Sec. 3120. PLUTONIUM PIT PRODUCTION

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## SEC. 3120 PLUTONIUM PIT PRODUCTION ###

(a)Statement of Policy It is the policy of the United States that— ####

(1)Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico, is the Plutonium Science and Production Center of Excellence for the United States; and ####

(2)Los Alamos National Laboratory will produce a minimum of 30 pits per year for the national pit production mission and will implement surge efforts to exceed 30 pits per year to meet Nuclear Posture Review and national policy. ###

(b)Independent Assessment of Plutonium Strategy ####

(1)In general Not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Administrator for Nuclear Security, shall seek to enter into a contract with a federally funded research and development center to conduct an assessment of the plutonium strategy of the National Nuclear Security Administration. The assessment shall include— #####

(A)an analysis of the engineering assessment and analysis of alternatives, including an analysis of each of the four major options contained within the engineering assessment; #####

(B)an assessment of the risks and benefits involved in each such option, including risks and benefits related to cost, schedule, licensing, labor availability, and workforce development, and effects on and from other programs; #####

(C)a description of the strategies considered by the National Nuclear Security Administration to reduce those risks; and #####

(D)an assessment of the strategy considered for manufacturing up to 80 pits per year at Los Alamos National Laboratory through the use of multiple labor shifts and additional equipment at PF-4 until modular facilities are completed to provide a long-term, single-labor shift capacity. ####

(2)Selection The Secretary may not enter into the contract under paragraph

(1)with a federally funded research and development center for which the Department of Energy or the National Nuclear Security Administration is the primary sponsor. ####

(3)Access to information The federally funded research and development center with which the Secretary enters into the contract under paragraph

(1)shall have full and direct access to all information related to pit production, including information of the National Nuclear Security Administration and its management and operating contractors. ####

(4)Report required Not later than April 1, 2019, the federally funded research and development center with which the Secretary enters into the contract under paragraph

(1)shall submit to the Secretary, the Administrator, and the Nuclear Weapons Council established under section 179 of title 10, United States Code, a report containing the assessment required by paragraph (1). ####

(5)Submission to congress Not later than April 15, 2019, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees the report required by paragraph (4), without change. ###

(c)Report on Pit Production at Los Alamos National Laboratory ####

(1)In general Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report containing— #####

(A)a detailed plan to produce 30 pits per year at Los Alamos National Laboratory by 2026, including— ######

(i)equipment and other construction already planned at the Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement Facility; ######

(ii)additional equipment or labor necessary to produce such pits; and ######

(iii)effects on and from other ongoing programs at Los Alamos National Laboratory; and #####

(B)a detailed plan for designing and carrying out production of plutonium pits 31-80 at Los Alamos National Laboratory, in case the MOX facility is not operational and producing pits by 2030. ####

(2)Assessment Not later than 120 days after the submission of the report required by paragraph (1), the Director for Cost Estimating and Program Evaluation of the National Nuclear Security Administration shall submit to the congressional defense committees an assessment of that report, including an assessment of the effect of increased ARIES activity in support of the dilute and dispose program on the plutonium pit production mission. ###

(d)Briefing Not later than March 1, 2019, the Chairman of the Nuclear Weapons Council and the Administrator shall jointly provide to the congressional defense committees a briefing detailing the implementation plan for the plutonium strategy of the National Nuclear Security Administration, including milestones, accountable personnel for such milestones, and mechanisms for ensuring transparency into the progress of such strategy for the Department of Defense and the congressional defense committees. ###

(e)Annual Certification Not later than April 1, 2019, and each year thereafter through 2025, the Chairman shall submit to the Secretary, the Administrator, and the congressional defense committees a written certification that the plutonium pit production plan of the National Nuclear Security Administration is on track to meet— ####

(1)the military requirement of 80 pits per year by 2030, or such other military requirement as determined by the Secretary; ####

(2)the statutory requirements for pit production timelines under section 4219 of the Atomic Energy Defense Act (50 U.S.C. 2538a); and ####

(3)all milestones and deliverables described in the plans required by subsection (c)(1). ###

(f)Failure to Certify ####

(1)NWC notification If in any year the Chairman is unable to submit the certification under subsection (e), the Chairman shall submit to the congressional defense committees, the Secretary, and the Administrator written notification describing why the Chairman is unable to make such certification. ####

(2)NNSA response Not later than 180 days after the date on which the Chairman makes a notification under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall submit to the congressional defense committees, the Secretary, and the Chairman a report that— #####

(A)addresses the reasons identified in the notification with respect to the failure to make the certification under subsection (e); and #####

(B)includes presentation of either a concurrent backup plan or a recovery plan, and the associated implementation schedules for such plan. ###

(g)Definitions In this section: ####

(1)ARIES The term “ARIES” means the Advanced Recovery and Integrated Extraction System method, developed and piloted at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico, for disassembling surplus defense plutonium pits and converting the plutonium from such pits into plutonium oxide. ####

(2)Dilute and dispose approach The term “dilute and dispose approach” means a method of blending plutonium oxide made from surplus defense plutonium with an inert mixture, then packaging and indefinitely disposing of the combined material in a geologic repository. ####

(3)MOX facility The term “MOX facility” means the mixed-oxide fuel fabrication facility at the Savannah River Site, Aiken, South Carolina.

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50 USC 2538a

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Sec. 3120

PLUTONIUM PIT PRODUCTION

Cite50 USC 2538a

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