States Pressed to Revise Nuclear Power Rules, Regulations to Implement New Federal Initiatives

Experts, advocates tell lawmakers that regulators will soon see new reactor designs that bear little resemblance to their grandfather’s nuclear power plants.

The Vogtle Unit 3 and 4 site, being constructed by primary contractor Westinghouse, a business unit of Toshiba, near Waynesboro, Ga., in an aerial photo taken Feb. 2017. Georgia Power/Handout via Reuters

LOUISVILLE, Ky.–With President Joe Biden signing The ADVANCE Act into law in June, United States’ nuclear power proponents are urging state legislatures to adjust regulations, licensing, and incentives to accommodate new technologies, including small modular reactors (SMRs) that the bipartisan measure promotes.

Easier said than done without changing perceptions about nuclear power plants, industry experts and advocates told state lawmakers, legislative aides, and lobbyists on Aug. 7 during the National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL) Annual Legislative Summit at the Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville.