Biden budget cuts millions of dollars for communities near Savannah River, Hanford

Colin Demarest, Aiken Standard, S.C.
·4 min read

Jun. 15—The Biden administration's latest spending blueprint eliminates millions of dollars typically paid to governments and communities surrounding Department of Energy nuclear reservations, proposed cuts that have vexed industry groups and Aiken-area leaders alike.

The fiscal year 2022 budget request for the Department of Energy's cleanup office, Environmental Management, scraps $5.7 million and $3.5 million, respectively, in what are known as payments in lieu of taxes for the Savannah River Site south of Aiken and the Hanford site in Washington.

Payment-in-lieu-of-tax money — PILT, for short — in the Palmetto State is distributed to Aiken, Allendale and Barnwell counties, the latter receiving the lion's share. The funds for years have supported vital government functions: schools, roads and emergency services.

A lack of PILT money would squeeze programs and projects in the counties occupied by the 310-square-mile Savannah River Site. It would also, officials suggested, not be a good look.

"To some degree, I don't think it's a good public relations move on the part of the budget writers," Aiken County Council Chairman Gary Bunker said Monday. Barnwell County Council member Ben Kinlaw was more blunt: "PILT is sort of like the sacred cow."

The federal budget proposal does not explain why PILT payments to the Savannah River and Hanford communities are nixed. Congress could add them back.

An Energy Department spokesperson on Monday night said the Biden administration is "deeply committed to working with the Savannah River community and other communities who have been adversely effected by the legacy of DOE weapons and research missions." The spokesperson said the department "will work with appropriate congressional and agency staff to support these communities moving forward."

The proposed slashes do not "track with recent commitments we have heard from new DOE leadership about supporting communities," Energy Communities Alliance Chairman Ron Woody wrote in a June 10 letter to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm. They came as a bit of a shock, too, Woody added, "as there was no DOE headquarters briefing on the budget and no direct outreach to the community leadership on the issues."

Granholm in congressional testimony Tuesday said that "historically, over time, the budget's always submitted this way, and I know Congress fills it in." The energy secretary did not explain why or who suggested the reductions.

The Savannah River Site and the Hanford site decades ago produced plutonium for the nation's nuclear weapons program. Now, the two embody some of the Energy Department's most significant environmental cleanup responsibilities, with millions of gallons of nuclear waste to address, among other hazards.

"A lack of PILT payments results in a lack of ability for communities to replace aging infrastructure or attract the new industry, best available workforce, and investment necessary for DOE to sustain weapons and environmental cleanup activities at its sites," wrote Woody, whose coalition represents communities near Energy Department complexes.

Bunker on Monday expressed concern about the potential multimillion-dollar cuts but had faith things would be restored, at least to some degree.

"It's certainly not the first time this has happened," Bunker said, "and I do have some good-word assurance that our delegation in Congress is aware of this."

U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., on Tuesday pledged to work with House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., and other South Carolinians to make sure Aiken, Allendale and Barnwell counties receive PILT payments. Wilson's district includes Aiken and Barnwell counties; Clyburn's includes Allendale County.

"In both Barnwell and Aiken counties, at least 50% of the PILT money received goes to support the local school system," Wilson said. "With the site continuing to grow with new missions, taking money out of local school districts will have a direct impact on the future workforce needs of the site."

The loss of PILT money, Bunker said, "would be far more devastating to" Barnwell County than to Aiken County. Allendale County would also be distressed, according to Charles R. Gooding, the county council chairman there.

As one of the poorest counties in the state, Gooding said, a PILT gamble is not in the cards.

"I think this money should come through," he said.