SENATE MARKS UP NEW VERSION OF DEFENSE AUTH. BILL

The Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday approved a new version of the FY 2012 Defense Authorization bill, making deeper cuts to authorized levels than the bill the committee originally reported out in June. For DOE’s Office of Environmental Management, the bill reduces the authorization level for defense cleanup work to $5.06 billion, down from $5.4 billion. The cuts include a reduction for the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant to $740 million and a reduction for Los Alamos National Laboratory cleanup to $185 million. On the NNSA side, the bill includes a $168 million cut for NNSA nonproliferation programs, including a $40 million cut for the Pit Disassembly and Conversion Facility.