Mr. Chairman, today I would like to thank you for convening this hearing on the future of nuclear energy, as a critical energy source in our country today and for the foreseeable future.

The Congress must recognize the important role that nuclear energy plays in our nation’s economy, our nation’s energy independence and security, and our nation’s environmental goals. And, we need to acknowledge that like nearly every other source of energy, nuclear power needs our help to continue playing its important role in our nation’s energy policy.

One in every five homes and businesses today is powered by nuclear energy. It is important not only in Louisiana, where two nuclear plants produce nearly 17 percent of my state’s electricity, but also in states such as Connecticut, Illinois, New Hampshire, New Jersey, South Carolina and Vermont where nuclear power generates more electricity than any other source. Nationwide, 103 reactors provide 20 percent of our electricitythe largest source of U.S. emission-free power provided around the clock.

Nuclear energy played an important role in the sustained economic growth during the 1990s. By operating more and more efficiently, our nation’s nuclear power plants have added the equivalent of twenty-five 1,000-megawatt power plants to our nation’s electricity grid. Without that improvement in performance by our nuclear plants, we would have needed at least 25 new power plants; and those plants most likely would not have the clean-air benefits provided by nuclear energy.