Committee passes bill limiting county land‑use authority for small modular reactors

The House Committee on Natural Resource, Energy and Water voted to return Senate Bill 1418 with a due‑pass recommendation after a sponsor presentation and brief member comment.

The sponsor said SB1418 "prohibits a county with 500,000 persons or less from regulating the use or occupation of land for the construction and operation of small modular nuclear reactors or SMRs" when the SMR is co‑located with a large industrial energy user that already received applicable zoning entitlements. The sponsor also told the committee the bill expands the definition of a "plant" for the power plant and transmission line siting committee to include non‑thermal electric generating units and SMRs, increases the nameplate rating subject to that definition from 100 megawatts to 200 megawatts, and allows utilities to replace an existing thermal electric generating unit with an SMR without seeking a new Certificate of Environmental Compatibility (CEC) under certain site history conditions.

Committee members noted prior vetoes of related bills in past sessions and one member asked if language had been carried forward from previous measures. After a called question, a member moved a due‑pass recommendation. The clerk conducted a roll call; the committee recorded 6 ayes, 3 nays, 1 absent and Chair Griffin announced the bill passed the committee with a due‑pass recommendation.

No amendments were recorded in committee. The sponsor said the bill includes implementation directions for the Arizona Corporation Commission and definitions for relevant terms but offered no amendment language in the hearing record.