America’s nuclear renaissance will not be built in Washington alone. Just as the states that had the foresight to build today’s nuclear fleet enjoy its benefits, the states that rebuild our nuclear industrial base will reap the rewards of its resurgence. President Donald Trump understands this truth, which is why he took executive action last May to give states the lead in reinvigorating our nuclear industrial base.
Since then, the Department of Energy has developed a clear framework focused on driving state-led efforts to reestablish the full nuclear fuel cycle at home and revitalize the American nuclear industry.
The Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus concept proposes state hubs that align local and federal resources to expand regional industrial capacity, drive economic growth and restore technological leadership in this critically important field.
This state-led model builds upon America’s past success, when the nation once built a thriving, fully integrated national nuclear enterprise. At the height of America’s nuclear buildout in the 1960s and 1970s, reactors were rising from North Carolina to Arkansas while domestic enrichment in Kentucky and Ohio, fuel fabrication in Washington and South Carolina, and commercial reprocessing in New York supported a closed fuel cycle.
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In these and other host states, nuclear development built enduring infrastructure, highly specialized workforces and technical expertise that sustained the industry for decades. From heavy reactor vessels forged in Pennsylvania to advanced control systems and specialty materials manufactured across the Midwest, the nuclear enterprise anchored regional industry and strengthened local economies.
In the decades that followed, this integrated enterprise withered, its decline driven by an increasingly burdensome and unpredictable regulatory environment and unfavorable public opinion that made nuclear uncompetitive in a world of cheap natural gas and deregulated electricity markets.
In 1977, the Carter administration further worsened the environment by deferring commercial reprocessing amid proliferation concerns. That decision contributed to growing waste inventories across our country, even as our allies have demonstrated safe and secure fuel recycling for decades.
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Over time, domestic enrichment capacity declined, fuel fabrication and conversion capabilities consolidated, and specialized manufacturing migrated or disappeared, eroding the industrial base that had once sustained a full nuclear lifecycle.
As the U.S. stepped back from fuel-cycle integration, competitors built vertically integrated nuclear industries that combined fuel services, reactor construction and long-term support, usurping our leadership in the global nuclear market.
Advanced technical capability cannot be rebuilt one component at a time across a fragmented industrial base. The United States has seen this dynamic in other sectors, from semiconductors to aerospace and biotechnology, where co-location of research, production and skilled labor accelerates innovation and builds durable expertise. Rebuilding that capability in the United States will require regional clusters where these functions co-locate, talent pipelines mature and supply chains regain scale.
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The Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus model provides a practical path forward. State-led hubs would bring together fuel fabrication and recycling technologies, advanced reactor demonstration, materials testing, waste management solutions and workforce training within a regional ecosystem.
Private sector funding would accelerate commercialization across the supply chain, rebuilding domestic fuel-cycle capabilities right on campus. States that step forward stand to attract high-skill jobs, anchor advanced manufacturing, and position their communities at the center of a secure and resilient nuclear enterprise.
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Rebuilding the nuclear fuel cycle is not merely a domestic industrial objective. It is a matter of national sovereignty. Today, Russia controls roughly 40% of global enrichment capacity and remains a significant supplier of reactor fuel to utilities in both the U.S. and Europe. As the U.S. and its allies work to reduce reliance on Russian fuel services over the coming years, a strong domestic fuel supply will be needed.
Under Secretary Chris Wright’s leadership, the Department of Energy has taken significant action to that point, expanding domestic enrichment capacity, strengthening allied supply chains and supporting the production of high-assay low-enriched uranium.
Many advanced reactor designs can utilize recycled fuels and alternative fuel forms, creating pathways to reduce waste and recover usable materials. Restoring domestic fuel-cycle capability through Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses would strengthen energy security, support defense requirements, and ensure the U.S. retains control over a critical technology.
America’s nuclear renaissance will be led by the states that choose to build it. Early leaders will attract investment, talent and supply chains essential to national security, demonstrating what is possible for others to follow. Competitive federalism has long driven American innovation. Applied to nuclear energy, it can restore industrial power, secure the fuel cycle, and strengthen the nation.
