And the spin begins to "save LANL"

What will happen to our region if funding for the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is cut. New Mexico is dependent on federal largesse for its economic survival, and our immediate area, Northern New Mexico, more than most parts of the state with the employment opportunities that LANL and the town of Los Alamos offer.

The state's economy is in dire straits, and a reduction of the country's taxpayers money pouring in would sink it even further. For the second year in a row New Mexico saw a decline in its population according to state population estimates released last Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau. New Mexico's net population loss is startling when compared to neighboring states, all of which land in the top 10 for growth in the Census study.

Operations and construction at our neighboring nuclear weapons research laboratory account for millions of dollars in tax revenue for New Mexico and for the town of Los Alamos. But now, the National Nuclear Security Administration opted against extending Los Alamos National Security's contract to run Los Alamos National Laboratory because of repeated failures over the past four years to meet certain performance goals.

A recent review calls for docking the lab's manager $7.7 million in incentive fees for incidents that occurred at LANL and failure to provide for safe, secure, effective, efficient and economical management and operations of the laboratory. Most of the lab's failure came in meeting operational and infrastructure goals, while it made improvements in science and national security work.

Failing to meet performance goals could cost the for-profit consortium that runs the lab $2 billion, and the management of the operation be put out to bid. This consortium, it includes the University of California and the Bechtel Corporation, pays more than $100 million in gross receipts taxes to the state in most years. The community of Los Alamos also gets the majority of its revenues from lab operations.

The lab's management team missed an opportunity last year to earn a contract extension after it was held to account for errors that led to a radiation leak. The current contract expires in September 2017, but managers could continue through 2018 as part of a transition period. Spokespersons for the consortium put an optimistic spin on the latest review, saying that while improvements are needed in some areas the lab remains a world-class research institution.

Members of the United States congressional delegation stressed that LANL needs to be a responsible steward of federal funds and take action under the contract to ensure the safety of workers, the community and environment.


http://www.jemezdailypost.com/content/lanl-funds-get-docked

 Comments:

Anonymous said...

Let the beatings continue until morale improves.

December 30, 2015 at 7:39 AM

Anonymous said...

And the spin begins to "save LANL"


The spin is not to save LANL, but to save LANS or some idea of for profit entity running LANL. Saving LANS is good for a few companies, some high level managers, but has been a disaster for LANL and ultimately the United States.

December 30, 2015 at 11:03 AM