Concurrent Resolution Regarding Nuclear Weapons Testing

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Concurrent Resolution Regarding Nuclear Weapons Testing
2026 GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Kathleen A. Riebe
House Sponsor: Christine F. Watkins
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This resolution urges the government of the United States to not resume explosive nuclear
weapons testing.
Highlighted Provisions:
This resolution:
urges the government of the United States to not resume explosive nuclear weapons
testing.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein:
WHEREAS, discussions of renewed explosive nuclear testing has resurfaced in
Washington, D.C. over the past year;
WHEREAS, the United States conducted over 1,000 nuclear weapons tests from 1945 to
1992, 100 of which were conducted above ground at a test site in Nevada, spreading high
levels of dangerous radioactive fallout across Utah;
WHEREAS, since the U.S. and Russia enacted moratoria in the early 1990s on explosive
nuclear testing, the U.S. and Russia have not conducted explosive nuclear weapons tests;
WHEREAS, this moratorium on testing has been observed by presidents from both the
Democratic and Republican parties;
WHEREAS, if the U.S. resumes explosive nuclear testing, it is likely that countries such as
North Korea, Russia, China, and other countries will follow suit, escalating the nuclear arms
race and increasing global tensions;
WHEREAS, there is no military or technical requirement for the U.S. to resume explosive
nuclear tests, as the Stockpile Stewardship Program, in conjunction with the U.S. National
Laboratories, the Commander of the U.S. Strategic Command, and the Secretaries of Defense
and Energy have annually affirmed the safety, security, reliability, and performance of U.S.
nuclear weapons for over 25 years;
WHEREAS, because the U.S. conducted significantly more nuclear weapons tests and has
more relevant data than other countries that possess nuclear weapons, restarting testing would
benefit other countries with nuclear weapons such as North Korea, Russia, China, and other
countries more than it would the U.S.;
WHEREAS, Brandon Williams, U.S. Under Secretary of Energy for Nuclear Security,
stated in his confirmation hearing in April 2025, that "we collected more data than anyone
else" and that he "would not advise testing";
WHEREAS, a majority of the world is united in opposition to the resumption of explosive
nuclear weapons tests as reflected in 187 countries signing the Comprehensive Test Ban
Treaty by late 2023 and, according to a 2024 poll conducted by the University of Maryland,
75% of U.S. adult citizens oppose resumption of explosive nuclear weapons testing;
WHEREAS, the Legislature unanimously passed H.C.R. 7 in 2005 that strongly urged the
United States to not resume nuclear testing at the federal government's Nevada test site, and
the Utah House of Representatives unanimously passed H.R. 4 in 2010 urging ratification of
the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty;
WHEREAS, with the support of the Utah congressional delegation, Congress passed H.R. 1
in 2025, which the President of the United States signed, renewing and expanding the
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act to recognize the enormous economic and health costs
borne by Utahns and other Americans downwind of decades of explosive nuclear testing, as
well as those who worked in the uranium industry and those who were exposed to the
production, processing, and storage of nuclear weapons materials and wastes;
WHEREAS, in Nevada where the U.S. tested nuclear weapons, the Nevada Legislature
unanimously passed Assembly Joint Resolution 13 in May 2025, "Urging the Federal
Government to maintain the moratorium on the testing of explosive nuclear weapons";
WHEREAS, members of the 119th Congress have filed the RESTRAIN Act (H.R. 5894),
which would prohibit explosive testing of nuclear weapons, and the No Nuclear Testing Act
(S.3090), which would prohibit the use of funds for an explosive nuclear weapons test; and
WHEREAS, this resolution, the previous resolutions of the Legislature, the resolution from
the Nevada Legislature, and the proposed acts in Congress are not a threat to modernization
plans for the nation's nuclear weapons arsenal:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah, the
Governor concurring therein, strongly urge that the United States g
overnment not resume
explosive testing of nuclear weapons.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be sent to the President of the
United States, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the Majority Leader
of the United States Senate, and the members of Utah's congressional delegation.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Legislature urges the Utah congressional
delegation to convey the Legislature
'
s opposition to explosive testing of nuclear weapons to
congressional leadership of both chambers and parties, the President of the United States and
key members of the Administration, and that the congressional delegation consider
cosponsoring and supporting the RESTRAIN Act and the No Nuclear Testing Act filed by
their colleagues in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate.
1-14-26 10:43 AM