Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act

Summary#

This bill would change the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. It adds a new pathway to pay people who lived in specific ZIP codes near Manhattan Project waste sites and who later developed certain cancers or other listed diseases. It also changes rules and amounts for people who were exposed by atmospheric nuclear testing and for workers in uranium mining and milling. The bill extends the time the compensation fund will remain open, allows new kinds of evidence (including affidavits and some tribal records), and directs federal agencies to fund site work in Alaska and studies of mining health effects.

What it means for you#

  • People who lived for at least 2 years after January 1, 1949, in certain ZIP codes listed in the bill and later got a listed disease could file claims. A living eligible person could receive at least $50,000 or more, and may get documented out-of-pocket medical expenses paid. If the person is deceased, a surviving spouse or the children may be eligible for $25,000.
  • People who were present downwind of atmospheric nuclear tests under the expanded dates and meeting the physical-presence rules may be eligible for $100,000 for covered leukemia and other specified diseases. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia is explicitly included.
  • Uranium miners, millers, core drillers, ore transporters, and some remediation workers are added or clarified as eligible if they meet the employment dates and exposure rules. The employment end date for covered uranium work is extended through December 31, 1990, and certain kidney and renal diseases are added to covered conditions.
  • Claim filing procedures change: denied claimants can resubmit up to three times after enactment; people already paid can request additional compensation to reach the new eligible amount and may receive certain medical benefits referenced in the Act. The filing deadline to bring claims is extended from 2 years to 5 years in the relevant section.
  • The Attorney General must accept certain affidavits as supporting evidence and must issue revised regulations within 180 days. The regulations must accommodate tribal records and customs (for example, grazing permits or tribal letters) as proof of presence where appropriate.

Expenses#

  • The bill authorizes $3,000,000 per year for fiscal years 2025 through 2027 for a grant program to study the epidemiological impacts of uranium mining and milling.
  • The compensation fund termination date is changed so the Fund shall terminate 6 years after enactment of these amendments.
  • The bill sets specific payment amounts in text: for many atmospheric-test and downwind claims, $100,000; for Manhattan Project waste claims a living claimant is eligible for the greater of $50,000 or the total amount available under a medical-expense provision, and deceased individuals’ survivors may receive $25,000.
  • No publicly available information on the bill's total expected cost or on other funding sources beyond the provisions above.

Proponents' View#

No publicly available information.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information.