I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5706 
To direct the Architect of the Capitol, using existing funding, to study 
the feasibility of retrofitting the Capitol Power Plant to incorporate 
an advanced nuclear reactor. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 26, 2023 
Mr. DONALDS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To direct the Architect of the Capitol, using existing funding, 
to study the feasibility of retrofitting the Capitol Power 
Plant to incorporate an advanced nuclear reactor. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘U.S. Capitol Power 
Plant Retrofit Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Capitol Power Plant was originally 
built in 1910 to provide electricity for the United 
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States Capitol Complex, and continued to provide 
electricity for the Complex until 1951. 
(2) In 1951, the Plant diverted its electricity 
responsibilities to a local utility, but instead utilized 
the Plant to provide steam and chilled water for 
building heating and cooling systems throughout the 
Complex. 
(3) In 2018, the Architect of the Capitol com-
peted installation of a new combined heat and power 
natural gas-fired co-generation system, which has a 
natural gas-fired turbine that has the potential to 
generate 7.5 MWe and be paired with a heat recov-
ery steam generator to produce steam. 
(4) The electricity that the Plant generates 
today is used to power certain internal operations in 
the Complex and to supply some of the demands of 
the chilled water system. 
(5) On average, two-thirds of electricity for the 
chilled water needs of the Complex is supplied by the 
Plant, with the rest of the required electricity pur-
chased from a local utility. 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that— 
(1) the Architect of the Capitol should be en-
couraged to collaborate with the Nuclear Regulatory 
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Commission and the Department of Energy to deter-
mine the feasibility of retrofitting the Capitol Power 
Plant to incorporate an advanced nuclear reactor; 
(2) the Architect of the Capitol should recog-
nize the inherent benefits that an advanced nuclear 
power plant can provide, including zero-emissions 
steam and chilled water production, grid resiliency, 
and energy independence; and 
(3) Congress understands that evaluating the 
feasibility of retrofitting the Capitol Power Plant to 
incorporate an advanced nuclear reactor will ulti-
mately assist with improving public support for ad-
vanced nuclear energy. 
SEC. 3. STUDY OF FEASIBILITY OF RETROFITTING CAPITOL 
POWER PLANT TO INCORPORATE ADVANCED 
NUCLEAR REACTOR. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Architect of the 
Capitol shall begin consultation with the Nuclear Regu-
latory Commission and the Department of Energy about 
developing and conducting a study of the feasibility of ret-
rofitting the Capitol Power Plant to incorporate an ad-
vanced nuclear reactor. 
(b) SPECIFICS OF STUDY.— 
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(1) IN
GENERAL.—The feasibility study con-
ducted under this section shall include, at a min-
imum, a general description of the background and 
objective of the feasibility study, and may also in-
clude any of the following: 
(A) Organizational responsibilities for the 
preparation of the study preparation. 
(B) Potential project stakeholders. 
(C) An analysis of the following: 
(i) The demand for electricity in the 
region of the Capitol Power Plant. 
(ii) The transmission capacity and 
transmission facilities and systems in such 
region. 
(iii) The structure of the market for 
electricity. 
(iv) How the construction and oper-
ation of the advanced nuclear reactor at 
the Plant would affect the issues described 
in clauses (i), (ii), and (iii). 
(v) The potential for the advanced nu-
clear reactor to produce electricity to not 
only provide power for the Capitol Complex 
but to produce chilled water and steam. 
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(vi) Whether the piping capacity of 
the Plant is sufficient to produce and dis-
tribute heat through the Capitol Complex. 
(vii) Site analysis, including prelimi-
nary site layout and site preparation and 
potential effects of the advanced nuclear 
reactor and supporting facilities on the ap-
plicable region, including population dis-
tribution and current uses of land and 
water. 
(viii) Environmental analysis of con-
structing and operating the advanced nu-
clear reactor, including— 
(I) a comparison of similar char-
acteristics in the applicable region; 
and 
(II) an overview of environmental 
protection requirements in the region. 
(ix) How to approach the licensing 
process and authorization for the siting, 
construction, and operation of the ad-
vanced nuclear reactor. 
(x) Potential contractual approaches, 
procurement 
plans, 
project 
schedules, 
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project management, and risk management 
plans. 
(xi) Organizational requirements and 
responsibilities for each phase of retro-
fitting the Plant with an advanced nuclear 
reactor, including requirements and re-
sponsibilities relating to human resources 
and training, workforce logistics and staff-
ing requirements, and maintenance of the 
advanced nuclear reactor. 
(xii) Economic feasibility of retro-
fitting the Plant with an advanced nuclear 
reactor, including a cost-benefit analysis. 
(xiii) Plans for emergency prepared-
ness and coordination, including on-site 
emergency planning and coordination with 
off-site emergency response organizations. 
(xiv) 
Co-generation 
opportunities 
which may arise after the Plant is retro-
fitted with an advanced nuclear reactor. 
(xv) Safety and performance analysis, 
including— 
(I) fuel cycle evaluation and im-
pact assessment; 
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(II) radioactive and conventional 
waste management assessment; and 
(III) interim waste storage and 
related issues. 
(xvi) Decommissioning analysis for 
the advanced nuclear reactor, including the 
cost of decommissioning the advanced nu-
clear reactor, and the environmental im-
pact of decommissioning the advanced nu-
clear reactor. 
(2) OTHER
CONSIDERATIONS.—The Architect 
of the Capitol may incorporate in the study the fol-
lowing additional considerations: 
(A) How retrofitting the Capitol Power 
Plant would affect other Federal and District of 
Columbia laws, including the Clean Air Act, 
and what would be needed in terms of regu-
latory clarity and licensing to retrofit the Plant 
with an advanced nuclear reactor. 
(B) Economic considerations relating to 
how the retrofitted power plant compares with 
the current combined heat and power natural 
gas-fired co-generation system, as well as how 
the retrofitted Plant compares with Plant when 
it was powered by coal and an analysis of how 
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much retrofitting the plant with an advanced 
nuclear reactor would save the Federal Govern-
ment and the American taxpayer annually. 
(C) How such feasibility would impact the 
utility energy service contract between the Ar-
chitect of the Capitol and the local utility, in-
cluding potential Federal funding opportunities 
to pay off the utility energy service contract be-
fore the May 2037 anticipated timeline. 
(D) How local power outages currently af-
fect the Plant, and how the power outage im-
pacts could be alleviated from retrofitting the 
Plant with an advanced nuclear reactor. 
(E) The potential for the retrofitted Plant 
to once again provide electricity, along with 
steam and chilled water, to the Capitol Com-
plex, and how this would benefit the Complex in 
terms of grid security and protection against 
cyberattacks and digital data infiltration ef-
forts. 
(F) How retrofitting the Plant to incor-
porate an advanced nuclear reactor would fit 
within the ‘‘Greening the Capitol Initiative’’, 
which was created in March 2007 to ‘‘provide 
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an environmentally responsible and healthy 
working environment for employees’’. 
(G) How the retrofitted Plant can take ad-
vantage of the high-energy waste heat and 
other biproducts of operating an advanced nu-
clear reactor. 
(H) The extent to which there is an oppor-
tunity to keep the existing combined heat and 
power natural gas-fired co-generation system 
infrastructure, and the extent to which there is 
a possibility for the advanced nuclear reactor to 
provide electricity, chilled water, and steam (or 
any combination thereof). 
(I) The role of thermal combustion re-
sources and infrastructure in the Plant’s exist-
ing operational capacity, and what the role of 
such resources and infrastructure would be if 
the Plant was retrofitted with an advanced nu-
clear reactor. 
(J) How to incorporate a consent-based, 
community-focused approach for conducting 
this feasibility study, including sharing the facts 
with surrounding businesses, residents, and the 
general public, including tourists and other in-
dividuals that visit the Capitol Complex for 
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business purposes, and how to alleviate con-
cerns relating to the feasibility of retrofitting 
the Plant with an advanced nuclear reactor. 
(K) Whether energy savings performance 
contracts available to the Architect of the Cap-
itol, and which are currently used mostly for 
building improvements, can be utilized to ret-
rofit the Plant with an advanced nuclear reac-
tor. 
(L) Whether the Plant can continue oper-
ations during the process of retrofitting the 
plant with an advanced nuclear reactor, and re-
lated concerns. 
(M) How to secure the Plant from sabo-
tage and other forms of attack, including phys-
ical and cyber attack. 
(N) How to ensure that the emergency 
planning zone surrounding the advanced nu-
clear reactor, as required under regulations of 
the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, is small 
enough to ensure the safety of the Plant. 
(c) PUBLIC SESSIONS.—During the course of con-
ducting the feasibility study under this section, the Archi-
tect of the Capitol, in conjunction with the Department 
of Energy and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, shall 
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hold at least two in-person public sessions to give members 
of the public the opportunity to learn about the study, and 
shall provide the public with notice of such sessions to the 
greatest extent possible. 
(d) DEADLINE FOR COMPLETION.—The Architect of 
the Capitol shall complete the feasibility study under this 
section not later than 2 years after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act. 
(e) ADVANCED NUCLEAR REACTOR DEFINED.—The 
term ‘‘advanced nuclear reactor’’ means— 
(1) a nuclear fission reactor, including a proto-
type plant (as defined in sections 50.2 and 52.1 of 
title 10, Code of Federal Regulations (or successor 
regulations)), with significant improvements com-
pared to reactors operating on October 19, 2016, in-
cluding improvements such as— 
(A) additional inherent safety features, in-
cluding features designed to prevent the release 
of radioactive material; 
(B) lower waste yields; 
(C) improved fuel and material perform-
ance; 
(D) increased tolerance to loss of fuel cool-
ing; 
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(E) enhanced reliability or improved resil-
ience; 
(F) increased proliferation resistance; 
(G) increased thermal efficiency; 
(H) reduced consumption of cooling water 
and other environmental impacts; 
(I) the ability to integrate into electric ap-
plications and nonelectric applications; 
(J) modular sizes to allow for deployment 
that corresponds with the demand for electricity 
or process heat; and 
(K) operational flexibility to respond to 
changes in demand for electricity or process 
heat and to complement integration with inter-
mittent renewable energy or energy storage; 
(2) a fusion reactor; and 
(3) a radioisotope power system that utilizes 
heat from radioactive decay to generate energy. 
SEC. 4. REPORT. 
(a) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after com-
pleting the feasibility study under section 3, the Architect 
of the Capitol shall submit a report to the appropriate con-
gressional committees that outlines the findings of the fea-
sibility study, along with the Architect’s final determina-
tion as to the whether it is feasible to retrofit the current 
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Capitol Power Plant to encompass an advanced nuclear 
reactor. 
(b) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMITTEES 
DEFINED.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional commit-
tees’’ means— 
(1) the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
and the Committee on House Administration of the 
House of Representatives; and 
(2) the Committee on Energy and Natural Re-
sources, the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works, and the Committee on Rules and Adminis-
tration of the Senate. 
SEC. 5. USE OF EXISTING FUNDS. 
The Architect of the Capitol shall carry out this Act 
using funds appropriated for the Office of the Architect 
of the Capitol prior to the date of the enactment of this 
Act which remain unobligated as of such date. 
Æ 
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