HOUSE LAWMAKERS RAISE CONCERNS ABOUT YUCCA MOUNTAIN MILESTONES

House lawmakers questioned the Energy Department's (DOE) ability to meet milestones for the construction of a national high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, NV, even as the department is again evaluating bids for re-competing the contract to manage and operate the waste disposal site. Lawmakers raised the concerns at House Commerce Committee's Energy and Power Subcommittee hearing June 23 on the status of DOE's program to develop the repository. Subcommittee Chair Joe Barton (R-TX) stated that he "needed to...