Sec. 2. (Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended) "SEC. 53. DOMESTIC DISTRIBUTION OF SPECIAL NUCLEAR MATERIAL. "f. The Commission is directed to distribute within the United States sufficient special nuclear material to permit the conduct of widespread independent research and development activities to the maximum extent practicable [and within the limitations set by the President pursuant to section 41]. In the event that applications for special nuclear material exceed the amount available for distribution, preference shall be given to those activities which are most likely, in the opinion of the Commission, to contribute to basic research, to the development of peacetime uses of atomic energy, or to the economic and military strength of the Nation." Sec. 3. (Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended) "SEC. 161. GENERAL PROVISIONS. "n. delegate to the General Manager or other officers of the Commission any of those functions assigned to it under this Act except those specified in sections 51, [57 a. (3)] 57 b., 61, 102 (with respect to the finding of practical value), 108, 123, 145 b. (with respect to the determination of those persons to whom the Commission may reveal Restricted Data in the national interest), 145 f., and 161 a. ;" Sec. 4. (Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended) "SEC. 223. VIOLATION OF SECTIONS GENERALLY.-Whoever willfully violates, attempts to violate, or conspires to violate, any provisions of this Act for which no penalty is specifically provided or of any regulation or order prescribed or issued under section 65 or subsections 161 b., i., or o. shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not more than $5,000 or by imprisonment for not more than two years, or both, except that whoever commits such an offense with intent to injure the United States or with intent to secure an advantage to any foreign nation, shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not more than $20,000 or by imprisonment for not more than twenty years, or both." Sec. 5. (Euratom Cooperation Act of 1958, as amended) "SEC. 5. Pursuant to the provisions of section 54 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, there is hereby authorized for sale or lease to the Community: Seventy thousand kilograms of contained uranium 235, five hundred kilograms of plutonium, thirty kilograms of uranium 233, in accordance with the provisions of an agreement or agreements for cooperation between the Government of the United States and the Community entered into pursuant to the provisions of section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended: Provided, That the Government of the United States obtains the equivalent of a first lien on any such material sold to the Community for which payment is not made in full at the time of transfer. The Commission may enter into contracts to provide, after December 31, 1968, for the producing or enriching of all, or part of, the above-mentioned contained Uranium-235 pursuant to the provisions of Section 161 v. (B) of said Act, as amended, in lieu of sale or lease thereof." [S. 1901, 90th Cong., first sess.] A BILL To amend the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the EURATOM Cooperation Act of 1958, as amended, and for other purposes Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That subsection 41 b. of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, is amended by deleting the last sentence thereof. SEC. 2. Subsection 53 f. of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, is amended by deleting the remainder of the first sentence after the word "practicable" and inserting a period in lieu thereof. SEC. 3. Subsection 161 n. of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, is amended by deleting the reference to subsection 57 a. (3) and substituting therefor 57 b. SEC. 4. Section 223 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, is amended by deleting the reference to subsection 161 p. and substituting therefor 161 0. SEC. 5. Section 5 of the EURATOM Cooperation Act of 1958, as amended, is amended by adding at the end thereof the following sentence: "The Commission may enter into contracts to provide, after December 31, 1968, for the producing or enriching of all, or part of, the above-mentioned contained uranium 235 pursuant to the provisions of section 161 v. (B) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, in lieu of sale or lease thereof." [Joint Committee on Atomic Energy Release, Aug. 9, 1967] HEARINGS SET FOR AUGUST 15 ON AEC OMNIBUS BILL; PROPOSED EXTENSION OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO OAK RIDGE AND RICHLAND TO BE CONSIDERED ON AUGUST 24 Congressman Chet Holifield, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Legislation of the Joint Congressional Committee on Atomic Energy, announced today that the Subcommittee would hold open hearings on Tuesday, August 15, 1967 beginning at 10:00 a.m. in the Joint Committee's Public Hearing Room in the U.S. Capitol concerning H.R. 10627 and S. 1901. Representatives from the Atomic Energy Commission are expected to testify. These identical bills were introduced on June 5, 1967 by Senator Pastore (by request), and on June 7, 1967 by Congressman Holifield (by request). The proposed legislation would amend the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the EURATOM Cooperation Act of 1958, as amended. It was further announced by Congressman Holifield and Congressman Thomas G. Morris, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Communities, that open hearings are tentatively expected to be held beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, August 24, 1967, in the Joint Committee's Public Hearing Room in the U.S. Capitol, concerning S. 2220 and H.R. 12087. These bills, which were introduced on August 3, 1967 by Senator Pastore (by request) and Congressman Holifield (by request), would amend the Atomic Energy Community Act of 1955, as amended, to authorize the Atomic Energy Commission to make assistance payments to the cities of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Richland, Washington, and the Richland School District through June 30, 1979. All those desiring to testify at the August 24th hearing should notify Leonard M. Trosten, Staff Counsel of the Joint Committee, not later than August 18, 1967. APPENDIX 71 JOINT COMMITTEE AUGUST 30, 1966, HEARING ON AEC OMNIBUS BILL FOR 1966 (H.R. 16211, S. 3617, 89TH CONG., SECOND SESS.) CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON LEGISLATION, JOINT COMMITTEE ON ATOMIC ENERGY, The subcommittee of the Joint Committee met at 10 a.m., pursuant to call, in room AE-1, the Capitol, Representative Melvin Price, presiding. Present: Representatives Price, Morris, and McCulloch; and Senators Pastore and Anderson. Also present: John T. Conway, executive director; Edward J. Bauser, assistant director; Leonard M. Trosten, staff counsel; George F. Murphy, Jr., national security affairs; James B. Graham, technical adviser; and William T. England, professional staff member. Representative PRICE. The purpose of the series of hearings which begin this morning before the Subcommittee on Legislation is to consider two pieces of proposed legislation: first, the Atomic Energy Commission's omnibus bill (H.R. 16211 and S. 3617, identical bills introduced by Chairman Holifield and Senator Pastore by request), and second, a bill to authorize the Commission to provide financial assistance to States participating in a uniform recordkeeping system for persons engaged in occupations involving exposure to ionizing radiation. For purposes of orderly procedure I believe it advisable that we first take up and dispose of the AEC omnibus bill. We will then hear from the Commission concerning the proposed recordkeeping system for radiation workers. As noted in the committee's press release of August 23, 1966, public testimony concerning the recordkeeping legislation will be heard on September 20. Commissioner Ramey, would you please proceed. STATEMENTS OF JAMES T. RAMEY, COMMISSIONER; ACCOMPANIED BY R. E. HOL- AEC'S PROPOSED OMNIBUS LEGISLATION FOR 1966 Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I am pleased to have this opportunity to discuss with you today the Atomic Energy Commission's proposed omnibus legislation for 1966. The legislation as submitted by the Commission, consists of four proposed amendments to the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and a proposed amendment to the EURATOM Cooperation Act of 1958, as amended. 1 See also app. 23, p. 333. a The record of that portion of the hearing dealing with legislation to provide for a uniform recordkeeping system is printed under the title, "Proposed Legislation Relating to Uniform Recordkeeping and Workmen's Compensation Coverage for Radiation Workers." ELIMINATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DETERMINATION CONCERNING PRODUCTION AND Section 1 of the proposed legislation seeks to eliminate the last sentence of subsection 41 b. of the Atomic Energy Act and section 2 is a related technical amendment. That sentence provides: "The President shall determine in writing at least once each year the quantities of special nuclear material to be produced under this section and shall specify in such determination the quantities of special nuclear material to be available for distribution by the Commission pursuant to section 53 or 54." The requirement for Presidential determination of the quantities of fissionable material to be produced was first contained in subsection 4(c)(2) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1946. That requirement was carried over into subsection 41 b. of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 and appears to have been based in part upon assuring that military requirements for special nuclear materials would receive adequate attention even though the production of such material was under civilian control. The second requirement of that sentence, to the effect that the President shall specify in such determination the quantities of special nuclear material to be available for distribution by the Commission pursuant to section 53 or 54, appears to have been based on the desire of Congress to permit greater private participation in atomic power development, while at the same time affording assurance that sufficient nuclear material, which was still in short supply in 1954, would be available to meet military requirements. Thus through "Production directives" the President could provide for military requirements and at the same time provide for civil uses of such materials. Today special nuclear materials are no longer scarce. Congress recognized this when in the summer of 1964 it passed the Private Ownership of Special Nuclear Materials Act (Public Law 88-489) permitting private ownership, private production ownership, sales and purchases of special nuclear material. To the extent that special nuclear materials may now be produced by private persons and transferred to others, without being subject to any Presidential determination, the force and effect of the determination are being diluted. Therefore it does not appear necessary or even desirable to continue to burden the President with the annual duty of making the foregoing determination. Elimination of the last sentence of subsection 41 b. would not remove the control now exercised by the President and the Congress over the quantity of special nuclear materials produced each year by the Commission. Under section 261 and through the normal budgetary process, Congress and the President exercise control over the production of special nuclear materials. This would continue. As explained more fully in the analysis which we submitted with the bill, assurance that the military requirements for special nuclear material would continue to receive adequate attention is afforded by the provisions of sections 27, 55, 91 b. and 108 of the act. Section 2 of the bill amends subsection 53 of the act to eliminate a reference to the Presidential determination under section 41 b. that would no longer be applicable. CORRECTIVE AMENDMENTS TO ATOMIC ENERGY ACT Sections 3 and 4 of our proposed legislation consist solely of technical amendments to the Atomic Energy Act. Section 3 would amend subsection 161 n. of the Atomic Energy Act by deleting the reference therein to subsection 57 a. (3) and substituting 57 b. therefor. Section 4 would amend section 223 of the Atomic Energy Act by deleting the reference to subsection 161 p. and substituting 161 o. therefor. These changes would correct oversights which occurred as a result of enactment of other laws, the Private Ownership of Special Nuclear Materials Act of 1964 and the Government Employees' Training Act of 1957 (Public Law 87-507). AMENDMENT OF EURATOM COOPERATION ACT TO AUTHORIZE TOLL ENRICHMENT SERVICES Section 5 of the EURATOM Cooperation Act of 1958 as amended authorizes the sale or lease of specified quantities of contained uranium 235, plutonium and uranium 233 to the EURATOM Community in accordance with the provisions of an agreement or agreements for cooperation between the United States and the Community. There is no provision in the act, however, for the rendering of toll enrichment services to the Community. The 1964 Private Ownership of Special Nuclear Materials Act provided for the furnishing of toll enrichment services by the Commission beginning January 1, 1969. As noted in testimony before the committee on August 2, 1966, concerning the uranium enrichment services criteria, the Commission wishes to encourage the use of toll enrichment as the primary means for obtaining enriched uranium from the Commission. In addition, we anticipate that EURATOM will in fact seek enrichment services for the fueling of reactor projects both within and outside of the joint program. The EURATOM Cooperation Act amendment proposed by the Commission would provide firm congressional authorization for performing toll enrichment for EURATOM in a manner consistent with the terms of the Additional Agreement for Cooperation Between the United States and EURATOM dated June 11, 1960, as amended, for projects within its scope including applications which arose under the joint program. This concludes my prepared statement on the omnibus bill. If the committee desires, we would be pleased to answer any questions which you may have and to go over the proposed legislation in greater detail. Representative PRICE. Thank you, Mr. Ramey. At the present moment, we don't have a voluminous omnibus bill, but I imagine that as in past years it will grow before we get it to the House floor. PRIVATE OWNERSHIP OF SPECIAL NUCLEAR MATERIALS ACT The private ownership legislation (sec. 161 v.) envisioned performance of toll enrichment services for groups of nations. Why then is it necessary to amend the EURATOM Cooperation Act of 1958 to allow such service to be performed for EURATOM? Mr. RAMEY. Mr. Chairman, I think Mr. Hennessey can go into this in greater detail. I think this is a legal interpretation, that the EURATOM Cooperation Act specifically covers sale or lease. This was thought to override a general authorization as contained in the private ownership legislation. Representative PRICE. Would you also explain whether or not it is absolutely essential to amend the EURATOM Act to do this or could we do it under the existing legislation? Mr. HENNESSEY. I think it is necessary that we amend the EURATOM Cooperation Act; section 54 of the Atomic Energy Act requires specific congressional authorization of the distribution of materials to any group of nations. The EURATOM Cooperation Act does provide authority to satisfy the requirement of section 54 but the Cooperation Act is limited to sale or lease of special nuclear material. So I think we would have a really serious question about our authority to toll enrich in the absence of the amendment. Representative PRICE. Mr. Conway. Mr. CONWAY. Does that mean that you consider toll enrichment services to be a distribution under section 54? Mr. HENNESSEY. I believe that it is a distribution under section 54. When the Private Ownership Act was being adopted we had quite a bit of history about what is a distribution and in many contexts in the act distribution does not include toll enrichment as I understand it. In section 54, however, I believe that, in order to carry out the legislative intent, it is necessary and appropriate to interpret the word "distribute" as covering any type of transfer, including toll enrichment. Representative PRICE. Why did you not seek authority to toll enrich for EURATOM at the time that the private ownership legislation was requested by the AEC? Mr. HENNESSEY. I expect it was an oversight, Mr. Price. We did not have before us at the time any request or any indication that toll enrichment would be desired by EURATOM. TOLL ENRICHMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENEMY AGENCY Representative PRICE. Are there any other groups of nations, particularly the international agency, for which AEC does not now possess authority to furnish toll enriching services? |