Katie Porter: “I rise today to voice my extreme opposition to H.R. 2754, the FY 2004 Energy and Water Appropriations bill that unfairly…”

“I rise today to voice my extreme opposition to H.R. 2754, the FY 2004 Energy and Water Appropriations bill that unfairly targets my home State of Nevada, a State with no nuclear reactors, as the final destination for 77,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste produced by the U.S. commercial nuclear utilities, most of which are located in the East. This bill tramples on decades of environmental policy, ignores public health and safety, and exposes the American taxpayer to billions of dollars in costs to solve the private industry's waste problem. H.R. 2754 contains some features that serve the general food of the United States, such as flood control and renewable energy research. Unfortunately, they are dwarfed by the bill's massive funding for the Yucca Mountain Nuclear storage facility. This bill increases funding for the site by more than 29 percent, even though it has yet to be licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. At a time when our budget must meet the challenges of providing economic growth and security against terror, I urge my colleagues to reject this bill that over funds an unnecessary, unsafe, and unapproved nuclear repository at Yucca Mountain.”