The United States has the largest nuclear power plant fleet in the world, with 93 reactors that can generate approximately 95,522 megawatts (MW) of electricity. Nuclear power has accounted for about 20% of annual U.S. electricity generation since the late 1980s; in 2020 it was 19.7%. However, the U.S. nuclear power industry in recent years has been facing economic and financial challenges, particularly plants located in competitive power markets where natural gas and renewable power generators influence wholesale electricity prices. Twelve U.S.

In October 2009, the U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board (Board or NWTRB) published Survey of National Programs for Managing High-Level Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel.  For each of the 13 national programs studied, the report catalogued 15 institutional arrangements that had been set in place and 15 technical approaches that had been taken to design repository systems for the long-term management of high-activity radioactive waste.