Jim Inhofe

Since 2009, median household income has fallen by $2,300.

The most important issue is the economy.

Reserving the right to object, let me inquire of the Senator if it is his intent to speak on that tonight.

This 0.12 percent surtax would play not only to manufacturing companies but software companies, financial service companies, retail companies and some that pose no threat at all to Superfund.

Good afternoon, Chairman Booker. I'd like to thank you and Ranking Member Inhofe for allowing me to speak today.

It may be a way to recognize that but you are recognizing a lot more who have not found their way to do anything like that.

My concern is the surtax. I have two concerns. One is the surtax and the other is taxing people who happen to be in the oil industry or other industries when they haven't done anything or created any problem in a Superfund site.

Senator Inhofe, you described the Tar Creek Superfund site and their site actions have helped reduce the percentage of local children who had elevated blood lead levels from 35 percent to less than 1 percent.

My concern is with the administrative efficiency of the EPA because I have been here since before that time and it hasn't really improved over the last 16 years.

Superfund sites need to be cleaned up, there is no question about that. But the cleanup process needs to happen in the most cost effective way possible.

Thank you for holding this meeting. I know the Superfund Program is a very important one in your State, Mr. Chairman, as well as in mine.

I am a little concerned about your vote on the expedited transfer of spent fuel.

This is not one of the questions I was going to ask but as an observation, it would seem to me that the lack of resources and personnel should not be a real strong point as it could have been in the past.

The aim of this Committee seems to be to put the industry out of business rather than ensure that the NRC is conducting appropriate oversight.

I have full confidence in the ability of the NRC to handle the decommissioning process.

The costs would be enormous, $51 billion in lost economic activity per year which translates to about 224,000 jobs.

Given that spent fuel pool integrity was an issue raised by the D.C. Circuit in their remand of your waste confidence rule, how do you plan to satisfy the court if the seismic safety or the spent fuel pool remains an open question under…

The nuclear power industry provides 20 percent of our total electricity generation, and if the environmental left is successful at shutting down this safe, inexpensive, domestic source of energy, then the American people will suffer for it.

The problem is the Administration is internally inconsistent in its energy policy.

I am disappointed, however, that the NRC is going to spend even more time and resources studying this topic.

When I first became chairman, you will remember this well, of the Air and Nuclear Subcommittee in 1997, it is kind of interesting that we had not had an oversight hearing with the NRC in 10 years.

I am not naive enough to believe that he and his environmental friends actually like the nuclear industry.

In 2012, the District Court remanded NRC's waste confidence rule. When will the revised rule become final?

We should not be looking for ways to regulate the industry out of business.

Let's keep in mind that in Germany what happened as a result of all of this in that relatively short period of time, the cost per kilowatt hour has doubled in Germany from 18 to 36.