Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2025

Floor Speech

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Mr. JACKSON of Texas. Mr. Chair, Amarillo, Texas, is home to the Pantex plant, our Nation's only nuclear weapons assembly and disassembly facility.

The saying within the nuclear enterprise is ``all roads lead to Pantex'' because this facility in my district is a mandatory stop for every single nuclear weapon within our Navy and Air Force that provides continuous global strategic deterrence.

Despite the critical importance of Pantex, the Biden-Harris administration tried to cancel a key modernization project at the site, the High Explosive Synthesis, Formulation, and Production facility. However, Congress successfully rejected that proposed cut and restored funding for the project in March to help keep it on track.

Well, here we go again. The FY25 budget request once again seeks to pause this important project and provide zero funding for the High Explosive Synthesis, Formulation, and Production facility.

While the underlying bill provides some funding for the project, I believe that we need to take steps to ensure the Department of Energy cannot stop this vital project. That is exactly what my amendment does. It prohibits the administration from halting construction of the much- needed High Explosive Synthesis, Formulation, and Production facility at Pantex.

This major construction project will enhance our nuclear deterrence capability by allowing the National Nuclear Security Administration to modernize and scale its high-explosive production capabilities to meet the pressing and urgent stockpile requirements.

Right now, Pantex relies on a single, external vendor for large-scale synthesis, formulation, and blending for high-explosive products and, unfortunately, we have seen significant issues with that vendor, including lack of prioritization and late deliveries.

As it stands right now, this reality presents a single point of failure in the nuclear enterprise that could bring our nuclear weapons production to a grinding halt if anything goes wrong.

Once this project is complete, NNSA will be able to meet all long- term high-explosive material needs for the weapons stockpile while successfully mitigating nearly all risks associated with production. The new facility will improve the control systems for formulation and allow for higher confidence in repeatability between batches, something that is incredibly important when you are talking about high explosives combined with nuclear weapons.

Most importantly, I repeat that this will eliminate a single point of failure in our nuclear weapons supply chain that currently exists. We can no longer afford to delay investments in the Pantex plant and the nuclear enterprise. The world is in a dangerous place with constant global threats from China, Iran, Russia, North Korea, nonstate actors, and more, and our nuclear deterrent is quite possibly the most important tool in our arsenal.

Mr. Chair, I urge all Members to support my amendment to prohibit the administration from halting construction on this critical modernization initiative.

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Mr. JACKSON of Texas. Mr. Chair, I appreciate the gentlewoman from Ohio's comments, and I understand that the government does spend too much money. I am also interested in looking for ways we can stop useless or wasteful spending.

However, I will say that you are right that the money is in the bill for this particular project. I also agree with you that I don't want to take the autonomy away from all of these departments. I think they should have some autonomy to do what they need to with their budget and with their money.

However, I feel strongly about this because, as I mentioned, this is a single point of failure in our nuclear supply chain. I have spent lots of time at Pantex talking to them about the consequences of this, some of the problems with the single-source vendor that we currently have.

I feel like this is important enough that we need an insurance policy in the form of this amendment to make sure that this money that is currently in the bill does not get taken out and used for any other process.

I would be interested in looking at other areas to save money, but I don't think this is the particular area that is in our best interest, from a national security standpoint, to save that money.

Mr. Chair, I appreciate the comments of the gentlewoman, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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