Enhancing the Role of State and Local Governments in America's Nuclear Future: An Idea Whose Time Has Come

The Blue Ribbon Commission on America&#39;s Nuclear Future was formed by the Secretary of<br/>Energy at the direction of the President. The Commission was formed to conduct a<br/>comprehensive review of policies for managing the back end of the nuclear fuel cycle, including<br/>all alternatives for the storage, processing, and disposal of civilian and defense used nuclear fuel,<br/>high–level waste, and materials derived from nuclear activities. The Commission will provide<br/>advice, evaluate alternatives, and make recommendations for a new plan to address these issues.<br/>Much of the testimony heard by the Commission touched on the roles and authorities of federal,<br/>state, tribal and local governments in: 1) the identification, evaluation and approval of candidate<br/>sites; and 2) the licensing, construction, operation and closure of facilities for managing used<br/>nuclear fuel and high level wastes.<br/>This paper was prepared to aid the Commission in its deliberations and includes a discussion of<br/>the issues that would be faced in the permitting and licensing of facilities for the back end of the<br/>nuclear fuel cycle. It advocates for a legal, defined role for potential host states both to<br/>participate in the siting process and to regulate an operating storage or disposal facility.