Senators seek oversight power on US nuclear energy transfers

Lawmakers — including Kaine during a hearing with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday — have accused the administration of keeping the Part 810 authorizations for Saudi cooperation secret.

In fact, the National Nuclear Security Administration always gives companies the option to keep the authorizations private, and it is not unusual for firms to exercise that right. It is not up to the agency to disclose or not disclose the authorizations.

Rubio and Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., issued a press release last week saying the Energy Department took the “unusual step” of issuing Part 810 authorizations for cooperation with Saudi Arabia before reaching a 123 Agreement with the kingdom.

But former U.S. officials have told CNBC there is nothing unusual or untoward about issuing 810 authorizations to a country that does not have a 123 Agreement in place with the U.S. Part 810 agreements can actually help lay the groundwork for a 123 Agreement.

Some lawmakers have also overstated Congress’ role in international nuclear energy cooperation, suggesting the Trump administration is freezing them out.

Last month, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., accused Energy Secretary Rick Perry of pushing the Saudis to choose an American company to build its proposed reactors at the expense of “working with Congress to nail down an agreement that will prevent the Saudis from developing a nuclear weapon.”

But the executive branch alone is empowered to negotiate a 123 Agreement with a foreign country. Congress has the ability to reject a 123 Agreement once the completed deal is presented to lawmakers.

Despite the misleading claim, Warren later promoted the exchange in a tweet, saying Perry “seemed confused by that law — so I helped him understand it.”

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