Bill > S1798

This bill establishes a new section in Massachusetts law to create a funding mechanism for postclosure activities at nuclear power stations, aiming to ensure sites are productively reused, minimize negative impacts from long-term unavailability, and prevent adverse financial claims on taxpayers, ratepayers, or utilities. It defines key terms such as "affiliate" (a related business), "decommissioning" (closing, decontaminating, and releasing a nuclear site for unrestricted use, excluding "safestor" which refers to safe storage of spent fuel), "nuclear power station" (any facility that uses or used nuclear fuel for electricity generation), "postclosure" (the period after a station stops generating power until it's fully decommissioned), and "postclosure activities" (all actions during this period, including fuel movement, job training, cleanup, emergency planning, safestor, and decommissioning). The bill mandates an annual $25,000,000 postclosure funding fee for each nuclear power station, assessed on its owner or affiliate, with payments going to the state treasurer. These funds will be deposited into a dedicated trust fund for each station, administered by the state treasurer, with balances and interest carrying forward. Disbursements from these trust funds are only permitted for completed postclosure activities, and only after any existing decommissioning funds are exhausted. The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs will authorize these disbursements upon receiving an affidavit detailing completed activities and costs, verified by the state, with penalties for false certifications. Any remaining funds in a trust fund will be returned to the owner or affiliate once all postclosure activities are officially deemed complete.