Press Releases

Federal regulators on Monday gave the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant a 20-year license renewal. Sen. Bernie Sanders said the Nuclear Regulatory Commission action “defies comprehension.” He had urged the NRC to reconsider in the aftermath of the disaster at a tsunami-damaged nuclear power plant in Japan. Sanders on Friday sent a letter to President Obama calling for a moratorium on

BURLINGTON, Vt., March 21 – The Vermont congressional delegation issued the following statement in response to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission decision to formally issue a 20-year license extension for the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant: “It is hard to understand how the NRC could move forward with a license extension for Vermont Yankee at exactly the same time as a nuclear

Five-Point Emergency Plan Also Calls for Independent Probe BURLINGTON, Vt., March 20 – In the aftermath of the nuclear disaster in Japan, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders urged the White House to form a presidential commission on nuclear safety in the United States as part of a five-point crisis response. In a letter to President Barack Obama, Sanders (I-Vt.) also asked

Subcommittee Oversees LIHEAP, Health Centers and Seniors Programs WASHINGTON, March 16 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) was appointed today to chair the Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging.   “With more Americans heading into retirement, we need to focus on supporting our seniors and ensuring their quality of life.  I look forward to working side by side with Sen.

“People think that a terrible event is unthinkable until the day after that event occurs. We have seen it with 9/11. Unthinkable that one of the largest buildings in America would be attacked by terrorists. Unthinkable that thousands of people would die in Hurricane Katrina. Unthinkable that BP would have an environmentally damaging leak in the Gulf Coast. Unthinkable that

WASHINGTON, March 16 – Citing the nuclear emergency in Japan, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today pressed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission chairman to re-evaluate whether to issue a new permit for Vermont Yankee. One day before the massive earthquake and tsunami struck Japan, the commission approved a 20-year license extension for the Vernon, Vt., reactor that is identical to the crippled