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Matheson Puts Utah First, Crafts Bill To Protect Utahns from Nuclear Weapons Testing
Washington DC-Congressman Jim Matheson put Utahns first when he introduced legislation-the Safety for Americans from Nuclear Weapons Testing Act-- that would create roadblocks to future nuclear weapons testing at the Nevada Test Site.
"Like thousands of Utah families, I am painfully aware of the federal government's failure to protect its citizens from the dangers of radioactive fallout created during atomic testing in Nevada in the 1950s and 60s, said Matheson. "The federal government said we were safe. The federal government knew we were at risk. I will not stand by and let the government take Utah families down that path again."
Over Matheson's opposition, Congress has authorized and funded new nuclear weapons development, such as the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator. Matheson said a three-year effort, begun in fiscal 2003, is studying the feasibility of developing small nuclear weapons that could destroy deeply buried bunkers. The administration's latest budget request calls for spending $27 million in fiscal 2005 to complete the research effort.
Families across the country have suffered from the effects of fallout associated with nuclear weapons testing at the Nevada Test Site. Many of Matheson's family members have been diagnosed with cancers caused by exposure to radioactive fallout and many of those family members have died as a result of their illness. The number of people affected by testing prompted Matheson's late father-former Utah Governor Scott Matheson--to fight for the release of government research in the 1980s that revealed health and safety concerns regarding atomic testing. Gov. Matheson died-at age 61-from a type of cancer associated with exposure to radioactive fallout, even as the government belatedly acknowledged its responsibility to victims through passage of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) in 1990.
"I remember my father telling me about how people in southern Utah would watch the sky light up from the nuclear tests and how Utahns supported the program because they were strong patriots who believed in their country and trusted their government. Many untimely deaths later, we've learned to be skeptical of the government's safety claims regarding this issue," said Matheson.