IV 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 124 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States 
should support the expansion of domestic nuclear energy and advanced 
nuclear technology as a viable source of power in order to promote 
United States nuclear energy leadership and global energy independence. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 14, 2023 
Mr. DONALDS (for himself, Mr. FLEISCHMANN, Mrs. CAMMACK, Mr. NEHLS, 
Mr. OWENS, Mr. MOORE of Alabama, Mr. FEENSTRA, Ms. MACE, Mr. 
CLINE, and Mr. WEBER of Texas) submitted the following resolution; 
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in 
addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 
the United States should support the expansion of do-
mestic nuclear energy and advanced nuclear technology 
as a viable source of power in order to promote United 
States nuclear energy leadership and global energy inde-
pendence. 
Whereas nuclear energy has generated one-fifth of the elec-
tricity used in the United States since 1990; 
Whereas the Secretary of Energy has stated that, ‘‘nuclear 
energy is clean energy and it is vital to creating good- 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
23:01 Feb 14, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR124.IH
HR124
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
•HRES 124 IH 
Whereas, as of July 8, 2020, there are 28 States in which 
at least 1 commercial nuclear reactor operates; 
Whereas many States around the United States have enacted 
nuclear energy-related laws and are in the process of 
adopting policies and appropriating funding for the ex-
pansion of nuclear energy in their State; 
Whereas nuclear energy facilities can repurpose retired fossil 
fuel power plants by using existing infrastructure and 
transitioning fossil fuel power plant workers that already 
understand the basics of operating the nuclear energy fa-
cility; 
Whereas, in 2022, nuclear energy supported over 475,000 
well-paying, sustainable, direct and indirect jobs through-
out the American nuclear industry; 
Whereas building a conventional nuclear reactor employs up 
to 7,000 workers at peak construction; 
Whereas nuclear energy worker salaries are, on average, 50 
percent higher than the salaries of employees that work 
in other electricity generation facilities; 
Whereas the United States nuclear energy industry spends 
roughly $11,000,000,000 annually on labor, which is ap-
proximately $100,000,000 per reactor per year; 
Whereas, for every 100 jobs at a nuclear power plant in the 
United States, 66 other jobs are created in the local com-
munity; 
Whereas nearly 1 in 4 nuclear energy workers are veterans; 
Whereas nuclear energy adds approximately $60,000,000,000 
to the United States gross domestic product each year; 
Whereas, unlike most energy sources, nuclear power plants 
have up to 2 years of fuel stored securely on-site, which 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
23:01 Feb 14, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR124.IH
HR124
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
•HRES 124 IH 
makes nuclear power plants hardened against fuel-related 
supply chain disruptions; 
Whereas a uranium pellet the size of a pencil eraser contains 
the same amount of energy as 17,000 cubic feet of nat-
ural gas, 1,780 pounds of coal, or 149 gallons of oil; 
Whereas 5 uranium pellets generate enough electricity to 
power the average household annually, which compares to 
the same amount of electricity produced by 5 tons of 
coal; 
Whereas global uranium supply is vastly available and the 
United States can generate nuclear power at its current 
levels for more than a century with just the natural ura-
nium ore deposits that have already been identified; 
Whereas nuclear power plants offer a level of protection 
against natural and adversarial threats that goes far be-
yond the protective measures taken at most other Amer-
ican energy generating facilities; 
Whereas nuclear power plants’ infrastructure and facilities 
are built to withstand extreme weather, as proven during 
past and recent hurricanes and freezing temperatures 
driven by polar vortex events; 
Whereas the safe operation of nuclear energy in the United 
States has resulted in no radiation-related deaths or long- 
term evacuation of surrounding communities; 
Whereas the utilization of conventional and advanced nuclear 
energy technologies will significantly reduce energy costs, 
although the initial investment burden of licensing and 
constructing any type of nuclear reactor will be substan-
tial; 
Whereas the production of nuclear energy has become a much 
safer and more efficient process with the development 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
23:01 Feb 14, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR124.IH
HR124
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
•HRES 124 IH 
and commercialization of innovative advanced nuclear re-
actors; 
Whereas advanced nuclear reactors present uniquely innova-
tive options for the sustainable generation of clean energy 
in the United States and around the world; 
Whereas a typical 1,000-megawatt nuclear power plant in the 
United States requires approximately one square mile of 
land to operate, however an advanced nuclear reactor re-
quires about 3 times less land area compared to a con-
ventional nuclear power plant, depending on the reactor 
type and the specific characteristics of the community; 
Whereas the Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulates 31 re-
search and test reactors; 
Whereas approximately 98 universities in the United States 
offer a nuclear engineering program and several univer-
sities have expressed interest in advanced nuclear reac-
tors as a power source for their campuses; 
Whereas more than 45 companies and research organizations 
across the United States have advanced nuclear energy 
projects underway; 
Whereas many advanced nuclear reactors, in comparison to 
conventional nuclear reactors, can operate at much high-
er temperatures without water, have built in safety fea-
tures (such as automatic shutoff mechanisms), can oper-
ate autonomously without disruption for several years at 
a time, and have a naturally enhanced resistance to nu-
clear proliferation; 
Whereas low-emission heat and steam from advanced nuclear 
reactors can supply reliable, clean energy for hard-to- 
decarbonize sectors, such as the industrial sector and 
chemical production sector; 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
23:01 Feb 14, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR124.IH
HR124
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
•HRES 124 IH 
Whereas the total amount of spent nuclear fuel produced over 
the tenure of the United States nuclear energy industry 
could fit within the bounds of a football field at a depth 
of less than 10 yards; 
Whereas spent nuclear fuel can— 
(1) be safely stored in a deep geological repository; 
(2) be repurposed and recycled using innovative 
technology; and 
(3) potentially be safely stored underground using 
techniques such as deep borehole drilling; 
Whereas certain advanced nuclear reactors have the capa-
bility to use spent nuclear fuel from another nuclear reac-
tor as a fuel source; 
Whereas recycling spent nuclear fuel could significantly re-
duce the burden of storing spent nuclear fuel, which 
would make the nuclear fuel cycle more sustainable and 
further reduce the already-low carbon footprint of nuclear 
energy; 
Whereas 96 percent of spent nuclear fuel content is reusable 
energy, and recycling spent nuclear fuel can cut the use 
of natural uranium resources by 25 percent, reduce the 
volume of high-level waste slated for disposal by 75 per-
cent, and reduce the waste’s toxicity by approximately 90 
percent; 
Whereas spent nuclear fuel can be reprocessed up to 3 cycles; 
Whereas, by 2050, energy produced by advanced nuclear re-
actors may account for a significant amount of the clean 
energy generated in the United States, with certain esti-
mates predicting that up to 50 percent of total United 
States electricity generation could come from conven-
tional and advanced nuclear energy sources; 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
23:01 Feb 14, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR124.IH
HR124
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
•HRES 124 IH 
Whereas the offsite component fabrication and modular man-
ufacturing process for advanced nuclear reactors will like-
ly lead to cheaper and faster installation, reduced regu-
latory burdens, and ultimately a streamlined commercial 
deployment of advanced nuclear reactors; 
Whereas advanced nuclear reactors offer seamless integration 
to complement other renewables within microgrids, bal-
ancing out variations in generation over time to reliably 
meet demand in the United States; 
Whereas, in the aftermath of a natural disaster when power 
outages persist, an easily transportable advanced nuclear 
reactor could provide electricity or heat for essential serv-
ices, such as hospitals, airports, communications centers, 
government offices, and water purification facilities, in-
stead of diesel generators, thereby producing a cleaner 
and more efficient source of power that can last up to 20 
years without refueling; 
Whereas nuclear medicine, including the use of medical radio-
active isotopes, can be used to diagnose and treat dif-
ferent diseases with pinpoint precision, which will ulti-
mately save American lives; 
Whereas radioactivity used for medical diagnostics and treat-
ments is elementally the same as that used for nuclear 
power; 
Whereas medical isotopes are made in nuclear reactors; 
Whereas, with advances in nuclear science and technology, 
and new approaches to the medical application of radio-
isotope technology, outcomes for cancer patients have im-
proved tremendously; 
Whereas nuclear power plants produce a vital resource in the 
global fight against COVID–19: Cobalt–60, which has 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
23:01 Feb 14, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR124.IH
HR124
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB