Local News
Advocates want to expand compensation for downwinders, but Utahns in Congress worry about price tag
Congress is currently considering two competing bills that would continue compensating people who were sickened by radiation from nuclear weapons testing and development, known as downwinders. One is sponsored by Republican Sen. Mike Lee and would keep the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA, alive for two more years. The other is sponsored by Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley and would widely expand the program, allowing residents of Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico and Guam not previously eligible to apply for compensation. Activists and ...