Executive Director Angela Canterbury signed onto a letter urging the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Energy and Water Development to remove funding for a nuclear cruise missile and to include funding for non-proliferation.
September 29, 2014
Rep. Mike Simpson, Chairman
House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Chairman
Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
Re: Energy and Water Conference for the Omnibus Appropriation Bill
Dear Chairmen Simpson and Feinstein,
As you draft the Energy and Water section of the Omnibus Appropriation bill, we have two suggestions.
Long-Range Standoff (LRSO) (Nuclear Cruise Missile)We strongly urge you to not fund the Long-Range Standoff (LRSO), a nuclear cruise missile, as the Senate has recommended rather than accept the House's $17 million proposal. The nuclear cruise missile is estimated to cost $20 billion, with an additional $7 billion for the nuclear warhead. The warhead estimate comes from the National Nuclear Security Administration, which has a long history of underestimating costs. That is $27 billion for a weapon that has no unique role. U.S. bombers can already drop the B61 nuclear bomb. Meanwhile, the Trident II (submarine launched) and Minuteman III (land based) missiles already provide a nuclear standoff capability, able to accurately hit targets from a distance of more than 4,600 miles.
Nonproliferation FundingWe strongly urge you to fund the NNSA Defense Nonproliferation Account at the higher Senate level of $1,978 million, over the House level of $1,555 million. These vital programs, which protect against nuclear and radiological terrorism, have endured three consecutive years of budget cuts. These cuts are difficult to reconcile with the undeniable and undisputed need to secure dangerous nuclear materials. Keeping nuclear materials out of the wrong hands should be given a higher priority than building new nuclear weapons. However, we do not support funding for the Mixed Oxide (MOX) program, which is within the Nonproliferation Account. We believe that program has been an irresponsible waste of taxpayer dollars.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Ashish Sinha, Program Director
Alliance for Nuclear Accountability
Daryl Kimball, Executive Director
Arms Control Association
Angela Canterbury, Executive Director
Council for a Livable World
David Culp, Legislative Representative
Friends Committee on National Legislation (Quakers)
Becky Rafter, Executive Director
Georgia WAND
Paul Walker, Director, Environmental Security and Sustainability
Global Green USA
Jay Coghlan, Executive Director
Nuclear Watch New Mexico
Paul Kawika Martin, Political & Communications Director
Peace Action
Catherine Thomasson, Executive Director
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Tom Collina, Director of Policy
Ploughshares Fund
Beatrice Brailsford, Nuclear Program Director
Snake River Alliance Idaho
Marylia Kelley, Executive Director
Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment, Livermore, CA
Lisbeth Gronlund, Co-Director and Senior Scientist, Global Security Program
Union of Concerned Scientists
Erica Fein, Nuclear Weapons Policy Director
Women's Action for New Directions
cc: House Ranking Member Marcy Kaptur
Senate Ranking Member Lamar Alexander
