S10488 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE October 2, 2008 

others to Nazi concentration camps on 

trains owned or operated by such railroad, and by heirs and survivors of such 

persons. 

S. 3468

At the request of Mr. SCHUMER, the 

name of the Senator from Hawaii (Mr. 

INOUYE) was added as a cosponsor of S. 

3468, a bill to amend title XVIII of the 

Social Security Act to continue the 

ability of hospitals to supply a needed 

workforce of nurses and allied health 

professionals by preserving funding for 

hospital operated nursing and allied 

health education programs. 

S. 3484

At the request of Mr. SPECTER, the 

name of the Senator from Arkansas 

(Mrs. LINCOLN) was added as a cosponsor of S. 3484, a bill to provide for a 

delay in the phase out of the hospice 

budget neutrality adjustment factor 

under title XVIII of the Social Security 

Act. 

S. 3487

At the request of Mr. CARDIN, his 

name was added as a cosponsor of S. 

3487, a bill to amend the National and 

Community Service Act of 1990 to expand and improve opportunities for 

service, and for other purposes. 

S. 3517

At the request of Mr. LEAHY, his 

name was added as a cosponsor of S. 

3517, a bill to amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 

and the Public Health Service Act to 

provide parity under group health 

plans and group health insurance coverage for the provision of benefits for 

prosthetic devices and components and 

benefits for other medical and surgical 

services. 

S. 3525

At the request of Mr. CARDIN, the 

names of the Senator from Georgia 

(Mr. ISAKSON), the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. PRYOR) and the Senator 

from Mississippi (Mr. COCHRAN) were 

added as cosponsors of S. 3525, a bill to 

require the Secretary of the Treasury 

to mint coins in commemoration of the 

bicentennial of the writing of the 

‘‘Star-Spangled Banner’’, and for other 

purposes. 

S. 3527

At the request of Mr. AKAKA, the 

name of the Senator from Arizona (Mr. 

MCCAIN) was added as a cosponsor of S. 

3527, a bill to amend title 38, United 

States Code, to authorize advance appropriations for certain medical care 

accounts of the Department of Veterans Affairs by providing two-fiscal 

year budget authority. 

S. 3539

At the request of Ms. COLLINS, the 

name of the Senator from Georgia (Mr. 

ISAKSON) was added as a cosponsor of S. 

3539, a bill to require the Secretary of 

the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the centennial of the 

establishment of the Girl Scouts of the 

United States of America. 

S. 3552

At the request of Mr. LIEBERMAN, the 

name of the Senator from Rhode Island 

(Mr. WHITEHOUSE) was added as a cosponsor of S. 3552, a bill to conserve the 

United States fish and aquatic communities through partnerships that foster 

fish habitat conservation and improve 

the quality of life for the people of the 

United States and for other purposes. 

S. 3610

At the request of Mr. MENENDEZ, the 

name of the Senator from Rhode Island 

(Mr. WHITEHOUSE) was added as a cosponsor of S. 3610, a bill to improve the 

accuracy of fur product labeling, and 

for other purposes. 

S. 3643

At the request of Mr. WHITEHOUSE, 

his name was added as a cosponsor of 

S. 3643, a bill to enhance the capacity 

of the United States to undertake global development activities, and for 

other purposes. 

S. 3656

At the request of Mr. SCHUMER, the 

names of the Senator from Connecticut 

(Mr. DODD), the Senator from Rhode Island (Mr. WHITEHOUSE), the Senator 

from Michigan (Ms. STABENOW) and the 

Senator from Ohio (Mr. BROWN) were 

added as cosponsors of S. 3656, a bill to 

preserve access to healthcare under the 

Medicare and Medicaid programs. 

f 

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED 

BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS 

By Mr. HATCH (for himself and 

Mr. REID): 

S. 3680. A bill to amend the Atomic 

Energy Act of 1954 to provide for thorium fuel cycle nuclear power generation; to the Committee on Energy and 

Natural Resources. 

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, today I 

rise to introduce the Thorium Energy 

Independence and Security Act of 2008, 

together with my dear friend and colleague Senator HARRY REID. This is a 

simple bill that would establish offices 

at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

and the Department of Energy to regulate domestic thorium nuclear power 

generation and oversee possible demonstrations of thorium nuclear fuel assemblies. 

I am very much in favor of our Nation’s nuclear power industry. It is an 

industry that has successfully relied on 

mixed oxide uranium fuel for decades, 

and I foresee a long future for nuclear 

power. I am particularly excited about 

the potential of thorium nuclear power 

as a new source of nuclear power in the 

future. 

Thorium nuclear power has a number 

of potential benefits over conventional 

uranium. For one, it is much more 

abundant in the world and in the 

United States than uranium. Also, a 

thorium fuel rod would remain the reactor about three times as long as conventional nuclear fuel, thereby cutting 

the volume of spent nuclear fuel coming out of reactors by as much as twothirds. Thorium nuclear fuel could also 

significantly reduce the possibility 

that weapons grade material would result from the process. Finally, a thorium fuel cycle can be used as a very 

effective and efficient means for disposing of existing plutonium stockpiles. 

Our Nation has focused mostly on 

mixed oxide nuclear fuel cycles, and 

our regulatory structure reflects that. 

With the growing interest in thorium 

nuclear power in the world and in the 

United States, it is time we made sure 

our government has a regulatory infrastructure in place to accommodate this 

new generation of nuclear power. 

Clearly, we are introducing this legislation late in the 110th Congress. We 

hope to raise awareness of the bill and 

generate feedback from interested parties. A number of governments 

throughout the world are aggressively 

seeking to establish thorium nuclear 

power as an element of their power 

supply. These governments want the 

benefits of nuclear power, without the 

difficulties associated with large volumes of waste, much of which can be 

turned to weapons grade material. Our 

aim with this legislation is to ensure 

that the United States does not fall behind the movement. I hope my colleagues will take a look at the potential for thorium power. 

By Mr. REID: 

S. 3681. A bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service 

located at 5070 Vegas Valley Drive in 

Las Vegas, Nevada, as the ‘‘Joseph A. 

Ryan Post Office Building’’; to the 

Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs. 

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I rise today 

to recognize and honor Joseph A. Ryan, 

a former Postmaster from Las Vegas, 

NV. I urge my colleagues to support 

this legislation, which will designate 

the U.S. Post Office at 5070 Vegas Valley Drive in Las Vegas, NV, in his 

name. 

Joseph ‘‘Joe’’ Ryan was born in St. 

Paul, Minnesota, on May 19, 1927. He 

attended the College of St. Thomas and 

the University of Minnesota, and went 

on to do post-graduate work at UCLA, 

Duke University, and the Wharton 

School of the University of Pennsylvania. During World War II, Mr. Ryan 

honorably served our country in the 

United States Coast Guard, and he 

later went on to work for Northwest 

Airlines before joining the United 

States Postal Service. Prior to serving 

as the Postmaster for Las Vegas, Mr. 

Ryan worked as the Postal Service’s 

General Manager of Customer Programs for the Western Region. 

Mr. Ryan was appointed Postmaster 

of Las Vegas in May of 1983 and retired 

in October of 1992. As Postmaster, Mr. 

Ryan was responsible for overseeing 

the many post offices in the Las Vegas 

valley. The 1980s and early 1990s was a 

time of tremendous growth in southern 

Nevada, and under his leadership, eight 

new post offices opened throughout the 

community, including the stunning 

main facility on Sunset Road. During 

his tenure, Joe was known for his exceptional dedication to customer service and was greatly admired by the 


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