ELR Citation: ELR 20055
No(s). 04-1082 (D.C. Cir. Mar 8, 2005)

The D.C. Circuit held that §116 of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) creates no continuing appropriation from the Nuclear Waste Fund to Nevada for nuclear waste disposal activities. The state asked the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to fund its participation in a Nuclear Regulatory Commission proceeding that will determine whether a nuclear waste repository project at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, receives a license. The NWPA does not grant DOE authority to provide Nevada with additional financial assistance from the fund. Moreover, Congress' enactment of a separate $1 million fiscal year 2004 appropriation expressly for Nevada bars any additional grant from the Nuclear Waste Fund.