Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Amendment Act

Summary: Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Amendment Act - Amends the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Act (WIPP Act) to remove certain provisions relating to:  (1)  compliance of specified Federal oil and gas leases with the Solid Waste Disposal Act; (2) test phase; (3) requirements for the commencement of disposal operations; and (4) disposal regulations. 
Revises parameters for compliance with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) disposal regulations to require the Secretary of Energy to provide to the Congress a schedule for the incremental submission of chapters of the WIPP EPA-compliance application to the EPA Administrator within a prescribed time frame. 
Repeals the requirement that the Secretary use waste form modifications of engineered and natural barriers to comply with final disposal regulations at WIPP, but requires use of any other measures necessary, in addition to engineered and natural barriers, to achieve compliance. 
Exempts transuranic mixed waste designated for disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) project from the land disposal restrictions in specified Federal regulations. 
Removes certain provisions:  (1) relating to determination of noncompliance during the disposal and decommissioning phases; and (2) declaring that the authorities provided to the Administrator and the State (under provisions relating to compliance with environmental laws and regulations) are in addition to the enforcement authorities available to the State under State law and to the Administrator, the State, and any other person under the Solid Waste Disposal Act and the Clean Air Act. 
Replaces provisions relating to retrievability with provisions declaring that it is the intent of the Congress that a decision will be made by the Secretary regarding the disposal of transuranic waste no later than a specified date. 
Removes provisions:  (1) mandating a plan for the decommissioning of WIPP; and (2) setting a deadline for a plan for the management and use of the Withdrawal (the WIPP withdrawal site) following WIPP decommissioning or termination of the land withdrawal. 
Authorizes appropriations to the State of New Mexico (currently, to the Secretary for payments to the State of New Mexico) for 15 fiscal years beginning on the date of enactment of the WIPP Act (currently, beginning in the first fiscal year in which the transport of transuranic waste to WIPP is initiated).  Declares that an appropriation to the State shall be in addition to any appropriation for WIPP. 
Allows WIPP to receive transuranic waste from the Secretary that did not result from a defense activity.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND REFERENCE.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Waste Isolation 
Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Amendment Act''.
    (b) Reference.--Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 
this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment 
to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be 
considered to be made to a section or other provision of the Waste 
Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Act (Public Law 102-579).

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    Paragraphs (18) and (19) of section 2 are repealed.

SEC. 3. TEST PHASE AND RETRIEVAL PLANS.

    Section 5 and the item relating to such section in the table of 
contents are repealed.

SEC. 4. MANAGEMENT PLAN.

    Section 4(b)(5)(B) is amended by striking ``or with the Solid Waste 
Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.)''.

SEC. 5. TEST PHASE ACTIVITIES.

    Section 6 is amended--
            (1) by repealing subsections (a) and (b),
            (2) by repealing paragraph (1) of subsection (c),
            (3) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (a) and 
        in that subsection--
                    (A) by repealing subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2),
                    (B) by striking the subsection heading and the 
                matter immediately following the subsection heading and 
                inserting ``Study.--The following study shall be 
                conducted:'',
                    (C) by striking ``(2) Remote-handled waste.--'',
                    (D) by striking ``(B) Study.--'',
                    (E) by redesignating clauses (i), (ii), and (iii) 
                as paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), respectively, and
                    (F) by realigning the margins of such clauses to be 
                margins of paragraphs,
            (5) in subsection (d), by striking ``, during the test 
        phase, a biennial'' and inserting ``a'' and by striking ``, 
        consisting of a documented analysis of'' and inserting ``as 
        necessary to demonstrate'', and
            (6) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (b).

SEC. 6. DISPOSAL OPERATIONS.

    Section 7(b) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(b) Requirements for Commencement of Disposal Operations.--The 
Secretary may commence emplacement of transuranic waste underground for 
disposal at WIPP only upon completion of--
            ``(1) the Administrator's certification under section 
        8(d)(1) that the WIPP facility will comply with disposal 
        regulations; and
            ``(2) the acquisition by the Secretary (whether by 
        purchase, condemnation, or otherwise) of Federal Oil and Gas 
        Leases No. NMNM 02953 and No. NMNM 02953C, unless the 
        Administrator determines, under section 4(b)(5), that such 
        acquisition is not required.''.

SEC. 7. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY DISPOSAL REGULATIONS.

    (a) Section 8(d)(1).--Section 8(d)(1) is amended--
            (1) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:
                    ``(A) Application for compliance.--Within 30 days 
                after the date of the enactment of the Waste Isolation 
                Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Amendment Act, the 
                Secretary shall provide to Congress a schedule for the 
                incremental submission of chapters of the application 
                to the Administrator beginning no later than 30 days 
                after such date. The Administrator shall review the 
                submitted chapters and provide requests for additional 
                information from the Secretary as needed for 
                completeness within 45 days of the receipt of each 
                chapter. The Administrator shall notify Congress of 
                such requests. The schedule shall call for the 
                Secretary to submit all chapters to the Administrator 
                no later than October 31, 1996.''; and
            (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``after the 
        application is'' and inserting ``after the full application has 
        been''.
    (b) Section 8(d) (2), (3).--Section 8(d) is amended by striking 
paragraphs (2) and (3), by striking ``(1) Compliance with disposal 
regulations.--'', and by redesignating subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and 
(D) of paragraph (1) as paragraph (1), (2), (3), and (4), respectively.
    (c) Section 8(g).--Section 8(g) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(g) Engineered and Natural Barriers, Etc.--The Secretary shall 
use both engineered and natural barriers and any other measures to the 
extent necessary at WIPP to comply with final disposal regulations.''.

SEC. 8. COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS.

    (a) Section 9(a)(1).--Section 9(a)(1) is amended by adding after 
and below subparagraph (H) the following: ``With respect to transuranic 
mixed waste designated by the Secretary for disposal at WIPP, such 
waste is exempt from the land disposal restrictions published at part 
268 of 40 C.F.R. because compliance with the environmental radiation 
protection standards published at part 191 of 40 C.F.R. renders 
compliance with the land disposal restrictions unnecessary to achieve 
desired environmental protection and a no migration variance is not 
required for disposal of transuranic mixed waste at WIPP.''.
    (b) Section 9(b).--Subsection (b) of section 9 is repealed.
    (c) Section 9(c).--Subsection (c) of section 9 is repealed.
    (d) Section 14.--Section 14 is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``No provision'' and 
        inserting ``Except for the exemption from the land disposal 
        restrictions described in section 9(a)(1), no provision''; and
            (2) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ``including all terms 
        and conditions of the No-Migration Determination'' and 
        inserting ``except that the transuranic mixed waste designated 
        by the Secretary for disposal at WIPP is exempt from the land 
        disposal restrictions described in section 9(a)(1)''.

SEC. 9. RETRIEVABILITY.

    (a) Section 10.--Section 10 is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 10. TRANSURANIC WASTE.

    ``It is the intent of Congress that a decision will be made by the 
Secretary with respect to the disposal of transuranic waste no later 
than November 30, 1997.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment .--The item relating to section 10 in the 
table of contents is amended to read as follows:

``Sec. 10. Transuranic waste.''.

SEC. 10. DECOMMISSIONING OF WIPP.

    Section 13 is amended--
            (1) by repealing subsection (a), and
            (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``(b) Management Plan 
        for the Withdrawal After Decommissioning.--Within 5 years after 
        the date of the enactment of this Act, the'' and inserting 
        ``The''.

SEC. 11. ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE AND MISCELLANEOUS PAYMENTS.

    Section 15(a) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``to the Secretary for payments to the 
        State $20,000,000 for each of the 15 fiscal years beginning 
        with the fiscal year in which the transport of transuranic 
        waste to WIPP is initiated'' and inserting ``to the State 
        $20,000,000 for each of the 15 fiscal years beginning with the 
        date of the enactment of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land 
        Withdrawal Amendment Act'', and
            (2) by adding at the end the following: ``An appropriation 
        to the State shall be in addition to any appropriation for 
        WIPP.''.

SEC. 12. NON-DEFENSE WASTE.

    Section 7(a) is amended by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph 
(4) and by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
            ``(3) Non-defense waste.--Within the limits prescribed in 
        paragraphs (1) and (2) and within the capacity prescribed by 
        paragraph (4), WIPP may receive transuranic waste from the 
        Secretary which did not result from a defense activity.''.