WASHINGTON, D.C.- Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), who is a member of the Committee on Homeland Security, released a statement in response to a Government Accountability Office report about the selling of radioactive materials.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) released a report on its oversight of the selling of these materials. The report was titled “NRC Has Enhanced the Controls of Dangerous Radioactive Materials, but Vulnerabilities Remain.”
“Radiological and nuclear terrorism remains a threat to our nations’s security. It is troubling to learn that the NRC does not review specific security measures before a license for certain dangerous, life threatening material is issued,” said Thompson.
GAO says it was successful in creating a fake company to buy these goods in one out of three covert operations. They also discovered that the NRC does not have strict enough regulations for all levels of radioactive material that is considered dangerous.
“The NRC should re-evaluate its licensing requirements to ensure those who want to do us harm cannot obtain a license to purchase radioactive materials as easily as covert testers did. While GAO’s findings are concerning, I’m pleased that the Commission has issued a position paper based on the GAO’s recommendations that NRC enhances license verification and transfer requirements for category 3 licenses.”
