Certain people sickened after exposure to radiation from either atmospheric nuclear-weapon tests or uranium mining would get two more years to file for government compensation if a bill passed unanimously by the Senate last week becomes law.
The Senate unanimously passed the bipartisan Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) Extension Act of 2022 on Thursday, giving sickened atmospheric test participants, certain people downwind of the tests and uranium mining workers until 2024 to apply for a one-time cash payment from the government.
Sens. Mike Crapo (R-Id.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) sponsored the bill in the Senate. The House must now approve the extension before it becomes law. RECA was scheduled to run out July 11 and its trust fund to run dry the same day.
RECA, administered by the Department of Justice, is mandatory spending for the federal government. Compensation is capped at $100,000 per person. Since 1990, the program has paid out about $2.3 billion to some 37,740 claimants. Most of those, more than 60%, were downwinders, according to Justice data compiled by the Congressional Research Service.
Meanwhile, lawmakers of both parties in both chambers of Congress are working on new legislation to extend RECA for almost another 20 years and expand eligibility for the program. Crapo and Luján are sponsoring the Senate’s version of the bill. The House’s version of the bill passed the chamber’s Judiciary Committee in December with a big bipartisan margin.
