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Committee approves Representative Albrecht’s draft to create state nuclear regulatory office; legislature adopts companion resolution
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Summary
The committee unanimously approved draft legislation to establish a state nuclear regulatory office and favorably recommended a concurrent resolution asserting legislative support for expanding Utah’s role in nuclear oversight. DEQ and the Office of Energy Development outlined federal coordination and a new Nuclear Energy Consortium to guide siting, workforce and fuel‑cycle activity.
A Utah legislative committee unanimously approved draft legislation to create a state nuclear regulatory office and favorably recommended a companion concurrent resolution supporting expanded state oversight of nuclear activities.
Representative Albrecht introduced the bill, saying it “establishes a nuclear regulatory office within the state's Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control” and would give Utah rulemaking authority, licensing powers, fees for review and inspections, and direction to pursue an expanded agreement with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Tim Davis, executive director of the Department of Environmental Quality, told the committee his office has requested an NRC–Utah work group and is coordinating with EPA and federal regulators “to discuss the ability of the state to assume additional authority, an agreement state status with the NRC.” He said DEQ would follow NRC standards and that any expanded authority would need federal agreement.
The committee discussed how safety standards and environmental impacts would be handled in the bill’s reporting and rulemaking. Senator Kwan asked that the safety and environmental analysis be explicit in the statutory reporting; Davis and Representative Albrecht said rulemaking would establish safety rules and reporting requirements.
Senator Kwan moved to approve the draft legislation and send it forward; the chair took a voice vote and ruled the motion passed unanimously.
The committee then considered a concurrent resolution expressing the legislature’s support for nuclear energy and Utah’s readiness to assume appropriate regulatory functions if delegated by the NRC. Senator Owens presented the resolution as a companion to Representative Albrecht’s bill; Tim Davis described the resolution as a statement of legislative support for moving prudently and safely to expand state authority. Representative Kristofferson moved to adopt the resolution as a committee bill; the committee adopted it and the chair ruled the motion passed unanimously.
Jake Garfield, deputy director in the Office of Energy Development, later briefed the committee on the Nuclear Energy Consortium created under HB 249. He said the consortium will include industry, scientific and executive‑branch experts and will advise on siting, workforce development and other policy matters. Garfield highlighted recent private‑sector interest: Holtec and High‑tech Solutions announced a partnership to build a training and manufacturing hub in Box Elder County with an estimated $750 million investment and plans targeting small modular reactors in the early 2030s; TerraPower has an exploratory partnership and is studying possible Utah sites; Valor Atomics and other firms are active at the San Rafael Energy Lab; and Anfield Energy has restarted work on the Velvetwood uranium mine and is pursuing mill operations.
Garfield said funds appropriated in the previous session will be used in part to expand DEQ’s technical capacity and that OED plans a statewide community engagement and education campaign on potential opportunities and risks.
What happens next: the approved draft will move forward in the legislative process for committee reporting and further consideration; DEQ and OED will continue coordination with federal agencies and local stakeholders.
