Floor Schedule

MONDAY, JANUARY 27TH
On Monday, the House will meet at 12:00 p.m. for morning hour and 2:00 p.m. for legislative business. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 p.m.

Legislation Considered Under Suspension of the Rules:

1) H.R. 2166 - Good Samaritan Search and Recovery Act, as amended (Sponsored by Rep. Joe Heck / Natural Resources Committee)

2) H.R. 1684 - Ranch A Consolidation Management Improvement Act (Sponsored by Rep. Cynthia Lummis / Natural Resources Committee)

3) H.R. 3008 - To provide for the conveyance of a small parcel of National Forest System land in Los Padres National Forest in California, and for other purposes (Sponsored by Rep. Lois Capps / Natural Resources Committee)

TUESDAY, JANUARY 28TH AND WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29TH
On Tuesday, the House will meet at 10:00 a.m. for morning hour and 12:00 p.m. for legislative business. The House will recess no later than 5:30 p.m. to allow a security sweep of the House Chamber prior to the President's State of the Union address. The House will meet again at approximately 8:35 p.m. for the purpose of receiving, in a joint session with the Senate, the President of the United States. Members are requested to be on the Floor and seated no later than 8:25 p.m.

On Wednesday, the House will meet at 9:00 a.m. for legislative business.

H.R. 7 - No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act, Rules Committee Print (Subject to a Rule) (Sponsored by Rep. Chris Smith / Ways and Means Committee / Judiciary Committee / Energy and Commerce Committee)

Possible Consideration of the Conference Report to H.R. 2642 - Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013 (Sponsored by Rep. Frank Lucas / Agriculture Committee)

THURSDAY, JANUARY 30TH AND FRIDAY, JANUARY 31ST
On Thursday and Friday, no votes are expected in the House.

In the News

Simpson: Long-term storage site is crucial for Idaho

By Christina Lords, January 22, 2014, Post Register 

BOISE -- Congressman Mike Simpson on Tuesday blasted the Obama administration for its lack of leadership on finding a permanent location for the country's spent nuclear fuel.

Simpson testified at the Leadership in Nuclear Energy 2.0 Commission's meeting at the Idaho Capitol. Storage is just one of many issues facing nuclear energy throughout the country and the commission itself, he said.

The LINE 2.0 Commission provides Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter a continuing advisory group on nuclear matters. It focuses on what Idaho can do to enact the six main recommendations the original LINE Commission released in a February 2013 report.

Simpson's sentiment echos the commission's 2013 report that calls out a similar dilemma: The failure to license the Yucca Mountain Repository, a proposed site in Nevada for long-term nuclear waste, may jeopardize Idaho's plans for nuclear waste management outlined in the 1995 Settlement Agreement.

The agreement allowed for interim storage of spent nuclear fuel in Idaho over a 40-year period, but it requires that all spent nuclear fuel be removed from the state no later than 2035. With no established permanent storage facility, those requirements might not be met on time, Simpson said.

"I've been a supporter of Yucca Mountain," Simpson said. "But I don't know that it's ever going to open. It certainly isn't going to move forward with the next three years with this administration and with (Sen. Harry Reid.)"

Reid, the U.S. Senate majority leader, has been a longtime opponent of storing spent fuel at the nuclear waste repository in Nevada, his home state. Even if Yucca Mountain were to open and accept the materials, Simpson said he isn't confident there will be enough space for all the nation's spent nuclear fuel. Idaho must be prepared for that possibility, he said.

Simpson's 30-minute testimony before the commission also focused on the need to establish a long-term national energy plan and policies that don't fluctuate with changing presidents, energy secretaries and Congresses. He said although that plan will reflect increased demand for renewable energy, nuclear energy must be an equally vital part of a sustainable energy future with low emissions in the U.S.

Anyone who claims renewable energy, such as wind and solar power, will be enough to sustain the energy needs of a growing population without nuclear energy in the picture "is not only kidding themselves, they're misleading the American people," Simpson said.

Though Simpson said opportunities abound to work with other nuclear energy-focused states such as Texas or New Mexico to ensure energy services aren't duplicated, he cautioned the commission about strings that can be attached to agreements with states volunteering for storage opportunities.

"What are they going to want in return financially?" Simpson said. "It would be a lucrative move for them to accept that ... but will they want to develop the research opportunities that are already here at the Idaho National Laboratory?"

LINE Commission member and former U.S. Sen. Larry Craig said Simpson's recent vote on the fiscal year 2014 omnibus appropriations bill -- a bill that reverses substantial cuts to INL -- allows more consistency and certainty for the laboratory and nuclear energy in the country.

That vote will make a difference to the work of the commission itself, Craig said.

"The governor has given us a very important task: not only to oversee our great laboratory but also work with the congressional delegation to enhance nuclear energy in the right ways," he said.