Radiation Exposure Compensation Act

Last summer, Congress allowed a program to compensate victims of Cold War-era radiation exposure to expire. Now, a new bipartisan effort to both revive and expand the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act is picking up steam.

Leadership in the U.S. House did not include compensation for victims of radiation exposure in its current budget proposal. The program expired in June and advocates were hoping Congress would renew it before the end of the year.

Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley is threatening to block attempts by House Republicans to only partially renew a law that compensates victims of radiation exposure.

In June, Congress allowed a 34-year-old federal law that compensates victims of Cold War-era radiation exposure to lapse. Now, an effort is underway to pressure lawmakers to renew and expand the program before the end of the current lame-duck session.

Arizona tribal members are in Washington, D.C., this week to urge Congress to reauthorize the compensation programs for victims of nuclear testing and uranium mining.

Members of the Navajo Nation will rally at the U.S. Capitol next week to urge Congress to reauthorize a program that compensated people sicked by radiation who lived in a fallout zone or worked at uranium mines.

The story of downwinders — the survivors of the world's first atomic blast and those who helped mine the uranium needed for the nation's arsenal — is little known. But that's changing as the documentary "First We Bombed New Mexico" racks up awards.

A top Democratic congressman says it will take a power shift to pass legislation to extend and expand a compensation program for people exposed to radiation following uranium mining and nuclear testing carried out by the federal government.

The Radiation Exposure and Compensation Act expired Friday after Congress failed to vote on a bipartisan bill that would have extended or expanded coverage.

The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act sunsets on June 10. The Navajo Nation Council is voting on a resolution Monday that would be hand-delivered to U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson.