Senator Murray Leads Washington State Delegation in Pushing for Increased Funding for Hanford Cleanup

ICYMI: Senator Patty Murray Secures Major Increase in President’s Budget Request for Hanford Cleanup, Continues to Push on Federal Commitment – MORE HERE 

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, led members of the Washington Congressional delegation in a letter to President Biden urging him to increase funding for the Hanford site cleanup through the Department of Energy (DOE)’s Office of Environmental Management (EM). The lawmakers urged the Administration to propose a budget that ensures the federal government can continue to meet its legal and moral obligation to clean up Hanford, including resources to help ensure that the state’s rivers are protected and beginning work on a High-Level Waste Facility. 

“The federal government has a legal and moral obligation to clean up the Hanford site and protect Hanford workers—it’s my job to make sure the administration is living up to that obligation,” said Senator Murray. “That’s why I’m proud to fight for increased federal funding for the Hanford site to support the next critical phase of the cleanup effort. No matter what, I’ll always have the backs of the Tri-Cities community and Hanford workers—and I’ll keep working across the aisle to deliver the resources we need for Hanford.”

Senator Murray has led the fight in Congress to secure funding for the cleanup at Hanford, protect workers, and support the Tri-Cities communities. Earlier this summer, she secured an unprecedented increase in President Biden’s budget request for Hanford site cleanup, putting that request at $2.613 billion for FY2023. Last month, Senator Murray introduced the Beryllium Testing Fairness Act which will help more Hanford workers and nuclear weapons complex workers across the country—both past and present—access care for diseases caused by beryllium exposure.

You can read the full letter here and below.

Dear President Biden,

As Members of the Washington State Congressional Delegation, we write to you regarding the importance of adequately funding the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) in the Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) budget and beyond. This is a top priority for our constituents, the state of Washington, the communities surrounding DOE’s Hanford Site, and regional Tribes.

As you know, this year marks the beginning of a very important milestone in cleanup at the site – the successful launch of the Tank Side Cesium Removal system. This is the first step in turning low-level waste into glass, and we commend the efforts at the site and the entire Tri-Cities community in supporting this major milestone.

While significant cleanup progress has been made over the years, it is of the utmost importance that the federal government fund cleanup efforts at adequate levels for both Richland Operations and the Office of River Protection and with changing needs in mind. We are proud to work in concert and ensure that Hanford has the resources it needs to address current projects and plan for emerging needs in the future.

We are also encouraged by the recent announcement between Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) and DOE on an agreement to respond to tank waste issues. This may be a beginning of a new collaborative era between Ecology and DOE, one that we hope will result in considering all viable options for safely, efficiently, and effectively treating Hanford’s tank waste.

As design, engineering, and construction of the High-Level Waste Facility is added to the mission scope, it is imperative that your FY24 budget request reflects not only the necessary resources for this critical phase of Hanford cleanup operations, but also the need for continued adequate funding in the Richland Operations and Office of River Protection EM accounts for subsequent fiscal years. We urge the Administration to support an increased budget for the entire EM program to reflect the needs that continue to exist not only at Hanford, but at other sites across the country.

Thank you for your consideration of this request.

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