The U.S. senators from New Mexico have proposed three amendments to a draft defense policy bill aimed at ensuring the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) can carry out its full health and safety mission.
The amendments from Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich (both D-N.M.) would be added to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal 2020.
A procedural vote scheduled for Wednesday afternoon would clear the way for senators to debate their version of the NDAA on the floor by next week, at the latest.
The 31-year-old DNFSB monitors safety at Department of Energy nuclear sites around the nation. It has no regulatory authority, but makes safety recommendations with which the secretary of energy must agree ot disagree.
One amendment would freeze enforcement of DOE’s Order 140.1 until the Government Accountability Office submits a report on the order’s impact on the DNFSB’s ability to carry out its mission. The Energy Department issued the order in May 2018, saying it was necessary to simply its interactions with the DNFSB. Among its provisions, the order directs DOE employees and contractors to clear communications with the board through headquarters, and rules out consideration of DNFSB safety recommendations from that apply to agency employees and contractors. The board says the order undercuts its oversight and has already led to staff being shut out of meetings at DOE sites.
The other proposed NDAA amendments emphasize the DNFSB’s “full authority to protect health and safety of the public and workers with full access to DOE facilities and information,” and would make clear that DNFSB members can serve up to two terms, according to a joint press release.
“These measures will address widespread concerns about the DOE’s information-sharing order, which would weaken the DNFSB’s watchdog role and diminish its power to access vital information needed to conduct its safety oversight responsibilities,” Udall said in the release.
New Mexico is home to DOE’s Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories, along with the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.
