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Committee hears split testimony on urging PSC study of small modular reactors
Summary
A Senate resolution urging the Public Service Commission to study small modular nuclear reactors drew divided testimony: environmental groups warned of cost overruns and waste risks, while labor and some lawmakers argued a study is warranted to prepare Georgia for potential data-center and manufacturing demand.
Senate Resolution 482, which urges the Public Service Commission (PSC) to study advanced nuclear technologies including small modular reactors (SMRs), prompted a split record in committee testimony. Senator Bearden, the resolution sponsor, said SMRs could offer new power options for manufacturing and data centers and pointed to NuScale and TVA developments and NRC licensing work as evidence Georgia should "get a head start." He told the committee SMRs can sit on footprints as small as about 30 acres and argued the PSC and power companies should be part of any study.
Mark Woodall, legislative chair for the Sierra Club, testified in opposition, citing affordability and consumer-protection concerns. Woodall told the committee that cost overruns at Plant Vogtle 3 and 4 were borne heavily by residential customers and cited studies he said showed higher per-kilowatt capital costs and increased waste volumes for some SMR designs. "This is not gonna help affordability," he said, and urged caution about relying on nuclear as the primary solution for near-term clean-energy goals.
James Williams, secretary-treasurer of the Georgia AFL-CIO and an IBEW member with nuclear construction experience, supported a study and said Georgia now has a trained workforce after Vogtle 3 and 4. Williams argued Gen 4 and modular technologies merit technical review of safety, waste management and workforce implications, while stopping short of offering firm cost estimates in the hearing record. The committee asked parties to submit research materials and suggested forming a subcommittee or drafting a substitute to include the PSC and utilities in the study scope; no formal vote on the resolution occurred during the session.
The transcript records both policy and technical arguments: proponents emphasized economic development and grid diversification for data centers and manufacturing; opponents emphasized past cost overruns, ratepayer exposure and potential increases in waste volume. Committee leaders asked interested parties to provide documentation and indicated the item will be considered again.
