy and the department’s 2017, consent-based siting report.

The bill would require the Secretary of Energy to acquire written consent from the Governor of the host state, affected units of local government, each contiguous unit of local government primarily affected by the repository, and affected tribes before moving forward with a nuclear waste repository.

“I’ve said for years that Washington shouldn’t have the unilateral authority to make decisions that will impact communities and the environment in the Silver State for generations to come,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “Nevadans have made it clear, Yucca Mountain is dead. This legislation will give local and Tribal leaders the seat at the table they deserve in decision-making about nuclear repositories in their communities – in Nevada and across the country. I will continue to fight to make sure Nevadans’ voices are heard.”

“Over more than three decades and at every step in the process, the Yucca Mountain project has faltered because Nevadans do not want nuclear waste stored in our state,” said Representative Titus. “We must codify this opposition into law to protect the health and safety of our communities and guarantee a process that requires the consent of state, local, and tribal leaders. Nevada is not a nuclear waste land. We don’t produce nuclear waste, and we shouldn’t be forced to store it.”

“Nevadans have been overwhelmingly clear in their opposition to making Nevada the nation’s nuclear waste dumping ground,” said Senator Rosen. “This legislation will ensure that states like Nevada have a say in opposing the storage of nuclear waste in their backyard. I’ll always fight against Washington’s efforts to bring nuclear waste to our state.”

“Nevadans will not stand by at attempts to make our state a nuclear dumping ground,” said Representative Horsford. “Our public health is on the line; our environmental safety is on the line; our ability to feel secure in our communities is on the line – so our voices will not be silenced. I’m proud to cosponsor the Nuclear Waste Informed Consent Act to require local consent for any attempt to store nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, and I will always work to prevent this ill-conceived project from moving forward.”

“Nevada has made it clear for decades that we refuse to become the nation’s nuclear dumping ground,” said Representative Lee. “This bill ensures that nuclear waste projects, like Yucca Mountain, cannot move forward without consent from the communities they affect. I’ll continue fighting against attempts to revive Yucca Mountain.”

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