ST. LOUIS — It's a fight for funding in Congress.
Local advocates are pushing for an amendment that would compensate radioactive waste victims in the St. Louis region.
Monday afternoon, Sen. Josh Hawley detailed where the National Defense Authorization Act stands in regards to the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, known as RECA.
Hawley secured an added amendment to the act over the summer, which would compensate St. Louisans exposed to radioactive waste from the Manhattan Project.
This would cover residents from St. Louis County near Coldwater Creek and West Lake Landfill to residents in St. Charles near Weldon Spring.
On the conference call listening to every word were Just Moms STL co-founders Dawn Chapman and Karen Nickel.
"We have a good chance of staying in it because this is a reasonable program. Hopefully, we can begin those next rounds of conversations on why it’s needed. There is radioactive waste still left in a community that's not going to be cleaned up for another 20 years," Chapman shared.
Now, NDAA are in negotiations to see if the added amendment will land in the final version.
Chapman shared, "I think the biggest hold up is the price tag. There are other programs up for debate right now that cost more in a year than ours will in a 10-year and even five-year plan."
The original amount was $147 billion, but Hawley said they slashed it to a few billion.
Hawley said the revision preserved the geographical areas and coverage for uranium mine workers, but they did cost-saving measures by shortening the window of time.
"It's hard when you put a price tag on people's lives. We deserve to be in this program, we are a very sick community," Nickel added.
The co-founders now make their own call, calling on the community to stay consistent.
"The biggest thing is to focus on leadership, focus on Leader McConnell and Speaker Johnson that's where the decision lies," Chapman said.
Nickel agreed, "We have a strong united community and if that what it takes to make those calls then that's what we'll do."
Senator Hawley has threatened to stall the entire voting process if RECA is slashed.
RECA was enacted in 1990 and amended twice. It was going to end in July of 2022 but Congress extended the program for two years and will expire in May 2024.
The final votes by Congress are most likely happening before the holidays.
Just Mom STL shared these contacts for residents:
- Mike Johnson: (202) 225 4000
- Mitch McConnell: (202) 224-2541