Radiation Exposure Compensation Act

Radiation Exposure Compensation Act
Great Seal of the United States
Long titleAn Act to provide jurisdiction and procedures for claims for compassionate payments for injuries due to exposure to radiation from nuclear testing.
Acronyms (colloquial)RECA
NicknamesRadiation Exposure Compensation Act of 1990
Enacted bythe 101st United States Congress
EffectiveOctober 15, 1990
Citations
Public law101-426
Statutes at Large104 Stat. 920
Codification
Titles amended42 U.S.C.: Public Health and Social Welfare
U.S.C. sections amended42 U.S.C. ch. 23 § 2210 et seq.
Legislative history
  • Introduced in the House as H.R. 2372 by Wayne Owens (D–UT) on May 16, 1989
  • Committee consideration by House Judiciary
  • Passed the House on June 5, 1990 (agreed voice vote)
  • Passed the Senate on August 1, 1990 (passed voice vote) with amendment
  • House agreed to Senate amendment on September 27, 1990 (agreed voice vote)
  • Signed into law by President George H.W. Bush on October 15, 1990
Areas covered by the Radiation Exposure Compensation Program

The United States Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) is a federal statute implemented in 1990, set to expire in July 2024, providing for the monetary compensation of people, including atomic veterans, who contracted cancer and a number of other specified diseases as a direct result of their exposure to atmospheric nuclear testing undertaken by the United States during the Cold War as residents, or their exposure to radon gas and other radioactive isotopes while undertaking uranium mining, milling or the transportation of ore.

The Act has been providing the following remunerations, unchanged since 1990 despite inflation:

  • $50,000 to individuals residing or working "downwind" of the Nevada Test Site
  • $75,000 for workers participating in atmospheric nuclear weapons tests
  • $100,000 for uranium miners, millers, and ore transporters

In all cases there are additional requirements which must be satisfied (proof of exposure, establishment of duration of employment, establishment of certain medical conditions, etc.).

In 2022, the law was to expire, and President Joe Biden extended the filing deadline for another two years.