The Senate on Thursday passed a bill that would extend and expand the federal legislation that financially compensates people harmed by radioactive material used to build the U.S. nuclear arsenal.
The measure passed 69-30 with one senator not voting. President Joe Biden (D) on Tuesday said he would sign the bill.
“The President believes we have a solemn obligation to address toxic exposure, especially among those who have been placed in harm’s way by the government’s actions,” reads a statement of administration policy from the White House Office of Management and Budget. “The Administration looks forward to working with Congress to ensure sufficient resources are made available to cover the costs of administering the expanded benefits program to ensure we can honor that obligation.”
Sponsored by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), the bipartisan S.3853, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act, was scheduled for a vote in the Senate this week, according to a Tuesday update from the chamber’s Democratic majority.
The bill would extend benefits to communities affected by the test of the first atomic bomb in New Mexico; added certain residents of Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana and Guam to the program; and covered remaining areas of Nevada, Utah and Arizona plus additional uranium workers.
The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act was set to expire in June. President Biden signed a two-year extension in 2022. The law was enacted in 1990.
