U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that the ongoing government shutdown has led to the furlough of workers critical to the nation’s strategy of maintaining and modernizing the nation’s nuclear program, which includes weapons and energy.
Across the Mountain West, key nuclear administration sites operate in Nevada, Idaho and New Mexico.
During a news conference in Las Vegas, before visiting the Nevada National Security Site, Wright said the shutdown has led to an additional 68 federal nuclear employees being furloughed this week. That’s on top of 1,400 federal nuclear employees across the country who have already been let go. In addition, more than a thousand nuclear contractors in Nevada could receive notices by the end of the month because their work relies on the federal government remaining open.
Wright said the Department of Energy was able to move some funds to temporarily pay federal nuclear workers during the shutdown but those funds have run dry.
“We did everything we could to keep our federal workers here employed as long as possible but unfortunately today is the day our ability to deploy funds to pay those workers ended.”
Wright said these furloughs have the potential to affect national security.
“This is…among the most critical workers in our country. They test, maintain and ultimately construct the modernized version of our nuclear stockpile. We need to take that deathly serious.”
Wright blamed Democrats for the shutdown while Democratic lawmakers from Nevada issued statements blasting the job losses.
Nevada Democratic Representative Dina Titus agreed that furloughing NSSA employees puts national security at risk. “Without them, construction of modernized weapons and surveillance of the existing stockpile will grind to a halt, reducing our nuclear deterrence. This is a decision our enemies will welcome.”
But Titus blamed Republicans and President Trump making risky political moves. “It also demonstrates that President Trump will go to any lengths — including jeopardizing our national security — to achieve his political ends.”
Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev., who introduced a bill to secure backpay for furloughed federal contract workers and one that would reimburse federal workers for fees, interest and fines incurred during a shutdown responded to Secretary Wright’s Nevada visit in a statement.
“Secretary Wright traveled across the country to make a spectacle of these furloughs when he could have simply traveled across town in Washington, D.C. to demand an end to this shutdown.”
Horsford continued, “As the third week of this Republican-led shutdown draws to a close, I’m appalled that Trump and Wright are using the GOP’s failure to govern as an excuse to threaten the livelihoods of Nevada’s dedicated public servants.”
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has never experienced a furlough, according to both Republican and Democratic leaders.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between YOUR STATION, Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Northern Colorado, KANW in New Mexico, Colorado Public Radio, KJZZ in Arizona and NPR, with additional support from affiliate newsrooms across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Eric and Wendy Schmidt.
