S. 3441 — Nuclear Plant Decommissioning Act of 2025

This section establishes requirements for post-shutdown decommissioning activities reports (PSDARS) and license transfers for covered nuclear facilities (i.e., licensee facilities requiring a PSDAR under NRC regulations). It defines key terms, including "covered facility," "covered material" (e.g., high-level radioactive waste, spent nuclear fuel), "covered PSDAR" (initial PSDAR or one proposing significant decommissioning strategy updates or material changes in handling covered material), "affected State" (host state and states within 50 miles), and "Tribal government" (governing body of an Indian tribe as defined in 25 U.S.C. 5304). It requires licensees (and transferees, if applicable) to consult with each affected State and each unit of State or Tribal government with jurisdiction over land within 50 miles prior to submitting a covered PSDAR or license transfer application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Following consultation, the licensee must submit the proposal to the NRC and make it publicly available (subject to redactions for trade secrets, commercial information, or national security); the NRC must also make it publicly available. The NRC must then solicit public comments for at least 90 days (including at least two public meetings in the host state) and notify the host state of its opportunity to submit, within 60 days, a statement of support, conditional support (with recommended changes), or nonsupport.

This section establishes short-term and long-term grant programs at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to support community advisory boards that foster communication between nuclear licensees conducting decommissioning activities and affected communities, including small, rural, or disadvantaged communities (i.e., population under 50,000 or disadvantaged per NRC criteria as to geography, socioeconomic status, public health, or environmental hazards). Under the short-term program, applicable to civilian nuclear power plants or units decommissioned or in the process of decommissioning during the three-year period beginning on enactment, the NRC must establish a grant program within 180 days to award grants to eligible states and Indian Tribes for subgrants to such boards. Subgrant funds may be used to hire or consult experts, cover administrative costs and travel, maintain websites and social media, prepare reports, contract services, reimburse volunteers, and meet other reasonable expenses as determined by the NRC. The NRC must ensure geographic diversity in fund distribution, to the maximum extent practicable follow best practices from a specified report under the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act, and impose no cost-sharing requirements for activities benefiting or impacting small, rural, or disadvantaged communities. There is authorized $12.5 million for FY2026 through FY2028, to remain available until five years after enactment. Under the long-term program, applicable to civilian nuclear power plants or units decommissioned or in the process of decommissioning more than three years after enactment, the NRC must use the Community Advisory Board Fund—a new fund in the Treasury funded annually by NRC fees collected pursuant to forthcoming regulations—to award grants to eligible states and Indian Tribes.

This section amends the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to enhance assistance for nuclear host communities (i.e., communities that host or hosted nuclear power facilities, as defined in 42 U.S.C. 3149(e)(1)) as follows: (1) extends the authorization of appropriations for Economic Development Administration (EDA) programs through FY2034 (from FY2029); (2) expands eligible activities under EDA special grants for nuclear host communities to expressly include capacity building and economic resilience activities; and (3) establishes a new exception to federal share limitations, allowing a 100% federal share (above the standard 60% plus up to an additional 30%) for grants under 42 U.S.C. 3149(e) to nuclear host communities that qualify as small, rural, or disadvantaged (i.e., population fewer than 50,000 individuals or disadvantaged with respect to geographic, socioeconomic, public health, or environmental hazard criteria, as determined by the Secretary). (Thus, EDA may fully fund such projects without requiring nonfederal matching contributions.)

This section establishes a noncompetitive grant program, to be carried out by the Secretary of Energy not later than 60 days after enactment, to provide financial assistance to affected communities (i.e., local government units such as counties, cities, school districts, or special districts containing stranded nuclear waste from an eligible civilian nuclear power plant that is decommissioned or in the process of decommissioning). Grants equal $15 per kilogram of spent nuclear fuel stored at the plant, with one grant per affected community per fiscal year per plant. The section authorizes appropriations of such sums as necessary for FY2026 through FY2035, with no offset to other federal programs.

This section establishes a host community economic recovery account in the Treasury for each covered facility (i.e., civilian nuclear power plant for which decommissioning activities occur after enactment, including plants where such activities have not begun or have begun). For each account, the licensee must transfer annually from the nuclear decommissioning trust (or financial assurances if no trust exists) an amount ensuring the account balance equals at least 2% of the combined balances of the trust (or assurances plus the applicable regulatory minimum) and the account. The Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Assistant Secretary for Economic Development, administers the accounts and provides grants to host communities (i.e., states, tribal governments, or local governments, including counties, cities, school districts, or special districts, containing a covered facility) for economic development planning (as defined by the Secretary) or implementing a comprehensive economic development strategy (as defined in 42 U.S.C. 3122). (As background, comprehensive economic development strategies are Economic Development Administration-approved plans coordinating public and private economic development resources to alleviate distress in eligible areas.) Account funds are available without appropriation or fiscal-year limitation, with grant processes beginning no later than the earlier of five years before scheduled shutdown or licensee certification of permanent cessation of operations to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; the Secretary may not impose cost-sharing requirements on grants to small, rural, or disadvantaged host communities (as defined in section 4(a)).