A joint interim committee of the Wyoming legislature on Tuesday adopted a draft bill that would allow for the interim storage of spent nuclear fuel in the state.
The state legislature’s joint interim Minerals, Business and Economic Development Committee voted 8-5, with one excused absence, to take up what had to that point been a personal draft bill written by Wyoming Rep. Donald Burkhart (R) but not distributed widely.
The Wyoming legislature is not in session. Between sessions, certain standing committees from the bicameral legislature’s two chambers merge to form interim committees that may adopt draft bills that could be filed during the legislature’s next session, which for Wyoming was to start on Jan. 14 in Cheyenne, Wyo.
Before it could become law, the draft interim storage bill must be filed in the state’s House of Representatives during a general session, then approved by that body and the state Senate. In each chamber, debate would begin in a committee.
There was about one hour of discussion about the draft bill this week in the joint committee, from the time Burkhart began speaking about the measure to the time the committee adopted the draft by roll call. Some Wyoming citizens appeared virtually to oppose the measure.
One lawmaker on the committee, who voted for the bill, called for moderation.
Saying that we absolutely don’t want used fuel storage in Wyoming…is very closed minded,” Wyoming Sen. Ed Cooper (R) said after the vote. “I’m not sure that we do want it in Wyoming, and that’s not what this bill is doing. It’s simply allowing the discussion to move forward.
“I think we have to keep an open mind,” Cooper said.
In July, Burkhart said Wyoming could spend about $2 million to buy land for an interim storage site and then develop the site using a separate tranche of $400 million, “none of which would come from the state.”
That 2025 general session of the Wyoming legislature could run for as long as 60 legislative working days, according to the state’s constitution. A legislative day is any day but Sunday that either the state House or Senate meets. Sixty consecutive days from Jan. 14, minus Sundays, is March 28.
