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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2598
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE BLACK.
6274H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o amend chapter 640, RSMo, by adding thereto three new sections relating to nuclear ener gy
projects.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 640, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto three new sections, to
2 be known as sections 640.800, 640.801, and 640.802, to read as follows:
640.800. 1. Sections 640.800 to 640.802 shall be known and may be cited as the
2 "Missouri Nuclear Energy Advancement Act."
3 2. As used in sections 640.801 and 640.802, the following terms shall mean:
4 (1) "Advanced nuclear react or", a range of nuclear re actor technologies
5 determined by the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission to be either of
6 generation III+ or generation IV nuclear re actors, including large light water reac tors,
7 small modular rea ctors, micr oreactors , and nuclear cogeneration;
8 (2) "Dir ector", the dir ector of the Missouri advanced nuclear energy office;
9 (3) "Eligible nuclear pr oject", a new electric generation pro ject located in the
10 state involving the development of a natural gas electric generation facility with an
11 advanced nuclear react or;
12 (4) "Fund", the Missouri advanced nuclear development fund, established
13 under section 640.802;
14 (5) "Office", the Missouri advanced nuclear energy office, established under
15 section 640.801;
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
16 (6) "Rate-based reco very", the recovery , by a public utility , as defined in section
17 386.020, of the utility's capital and operating costs for a project thr ough inclusion of
18 such costs in the utility's rate base.
19 3. There shall be no pro hibition on the construction or operation of nuclear
20 electric generation facilities in the state, pr ovided that all licensing requi rem ents of the
21 facilities have been satisfied and the state's emergency prep aredn ess for nuclear electric
22 generation is considered to be in good standing by the Missouri state emergency
23 management agency .
640.801. 1. The governor shall establish the Missouri advanced nuclear energy
2 office within the department of natural res ources, to be headed by a dir ector appointed
3 by the governor . The dir ector shall not have any dir ect or indir ect inter ests that
4 substantially conflict with the dir ector's duties as the head of the office. The dir ector
5 may hir e additional staff as necessary to implement the duties of the office under this
6 section, subject to the availability of funds under this section.
7 2. The annual budget of the office shall not exceed seven hundred and fifty
8 thousand dollars.
9 3. The office shall administer the Missouri advanced nuclear development fund
10 established under section 640.802.
11 4. The duties of the office include:
12 (1) Soliciting of gifts, grants, tax cred its, or donations to the fund for the purpose
13 of prov iding grants to eligible nuclear pro jects in the state;
14 (2) Establishing pr ocedur es and guidelines for the application, revi ew , appr oval,
15 and monitoring of grants;
16 (3) Ensuring all grants ar e awarded in a fair , equitable, and transparent
17 manner;
18 (4) Requiring appr opriate r eporting and accountability fr om all r ecipients of
19 grants for failur e to meet established goals;
20 (5) Entering into written agreements with recip ients of grants under this section
21 befor e awarding such grants;
22 (6) Cr eating specific goals for the completion of pr ojects for which grants are
23 awarded;
24 (7) Pr oviding recipi ents terms of rep ayment of grants for failur e to reac h specific
25 goals for each project for which a grant is awarded;
26 (8) Evaluating each grant application based on the applicant's:
27 (a) Efficiency of operations to complete a project for which a grant is to be
28 awarded;
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29 (b) A vailability of res our ces essential for completing a project for which a grant
30 is requ ested;
31 (c) Ability to repa y a grant if project goals are not met; and
32 (d) The pr oject's potential benefit to the state.
33 5. The office may pr ovide a reim bursement grant fr om the fund for expenses
34 associated with the construction of an eligible nuclear pro ject in the state if such
35 expenses ar e limited to:
36 (1) Site planning, including conceptual site-specific engineering studies;
37 (2) Fr ont-end engineering design;
38 (3) Identifying potential envir onmental hazards fr om a pr oject for which a grant
39 is awarded;
40 (4) Any work done in pr eparation of the construction permit or license
41 application to state, local, or federal agencies;
42 (5) Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing fees;
43 (6) Pr ocurement and development of long-lead components; or
44 (7) Construction activities, including the manufactur e, fabrication, quality
45 assurance, placement, erect ion, installation, modification, inspection, or testing of an
46 eligible nuclear pro ject.
47 6. The dir ector shall:
48 (1) Report any actual or potential conflicts of interes t, or the appearance ther eof,
49 to the governor's general counsel and the Missouri ethics commission; and
50 (2) Annually submit to the lieutenant governor and the general assembly a
51 r eport documenting each grant awarded under this section, including metrics indicating
52 the performance of each pro ject for which a grant was awarded, if such information is
53 available at the time of rep orting.
54 7. No grant under this section shall exceed one hundred million dollars.
55 8. Grants under this section shall not be used for pr ojects wher e costs are
56 r ecover ed thr ough rate-based recov ery , except as set forth in this section.
57 9. For a project involving the commission of an advanced nuclear r eactor , the
58 office shall requi re that, until the advanced nuclear react or is commissioned, the net
59 pr oceeds fro m the grant reci pient's sales of electricity fr om a natural gas electric
60 generation facility shall be dedicated to funding the pre- commissioning costs of the
61 advanced nuclear react or portion of such project including, but not limited to, costs for
62 siting, development, permitting, design, engineering, and construction.
63 10. Information submitted to the office in an application for a grant under this
64 section shall be consider ed confidential and shall rem ain confidential and shall not be
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65 r eleased by the office to the public or disclosed in r esponse to any r equest, including a
66 r ecords r equest under chapter 610.
640.802. There is hereb y cr eated in the state tre asury the "Missouri advanced
2 nuclear development fund", which shall consist of gifts, grants, tax cred its, or donations
3 solicited by the Missouri advanced nuclear energy office, established under section
4 640.801. The state trea sur er shall be custodian of the fund. In accordance with sections
5 30.170 and 30.180, the state trea sur er may appr ove disbursements. The fund shall be a
6 dedicated fund and money in the fund shall be used solely by the office for the purposes
7 of pro viding grants to eligible nuclear energy projects. Notwithstanding the pr ovisions
8 of section 33.080 to the contrary , any moneys rem aining in the fund at the end of the
9 biennium shall not r evert to the cr edit of the general r evenue fund. The state tre asurer
10 shall invest moneys in the fund in the same manner as other funds ar e invested. Any
11 inter est and moneys earned on such investments shall be cre dited to the fund.
✔
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