Written Testimony of Dr. Ashley Finan Senior Project Manager for Energy Innovation Clean Air Task Force Before the Subcommittee on Energy Committee on Science, Space, and Technology U.S. House of Representatives

Dr. Ashley Finan of the Clean Air Task Force testifies that while nuclear power is essential for addressing climate change, the US needs a new commercialization model for advanced reactors. She proposes a DOE-supervised test bed facility to reduce costs and risks for private prototypes and a staged licensing process at the NRC, similar to FDA drug trials, to provide clearer signals to investors.

• The US lacks a successful commercialization model for major nuclear breakthroughs since the era of the Atomic Energy Commission, which relied on full public funding on government sites.
• Establishing a technology-neutral test bed facility at a Department of Energy (DOE) site would lower barriers and costs for private companies building prototypes by providing safety oversight, security, and experimental facilities.
• The current US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing process is an 'all or nothing' system that creates uncertainty for private investors in advanced reactors, unlike the established pathway for light water reactors.
• The NRC should adopt a staged licensing process similar to the FDA's clinical trial phases to provide investors with clear signals regarding whether a technology is meeting regulatory criteria.
• Implementing a staged, risk-informed, and technology-neutral licensing framework would require additional funding, potentially as little as $5-10 million annually, as the NRC's fee-recovery model is not suited for research into advanced reactors.

APA

Finan, A. (2014). Written Testimony of Dr. Ashley Finan Senior Project Manager for Energy Innovation Clean Air Task Force Before the Subcommittee on Energy Committee on Science, Space, and Technology U.S. House of Representatives. Clean Air Task Force. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/21093336/20141211-Finan_Congressional_Testimony.pdf

Chicago

Finan, Ashley. Written Testimony of Dr. Ashley Finan Senior Project Manager for Energy Innovation Clean Air Task Force Before the Subcommittee on Energy Committee on Science, Space, and Technology U.S. House of Representatives. Clean Air Task Force, 2014. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/21093336/20141211-Finan_Congressional_Testimony.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Finan |first1=Ashley |title=Written Testimony of Dr. Ashley Finan Senior Project Manager for Energy Innovation Clean Air Task Force Before the Subcommittee on Energy Committee on Science, Space, and Technology U.S. House of Representatives |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |date=11 December 2014 |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/21093336/20141211-Finan_Congressional_Testimony.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{finan2014written, author = {Finan, Ashley}, title = {{Written Testimony of Dr. Ashley Finan Senior Project Manager for Energy Innovation Clean Air Task Force Before the Subcommittee on Energy Committee on Science, Space, and Technology U.S. House of Representatives}}, publisher = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2014}, month = dec, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/21093336/20141211-Finan_Congressional_Testimony.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }