Final Congressional Approval Given to Clinton Proposal to Help Prevent Nuclear Terrorism

Legislation Now Goes to the President's Desk to Be Signed Into Law

December 14, 2007 -- Washington, DC – Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton today announced that the Senate has approved a measure she introduced to help prevent nuclear terrorism as part of the Fiscal Year 2008 Department of Defense Authorization Act. Senator Clinton's measure requires an annual report on a prioritized plan to eliminate or secure all weapons-usable nuclear material anywhere in the world, including a prioritized list of vulnerable nuclear sites where security upgrades are needed most urgently.

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It also expresses the sense of Congress that the administration should seek broad international agreement on minimum standards for the security of nuclear weapons and materials. The legislation, having been approved by both chambers of Congress, will now go to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

“The threat of nuclear terrorism is among the gravest confronting our nation today. This measure will help ensure our government is prepared to face this critical challenge,” Senator Clinton said. “It also makes clear that nuclear terrorism is a global threat that requires a multilateral response, and encourages the Administration to engage in robust diplomatic efforts in this area.”

Senator Clinton’s amendment would require an annual report to Congress that would include a prioritized plan – including measurable milestones, metrics, estimated timetables, and estimated costs of implementation – to eliminate or secure all weapons-usable nuclear material anywhere in the world, and would detail progress in implementing that plan. The report would also include a prioritized list of vulnerable sites around the world with nuclear weapons or weapons-usable nuclear material where security upgrades are needed most urgently. The amendment also establishes that it is U.S. policy to work with the international community to take all possible steps to ensure that nuclear material around the world is eliminated or secured, and expresses the sense of Congress that the president and relevant federal departments and agencies should work with the international community to create specific minimum standards for the security of nuclear weapons and weapons-usable fissile material, that they convince other countries to adopt these standards, and that they assist other countries in meeting and maintaining them.

These provisions were drawn from Senator Clinton’s Nuclear Terrorism Prevention Act, which she introduced earlier this year.-

Source: Senator Hillary Clinton