Low-Dose Radiation Research Act of 2015
Latest action. Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 114-344.
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.)
Low-Dose Radiation Research Act of 2015
Requires the Director of the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science to carry out a research program on low dose radiation to enhance the scientific understanding of and reduce uncertainties associated with the effects of exposure to low dose radiation.
Requires the Director to enter into an agreement with the National Academies to conduct a study assessing the current status and development of a long-term strategy for low dose radiation research.
Requires such study to:
identify current scientific challenges for understanding the long-term effects of ionizing radiation,
assess the status of current low dose radiation research,
formulate overall scientific goals for the future of low-dose radiation research,
recommend a long-term strategic and prioritized research agenda to address scientific research goals for overcoming the identified scientific challenges in coordination with other research efforts,
define the essential components of a research program that would address this research agenda within the universities and the National Laboratories, and
assess the effectiveness of such a program.
Directs the Secretary of Energy to deliver to Congress a five-year research plan that responds to the study's findings and recommendations and identifies and prioritizes research needs.
Makes DOE's limitation on human research inapplicable to research under this Act.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Passed House without amendment" stage on January 7, 2015. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on June 9, 2015: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 114-344.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 114th Congress (2015-16), 329 of the 10,233 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.2 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Randy Hultgren (R-IL) introduced it on January 6, 2015, and 6 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 1 Democrat, 5 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on January 6, 2015, 4265 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 4111 days ago, on June 9, 2015.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 114th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2017 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers