The White House on Monday renominated Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chair David Wright to a new term on the commission through June 2030, two weeks before the South Carolina Republican’s current term would have expired.
Assuming Wright wins Senate confirmation and is reappointed commission chair by President Donald Trump, the NRC would have leadership in place to undertake a comprehensive review of its reactor licensing processes ordered by Trump last month.
Trump’s “energy dominance” strategy gives a top priority to a quadrupling of U.S. nuclear power capacity by 2050, with an essential role given to small modular reactors with new operating technologies that are awaiting NRC safety reviews.
The White House confirmed on Tuesday morning that it had sent the reappointment to the Senate. The action had not been formally announced. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee has not yet set a schedule for Wright’s confirmation hearing.
