South Carolina on Monday was granted a 17-day extension to defend its position that a federal judge has jurisdiction to rule on the $100 million the state is seeking in its lawsuit over plutonium disposition at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site. The extension pushes the response deadline from Dec. 27, 2016, to Jan. 13, 2017.
State Attorney General Alan Wilson sued the Energy Department, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), and NNSA Administrator Frank Klotz, on Feb. 9 – more than a month after the Jan. 1, 2016, deadline set under a 2003 federal-state agreement for removal from South Carolina or processing of 1 metric ton of plutonium. The state is seeking the plutonium removal and $100 million – a $1 million daily fine, capped at 100 days.
On Oct. 31, U.S. District Judge J. Michelle Childs wrote that she believes her court has jurisdiction to rule on the removal of plutonium but not the $100 million sought by the state. That claim could instead go to the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. “The court believes it is in the interests of justice and judicial efficiency to receive further briefing on the next step in this litigation,” Childs stated in the order.
In a Nov. 28 motion, the state’s attorneys argued that the court “erroneously concluded that it lacked jurisdiction over the relief sought,” and asked Childs to reconsider her decision. On Dec. 16, the Energy Department argued that the court was correct in its opinion regarding separate judicial jurisdictions over the two claims.“Because the elements are different, a violation of one does not necessarily entail a violation of the other,” according to DOE’s attorneys. “Put differently, South Carolina’s success or failure on one claim will not dictate its success or failure on the other.”
In requesting the extension, the state cited the upcoming holidays personal and work scheduling conflicts.
