Price-Anderson Amendments Act of 2005

Bill: 109-s-865
Sponsor: Sen. Voinovich, George V. [R-OH]
Introduced: 2005-04-20 in the Senate
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Congress
Congressional reporting requirements
Finance and Financial Sector
Government Operations and Politics
Indemnity
Independent regulatory commissions
Law
Liability for nuclear damages
Liability insurance
Licenses
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Nuclear power plants

Summary:
action_date: 2005-04-20
text: 
Price-Anderson Amendments Act of 2005 - Amends the Price-Anderson Act provisions of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to extend indemnification guidelines governing public liability arising from nuclear incidents to certain licenses issued between August 30, 1954 and December 31, 2025 (currently December 31, 2003).
 
Declares such guidelines applicable to licenses issued for production and utilization facilities subsequent to December 31, 2025 (currently December 31, 2003).
 
Extends until August 1, 2025, the legislative mandate to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Secretary of Energy to report to Congress regarding the need to continue or modify the Price-Anderson Act. 

action_date: 2005-07-01
text: 
 Price-Anderson Amendments Act of 2005 - (Sec. 2) Amends the Price-Anderson Act with respect to indemnification of the licensee of an industrial or commercial nuclear power utilization or production facility, and the limitation of liability arising from nuclear incidents in excess of the level of financial protection required of the licensee. Directs the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to consider, for primary financial protection purposes, a combination of utilization or production facilities to be a single facility having a rated capacity of 100,000 electrical kilowatts or more.
 
Defines such combination to be two or more facilities located at a single site, each of which has a rated capacity of between 100,000 and 300,000 electrical kilowatts, with a combined rated capacity of not more than 1.3 million electrical kilowatts.
 
(Sec. 3) Extends from December 31, 2003, through December 31, 2025, NRC authority to indemnify certain licenses issued between August 30, 1954, and such date.
 

 
(Sec. 4) Extends until August 1, 2023, the requirement that the NRC and the Secretary of Energy report annually to Congress on the need to continue or modify the Price-Anderson Act.
 
(Sec. 5) Increases from $63 million to $95.8 million (adjusted for inflation) the maximum amount of the standard deferred premium that may be charged a licensee following a nuclear incident. 
 
Increases from $10 million to $15 million the maximum amount of standard deferred premium that may be charged annually. Subjects such annual maximum to adjustment for inflation.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2005-07-01
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 153.
action_date: 2005-07-01
text: Committee on Environment and Public Works. Reported by Senator Inhofe with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 109-99.
action_date: 2005-07-01
text: Committee on Environment and Public Works. Reported by Senator Inhofe with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 109-99.
action_date: 2005-06-08
text: Committee on Environment and Public Works. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
action_date: 2005-04-20
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works. (text of measure as introduced: CR S4036)
action_date: 2005-04-20
text: Introduced in Senate