STATE ATTORNEYS GENERAL
A Communication From the Chief Legal Officers
of the following States:
Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Georgia • Hawaii
Iowa • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi
Montana • Nevada • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York
North Carolina • Ohio • Oregon • Pennsylvania
Rhode Island • Vermont • West Virginia
Washington • Wisconsin
October 8, 2002
Honorable Tom Daschle Honorable J. Dennis Hastert
Senate Majority Leader Speaker of the House
United States Senate United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20515-4326
Honorable Trent Lott Honorable Richard Gephardt
Senate Minority Leader House Minority Leader
United States Senate United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20001
Dear Senators Daschle and Lott and Representatives Hastert and Gephardt,
We, the undersigned Attorneys General, are writing to urge the passage of legislation this year to
protect our states and communities from terrorist attacks against civilian nuclear power plants and other
sensitive nuclear facilities.
Earlier this year, President Bush underscored the threat to nuclear power plants in his State of the
Union address, wherein he pointed out that diagrams of U.S. nuclear power plants were found in Al Qaeda
enclaves in Afghanistan. Subsequent classified and non-classified warnings have been provided to nuclear
plant operators and the public indicating that the potential threat to nuclear plants is very real. Congressional
hearings and official reports further underscore concerns about security and the vulnerability of spent fuel storage.
The consequences of a catastrophic attack against a nuclear power plant are simply incalculable.
It is evident that urgent steps must be taken to bolster the efforts of private nuclear power plant operators
and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to minimize the potential threat and expand emergency
response capability should such an attack occur.
It is essential that we focus the necessary expertise of relevant federal agencies through a rational
process to upgrade security at nuclear power plants. An interagency Task Force—chaired by the NRC
and working in concert with the Director of Homeland Security, should be created and tasked to recommend
changes to enhance the physical security of nuclear plants, increase security measures, expand emergency
response capability, and enhance protections for one of the most vulnerable components of a nuclear power
plant—its spent fuel pools. The NRC should then upgrade its rules in response to the expert
recommendations of the interagency Task Force.
We need legislation that will create a nuclear infrastructure anti-terrorism team to respond to threats
against nuclear power plants. Such legislation must also provide states and local governments with training
and financial resources to expand their capacity to prevent attacks and provide wider emergency response
capability. The legislation should also direct improvements to NRC’s licensing processes over radiological
devices and materials, such as sealed sources used in medical equipment. Such improvements will assist
federal efforts to recapture these types of radiological materials which could be used by terrorists.
An entire year has passed since the horrific acts of September 11th and some limited steps have been
taken to upgrade security at nuclear plants. However, a systematic approach to protect the public health and
well-being has not yet been institutionalized. Despite interim measures, a revised security plan for nuclear
plants will not be finalized by the NRC until March of 2003. We urge the Congress to drive a more aggressive
timetable yet this session with results that will raise public confidence in the security of nuclear plants from
sophisticated attacks that could be launched from air, water and land.
The passage of legislation is urgent. Threats against these facilities must be matched with appropriate
regulatory requirements, added resources and heightened protections.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Attorney General Christine O. Gregoire
Attorney General of Washington
Attorney General Janet Napolitano
Attorney General of Arizona
Attorney General Mark Pryor
Attorney General of Arkansas
Attorney General Bill Lockyer
Attorney General of California
Attorney General Ken Salazar
Attorney General of Colorado
Attorney General Thurbert E. Baker
Attorney General of Georgia
Attorney General Tom Miller
Attorney General of Iowa
Attorney General Tom Reilly
Attorney General of Massachusetts
Attorney General Mike Hatch
Attorney General of Minnesota
Attorney General Mike McGrath
Attorney General of Montana
Attorney General David Damson
Attorney General of New Jersey
Attorney General Richard Blumenthal
Attorney General of Connecticut
Attorney General Anzai
Attorney General of Hawaii
Attorney General J. Joseph Curran Jr.
Attorney General of Maryland
Attorney General Jennifer Granholm
Attorney General of Michigan
Attorney General Mike Moore
Attorney General of Mississippi
Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa
Attorney General of Nevada
Attorney General Patricia Madrid
Attorney General of New Mexico
Attorney General Eliot Spitzer
Attorney General of New York
Attorney General Betty D. Montgomery
Attorney General of Ohio
Attorney General Mike Fisher
Attorney General of Pennsylvania
Attorney General William H. Sorrell
Attorney General of Vermont
Attorney General James E. Doyle
Attorney General of Wisconsin
Attorney General Roy Cooper
Attorney General of North Carolina
Attorney General Hardy Myers
Attorney General of Oregon
Attorney General Sheldon Whitehouse
Attorney General of Rhode Island
Attorney General Darrell V. McGraw, Jr.
Attorney General of West Virginia
cc: Honorable Jeff Bingaman
Honorable Frank Murkowski
Honorable W. J. “Billy” Tauzin
Honorable John Dingell
