As a critical component of advancing the nuclear power juggernaut on an ill-informed public, for several years now pro-nuclear cheerleaders have been working feverishly to get state legislatures to repeal state-mandated moratoria on new nuclear plant construction. Read more
The 1020-page Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability (CRGA) Act was a must-pass piece of legislation, Read more
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Use: Monday, October 27, 2025
Contact: David Kraft, (773)342-7650 (o); (630)506-2864 (c); neis@neis.org
“Governor Pritzker, Legislators: Preserve Illinois’ Nuclear Moratorium,”
Nuclear Watchdog Group Advises
CHICAGO—As the Fall Veto Session of the Illinois Legislature begins on Tuesday this week, an Illinois environmental, safe-energy advocacy organization advises: preserve the Illinois nuclear construction moratorium. Read more
LEGISLATURE CONFRONTS THE NUCLEAR PANDORA’S BOX (Original title)
13 October 2025
According to the legend, an overly curious but ill-informed Pandora opened a container she was warned not to, in the process unleashing all the ills of the world upon mankind. In fairness and her defense, one has to admit she was not informed about the contents of the container.
That seems to be the principal difference between Pandora and the Governor and Illinois Legislature today. In the Fall Session it is expected that the Legislature will be voting on the potential repeal of the 1987 nuclear power moratorium, which if it occurs, would take the lid off of construction of more nuclear reactors.
Unlike Pandora, Illinois officials are well aware of the ills of nuclear power, which are many and well known: huge construction costs and overruns; lengthy and often delayed construction times; attraction for official corruption (think Illinois, Ohio and South Carolina); continued generation of high-level radioactive wastes (HLRW) with no place for permanent disposal; difficulty operating in a market system without some form of eventual bailout; and “black-swan” but always present potential for severe nuclear accident. It only takes one bad day at the nuclear office to turn Illinois into the Belarus of the United States.
As bad as these nuclear attributes are, the ones that the Legislature has consistently refused to address, coupled with newer issues created by the Trump Administration are equally concerning, and argue forcefully to keep Illinois’ nuclear moratorium in place:
While this list of neglected, unsolved nuclear problems is daunting enough, the last thing to leave today’s nuclear-Pandora’s Box is not “hope.” It is a series of Trump Administration executive orders, issued in May, that deprioritize the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s mission to protect the public; reduce NRC staff; call for weakening radiation standards; and require a DOGE sign-off on new reactor designs – all while quadrupling the number of U.S. reactors by 2050. Former NRC Chairman Dr. Gregory Jaczko remarked, “President Trump’s executive order shows he is committed to further lawlessness, more nuclear accidents, and less nuclear safety.”
The 1987 Moratorium was initially enacted to protect Illinois from radioactive waste abuse. Its presence has at least helped minimize the numerous other problems with nuclear power. Moratorium repeal only guarantees their continuation and worsening.
Just as in the original Pandora legend, once these nuclear ills are legislatively loosed upon the world, there will be no means to put them back in the box.
Now is clearly NOT the time to be considering new reactors.
The Nuclear Moratorium repeal should be rejected.
NEIS CONTINUES THE FIGHT AGAINST NEW ILLINOIS REACTORS!
Urge elected officials to oppose SB1527, SB1538, HB3604, HB3603,
which would repeal our remaining nuclear construction moratorium
Greetings All –
They’re baaaaaccckkk!!!!!!!! Nuclear advocates want MORE reactors in Illinois!!
Bills in the Illinois House and Senate would repeal the remaining moratorium on construction of LARGE and so-called ADVANCED nuclear power plants; and redefine small modular nuclear reactors (SMNRs) as “renewable energy.” Repealing the moratorium (SB1527) does nothing to dispose of the 11,000+ tons of high-level radioactive wastes (HLRW) in Illinois – but would create more. Defining nuclear reactors as “renewable energy” (SB1538) is language straight out of Orwell’s “1984,” but would make SMNRs eligible for access to genuine renewables funding and transmission access over real RENEWABLE energy sources.
More reactors threaten the CEJA the renewable energy goals; and create further bottlenecks constricting renewables access to the already overcrowded and antiquated transmission grid. And of course – these reactors would ultimately be paid for by YOU, the ratepayer and taxpayer, through rate hikes and subsidies.
It gets worse. Last Friday the Trump Administration signed Executive Orders which effectively gut the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, making present and future reactors unsafe. UCS scientist Dr. Ed Lyman stated, “the Trump administration is virtually guaranteeing that this country will see a serious accident or other radiological release that will affect the health, safety, and livelihoods of millions.”
Rumor has it that the Repeal bills may be packaged into a larger energy omnibus bill, containing provisions that the Illinois environmental community wants and states it will support. This would be disastrous – a backdoor way of gaining by foul what the nuke folks can’t gain by fair.
So once again, it’s up to us – you and NEIS – to stop this nuclear juggernaut.
THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO STOP THE PRO-NUCLEAR FORCES FROM SABOTAGING RENEWABLES AND INCREASING THE RADWASTE HAZARD!
THE MESSAGE FOR YOUR OFFICIALS AND ENVIRO COLLEAGUES:
Safe-energy and environmental activists need to contact your rep and senator, and call on them to oppose these pro-nuclear plans!
WHAT YOU CAN DO: SESSION ENDS SATURDAY MAY 31. ACT NOW!!
Ph: 217-782-6830 or 217-782-6831 Chicago: Phone: 312-814-2121 or 312-814-2122
Even if you’ve done this previously, do it all again! Visit the NEIS website for more details, NEIS’ testimony, and arguments against the Moratorium repeal and SMNRs. Share this with friends and family, and ask them to act too.
The Legislative Session is scheduled to end Saturday, May 31. Quite literally, your actions will determine whether the energy future of Illinois will be nuclear or renewable.
Thanks in advance for your efforts. Be well, keep on doing!
Governor Pritzker’s veto needed – YOU can make it happen!
As we previously informed you, on Thursday May 18, the Illinois House passed SB76 – the repeal of the 1987 Illinois nuclear power construction Moratorium. Read more
“Illinois Just Got ‘Nuked’”
This afternoon the Illinois House passed legislation to strip away a long-standing and effective means of protecting Illinois from excessive radiation hazard and abuse when it repealed the 1987 Illinois nuclear construction moratorium. Read more
ORAL TESTIMONY IN OPPOSITION TO SB76
The Repeal of Illinois Nuclear Construction Moratorium
April 18, 2023
By David A. Kraft, Director
Nuclear Energy Information Service (NEIS) is a 42-year old nuclear watchdog, safe-energy advocacy organization based in Chicago. On behalf of our members, we thank you for the opportunity to provide these remarks today.
This hearing marks the 5th time in 2 years we have come before the Legislature to register our opposition to the repeal of the 1987 Illinois nuclear power construction Moratorium, in this case SB76. Hundreds of Illinoisans have signed petitions to preserve the Moratorium. Sixteen organizations have co-signed a letter supporting the Moratorium and more renewables that has been sent to the Governor. Numerous significant Illinois environmental groups such as Sierra Club, Illinois Environmental Council, Greenpeace, LVEJO, People for Community Recovery and others oppose the Moratorium repeal, recognizing it for the environmental danger it represents.
We have provided detailed, technical and sourced references in our written comments as to why the moratorium repeal is horrendous public policy, and why oblique, unstated but often referenced support of so-called “small modular nuclear reactors” (SMNRs) is not sound energy policy nor in the best interests of Illinois. We will mention a few below, and encourage you to both read the testimony and the 20 references provided; and contact us again if you have questions or need for more information.
As we have repeatedly stated, Moratorium repeal is premature and not in Illinois’ best interests. First and foremost it explicitly deals with disposal of high-level radioactive wastes, a topic assiduously avoided or minimized in all the 2023 hearings so far by legislators endorsing repeal. Instead many pro-nuclear advocates’ have opportunistically turned the Moratorium repeal into de facto trade-shows seeking unexamined, uncritical endorsement for SMNRs at every hearing we have testified at. This makes the Moratorium repeal legislation an “Energy Trojan Horse.” Smart business people and legislators usually conduct a “cost-benefit” analysis for costly and risky enterprises. So far, our legislature has only mouthed “benefit-benefit” analyses, failing to critically examine the many well-documented downsides of SMNRs described in detail in our written testimony, and those of our expert witnesses, Dr. Edwin Lyman of Union of Concerned Scientists, and M.V. Ramana of University of British Columbia, Vancouver. Caveat emptor.
Worse still are the many straw-person and red-herring arguments offered for Moratorium repeal, and embracing SMNRs, such as:
Jobs creation has repeatedly been offered as evidence to promote SMNRs and repeal the Moratorium. Some state that the Moratorium discourages potential SMNR investors from coming to Illinois. As we have REPEATEDLY pointed out for two years, Illinois energy future rests on the aggressive development of and investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency, energy storage (and NOT just batteries), and greatly improved and redesigned transmission – all energy and jobs producers TODAY, not in 2035 when at best SMNRs might be commercialized – IF the designs actually work. That’s one big gamble. The number of Illinois jobs already provided by renewable energy (22,999, end of 2021) and energy efficiency (82,592, end of 2021) far exceed the number of current nuclear power jobs (3,726 as of 2022). Their numbers are reliably verified by history and current reality. No such reliable figures exist for the non-existent SMNRs; it’s all speculation.
Some have speciously argued that we need more nuclear power because there aren’t enough renewables available – that we “need a bridge fuel source.” That is a political and utility self-fulfilling prophecy, not a limitation of the technology. If there aren’t enough renewables then – BUILD THEM. Attract those investors pro-nuclear people are worried we will scare off by retaining an environmentally protective nuclear Moratorium. Improve transmission access to existing renewables here, in Iowa and elsewhere which has been historically thwarted ComEd/Exelon interference. Invite experts like Dr. Mark Jacobson of Stanford University, or Dr. Amory Lovins the co-founder of Rocky Mountain Institute or Dr. Arjun Makhijani of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research to develop an implementation plan, as they have already done in other states. As Mark Twain once quipped, it’s better to KNOW than to SUPPOSE. We would add – it’s better to plan an act, than be afraid of the dark, literally and figuratively.
Finally, we have observed in these Hearings to date that Moratorium proponents don’t even use the correct terminology in attempting to make their case, conflating “moratorium” with “ban,” and “disposal” with “storage” of radioactive wastes. This demonstrates a profound ignorance of the issue, calling into serious question their ability to legislate on a matter they clearly are not informed enough about.
To summarize:
SMNRs are no climate solution according the qualified experts. They will provide no jobs or tax benefits to communities until then, while renewables, efficiency and storage already provide those TODAY. They are already calculated to be more expensive per unit of energy produced than even today’s uneconomic and bailed-out nuclear reactors. And finally – they will produce more high-level radioactive wastes per unit of energy than today’s reactors as well – PRECISELY the situation that the Moratorium was enacted to prevent.
Albert Einstein once remarked that clever people solve problems. Geniuses avoid them. Illinois’ energy future could use a healthy dose of genius right now. Your call.
Thank you for your consideration of these remarks. We are available to answer questions, and provide sources for our assertions.
The final battle to stop new nuclear power plants from coming to Illinois!!
Call your State Rep ASAP, OFTEN, urging opposition to SB0076, a bill that repeals Illinois nuclear reactor construction moratorium Read more
