Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.), the longtime incumbent whose district adjoins the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site, used a Sunday opinion column in the Tri-City Herald to defend proposed fiscal 2027 nuclear cleanup funding for Hanford in the bill passed by House Appropriations last month.
The comments by Newhouse, a House Appropriations member who is not seeking re-election after six terms, largely mirror remarks he made last month after the bill cleared the committee.
The committee approved $2.8 billion to remediate the former plutonium production site. The committee bill, which would next be considered by the full House, proposes $2.8 billion for Hanford cleanup. That is less than the $2.9 billion requested by the Donald Trump White House and the $3.1 billion approved by Congress for fiscal 2026.
“One of my top priorities in Congress has been assuring that Hanford has the necessary resources available to complete cleanup progress while ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent in an efficient manner,” wrote Newhouse.
Newhouse stressed the proposed funding level is far from spare change. It reflects the fiscal 2023 budget level, which was a record at the time, Newhouse said.
“Over the last 12 fiscal years, Hanford’s budget has increased by an astounding but necessary 46% during the period,” Newhouse said.
The amounts included in the House Appropriations version of the fiscal 2027 Energy & Water Development bill would support both converting underground radioactive tank waste into glass, and also plans for converting some of the less-radioactive waste into cement-like grout.
The funding is also enough to ensure remediation milestones of the 1989 Tri-Party agreement between federal agencies and Washington state are met, Newhouse said.
“As I finish my final term in the House, I remain committed to providing DOE with the resources it needs to fulfill the federal government’s commit to Hanford and the state of Washington,” Newhouse said.