A bill to authorize appropriations to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in accordance with section 261 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and section 305 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, and for other purposes.
Public Law 94-79 · S. 1716 · 94th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Gerald Ford (R) on Aug 9, 1975 · Energy
Sponsor: Sen. John Pastore (D-RI)
Cosponsors (1): Sen. Howard Baker
Passage votes
- HouseMethod not stated
- SenateMethod not stated
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
=Title I:= Authorizes appropriations for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission through September 1976.
=Title II:= Provides, under the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, that the chairman of the Commission shall be the principal executive officer of the Commission, and he shall exercise all of the executive and administrative functions of the Commission.
Requires that the chairman shall be goverened by general policies of the Commission and by such regulatory decisions, findings, and determinations as the Commission may by law be authorized to make.
Reserves to the Commission its functions with respect to revising budget estimates and with respect to determining the distribution of appropriated funds according to major programs and purposes.
Prohibits the Commission from licensing any shipments by air transport of plutonium in any form, whether exports, imports or domestic shipments, except medical devices designed for individual human application. Provides that this restriction shall be in force until the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has certified to the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy of the Congress that a safe container has been developed and tested.
States that for the purpose of determining the expiration date of the terms of office of the five Commission members first appointed be deemed to have begun July 1, 1975.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
- Joint Atomic Energy Committee · Joint · referred to, reported by
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 12 actions.
- Aug 9, 1975Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- PresidentPresident · Public law 94-79.
- Aug 2, 1975PresidentPresident · Measure presented to President.
- Aug 1, 1975PresidentPresident · Measure enrolled in Senate.
- PresidentPresident · Measure enrolled in House.
- Jul 31, 1975Resolving differencesResolving differences · Senate agreed to House amendments.
- Jun 20, 1975FloorFloor · Measure passed House, amended, in lieu of H.R. 7001.
- FloorFloor · Measure called up by unanimous consent in House.
- Jun 17, 1975FloorFloor · Measure passed Senate, amended.
- Jun 4, 1975CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Senate Joint Atomic Energy Committee
- May 12, 1975CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Joint Atomic Energy Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the Senate
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.