"The Ohio House wants to move forward with nuclear energy development while criminal proceedings continue from a bribery scandal that involved nuclear plants and the former speaker of the House.
The House recently passed House Bill 434, which would create the Ohio Nuclear Development Authority within the Ohio Department of Development. The authority would be made up of nine members, all appointed by the governor with input from industry groups.
The bill now is in the Senate.
“In recent years, there has been a global shift in attitudes toward the development of new nuclear technologies to deploy scalable clean energy,” Rep. Dick Stein, R-Norwalk, said. “This legislation will bring Ohio to the forefront of advanced nuclear innovation and strengthen our domestic supply chains. This legislation is a proactive measure to tell the federal government Ohio is here to be a solution to find a clean, carbon-free energy source.”
The new authority, according to a news release, would be responsible for the development of advanced nuclear reactor commercialization, isotope production and nuclear waste reduction."