After both the Texas House and Texas Senate passed HB 7 in early September, Governor Greg Abbott signed the bill into law. The law bans high-level nuclear waste from the state, with the exception of hospitals and research centers in Texas that produce the waste.
There is some controversy over the law though, because groups like Protect the Basin and SEED representatives accurately say that HB7 did not ban ALL types of high-level nuclear waste. According to the federal government, reactor-related-greater-than-class-c nuclear waste is not exactly the same thing as high-level nuclear waste. No one is sure why Representative Landgraf rejected Rep. Craddick’s amendment to clarify and strengthen HB7. Landgraf says he will do what his constituents want, but it is confusing as to why he did not present HB 7 as a total ban on all types of greater-than-class-c waste.