New Legislation Seeks to Restore America’s Nuclear Energy Advantage

"Or is this something they hope to push through before January when some dynamics may change?"

I think that's a good call, Matt. It's always a guess for DC outsiders like me to pull apart the incentives for signing on to a bill like this, but it's been in the works since July. Wyoming has considerable uranium deposits; Idaho stands to benefit by support for Idaho National Laboratory. Booker and Whitehouse have been longtime pro-nuclear advocates, and probably fear attempts by anti-nuclear forces on the far left, the American Petroleum Institute, the American Gas Association, Berkshire-Hathaway, and Bloomberg New Energy to derail it after Biden takes office.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's tacit support for nuclear energy in May, however, opened the door to the possibility of wide bipartisan support for advancing nuclear energy. The bill's zero-emission credit may be its most important provision - as a significant financial commitment, it would show other countries the U.S. is willing to back up promises with cash when we rejoin the Paris Agreement.