HB 254 Utah House · 2025 General Session

Waste Classification Amendments

HB 254 updates Utah's definitions for high-level nuclear waste and low-level radioactive waste to align with federal standards, replacing previous state-specific descriptions. The bill modifies Utah Code Sections 19-3-102 and 19-3-303 to reference federal definitions from 42 U.S.C. Section 10101 instead of detailed state examples. This change directly affects waste management entities, nuclear facilities, and regulatory agencies like the Waste Management and Radiation Control Board by standardizing how waste is categorized for regulatory purposes. The bill makes technical adjustments without altering disposal requirements or funding. No new financial obligations are created.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2025
Committee Review
Feb 2025
House Passage
Feb 2025
Senate Passage
Feb 2025
Signed into Law
Mar 2025
Introduced Jan 21, 2025 Signed Mar 24, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Enrolled · 6 edits · Mar 24, 2025
MODERATE
This bill amends Utah's nuclear waste classification laws by updating definitions of high-level and low-level radioactive waste and making technical corrections to related statutes. The changes clarify how different types of radioactive materials are categorized and regulated, which affects waste management practices and compliance requirements.
Scope change
The bill modifies the scope of waste classification definitions to align with federal standards and corrects inconsistencies in how 'Broker' and 'Generator' are defined.
DEFINITION

Updated the definition of 'Broker' to clarify that it applies to persons who arrange transportation, collect shipments, or process radioactive waste, while explicitly excluding carriers whose only role is transportation.

Revised the definition of 'Generator' to specify that it applies to persons who possess radioactive materials with no further use and transfer them to treatment facilities or brokers.

Removed the previous detailed definitions of 'High-level nuclear waste' and 'Low-level radioactive waste' that referenced specific waste types and exclusion criteria.

Added new definitions for 'High-level nuclear waste' and 'Low-level radioactive waste' that reference federal standards in 42 U.S.C. Sec. 10101.

Corrected grammatical errors in the 'Broker' and 'Generator' definitions by removing redundant 'who that' phrasing.

TECHNICAL

Made technical corrections to section numbers and formatting throughout the bill text.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
37
Key actions
9
Committee
6
Mar 24, 2025
Signed into law
Governor Signed
executive
Feb 24, 2025
Legislature · Passed
House/ signed by Speaker/ sent for enrolling
legislature
Feb 24, 2025
Lower · Passed
Senate/ signed by President/ returned to House
lower
Feb 24, 2025
Upper · Passed
Senate/ passed 3rd reading
upper
Feb 18, 2025
Upper · Passed
Senate/ committee report favorable
upper
Feb 18, 2025
Upper · Passed
Senate Comm - Favorable Recommendation
upper
Feb 13, 2025
Committee
Senate/ to standing committee
upper
Feb 11, 2025
Introduced
Senate/ 1st reading (Introduced)
upper
Feb 10, 2025
Upper · Passed
House/ passed 3rd reading
upper
Jan 31, 2025
Lower · Passed
House/ committee report favorable
lower
Jan 30, 2025
Lower · Passed
House Comm - Favorable Recommendation
lower
Jan 28, 2025
Committee
House/ to standing committee
lower
Jan 21, 2025
Introduced
House/ 1st reading (Introduced)
lower
1 primary · 1 co-sponsor

Sponsors