LLNL - The True Story -

Northern NM economy profits from LANL from Los Alamos Monitor Joshua Montoya worked as a pipefitter when the thefts occurred. Montoya was arrested in July 2016, after the owner of an Española scrap metal yard gave investigators Montoya’s driver’s licence information and sales records of the transaction that also had Montoya’s personal information.  In court Wednesday, Montoya pleaded no contest to larceny. In exchange for his plea, Montoya was sentenced to three years probation. If he completes the three years without breaking any other laws, the felony conviction will be wiped from his record. Montoya’s attorney, Tyr Loranger, said he was able to get a more lenient sentence for his client because there were others involved. “There were some sympathetic factors in Joshua’s case,” Loranger said. “One of those factors was that the main culprit in that case was someone else. There was someone else who was responsible for what was going on. Josh was just an accessory. That was the fulc...

UC Regents and UCOP party night before tuition vote http://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Regents-throw-parties-at-UC-s-expense-11178628.php?cmpid=premartcl

A recent fire has put a national laboratory’s ability to operate safely into question. The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board announced Friday that it will hold a hearing next month to discuss the future of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported. The board is an independent panel that advises the U.S. Department of Energy and the president. A fire broke mid-April at the lab’s PF-4 plutonium building, where the plutonium cores of nuclear weapons are produced. Lab officials said that the fire was put out quickly and caused only minor injuries. According to the report, the board is unsure whether the lab is fit to continue to operate and handle increasing quantities of plutonium in coming years after a series of problems with management in maintenance and cleanup. www.washingtonpost.com/national/fire-raises-questions-about-los-alamos-national-laboratorys-safety/2017/05/27/

"...Meanwhile, recruitment and retention of technical talent at NNSA labs remains an ongoing concern..."  http://www.exchangemonitor.com/publication/morning-briefing/nnsa-seeking-federal-staffing-boost/

Suppose Trump is impeached in the next few months and some are saying that this is going to happen, what does this do for the contract changes? It may not even be Pence who stays they may say Russia had hold of the whole administration and we have to put Hillary in charge? What happens than to the labs and NNSA?

Goldstein to lead UC bid for LANL! Is this a joke? Comments I have heard a different name but Goldstein would make more sense than the name I have heard and Goldstein would lend some actual credibility to a bid team from UC. Than again maybe it is all bs. The blog seems to have the same level accuracy as the NYT and WSP when it comes to anonymous sources. Sorry Scooby I don't want to disparage the blog by making this comparison but I was just trying to make a point ;) Scooby: your comment foes not bother because the blog isn't  the WSJ or the NYT. 🙂

Does anyone have a sense as to the future of the LANL TCP-1 (Pension) under a new M&O contractor. Will they have to continue it for transferring employees or freeze it and force employees into a 401K plan? The current contract (Clause H-36) says this - "If the Contract expires, or is terminated and an award is made to a follow-on management and operating contractor, as a part of the transition to another entity and in accordance with Contracting Officer direction and applicable law the Contractor shall transfer sponsorship of site-specific pension and other benefit plans covering employees at the Laboratory to the follow-on management and operating contractor." But does this mean transferring employees will continue to accrue benefits under TCP-1?

Public officials from Northern New Mexico communities are renewing a push to try to ensure that Los Alamos National Laboratory and its contractors continue to pay gross receipts taxes on their purchases. Under state law, the communities and the state would lose tens of millions of dollars a year in gross receipts taxes if a nonprofit group takes over management of the lab next year when the Department of Energy puts a new contractor in place. The lab is now managed by a for-profit consortium, which is required to pay gross receipts taxes. http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/officials-want-lanl-to-keep-paying-taxes/article_e1ce04c9-8391-50b3-a782-53e6208fe277.html Reply Comment : Anonymous May 16, 2017 at 6:48 AM "These communities need this revenue!" Perhaps, but could someone point out some improvements made by these revenues since the contract change? There may be some but even in Los Alamos, any improvements seem to be to the county offic...

What will the UC bid for LANL look like? With the PAD level (all?) retired, what does UC have to offer in competition? Who are the new PAD and AD levels? Who will be the Director? LLNL people coming in again or not? After the Sandia winner any team with any players can win. How can UC win? Comments Anonymous May 15, 2017 at 6:03 AM Very simple... UC drops all the current LANS/LLNS industrial partners and then UC teams with Honeywell for a LANL bid and with Battelle for a LLNL bid. These are its best shots, not say these LLC would win, but UC has zero chance if it stays with Bechtel. Anonymous May 15, 2017 at 6:05 AM After the Sandia winner any team with any players can win. How can UC win? May 14, 2017 at 11:05 PM You may be right that anything can happen. I have heard that there is UC team with team leaders that are internal LANL people who expect that if they win they will be the next high up managers, director etc. Judging from who these people ...

Has Ed Moses been in the public eye since he left the Giant Magellan Telescope Organization (GMTO)?

The ethical swamp monster who received $450,000 of government funds even though there is no evidence that work performed had been completed is now your SecAF. https://energy.gov/ig/downloads/inspection-report-doeig-0889 http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/05/08/senate-confirms-trumps-choice-for-air-force-secretary-heather-wilson.html Comment: Anonymous May 14, 2017 at 8:03 AM ALL 4 Labs she worked for have refuted the baseless claims against Heather Wilson. Read the Wiki page, she is very qualified. Sheesh, Owebama earns $400K for each 90 minute speech and these hypocritical Dims say nothing. Disgusting. Wilson worked for years to get that kind of money.

LANL still has the market cornered. Worst place to work in all of the complex.   Comments: So you know this first hand but still work there? Why? Self-abuse? If it is not first hand, why repeat innuendo and rumor? Either way, you are a complete jerk. Thousands of good people disagree with you.   Anonymous  said... "LANL still has the market cornered. Worst place to work in all of the complex. " True expect that it is not true, at least by all the people that want to work at LANL and want the pay, but hey don't let a good narrative get in your way. I am no fan of LANS but you did say the "complex" and so it is. You could say the world or the world of science and you may have a partial argument but the complex...ahem...no, LANL is not the worst place in the complex, never has been and never will be, and yes some of us know this for a fact. There are of course some who have personal reasons that cause them to say, that is to say they have no choice but to ...

The National Nuclear Security Administration has for a second time awarded the management and operations contract for its Nevada National Security Site – this time to Mission Support and Test Services LLC (MSTS), a partnership of Honeywell International, Jacobs and Stroller Newport News

Perry visited the DoE 'problem children' this week Anyone get any good takeaways from the LANL or WIPP visits?

It has been a bad couple weeks for UCOP over the hidden slush fund, audit tampering, and Napalitano hearing testimony under oath that was refuted by internal e-mails. Now they have ticked off the Governor as well. http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-ca-essential-politics-updates-gov-brown-s-budget-holds-back-50-1494524407-htmlstory.html Comment:   Anonymous  said... "I’m not in the business of opining on my colleagues,” Brown said. “Most people think she’s doing a pretty good job. That’s certainly the view of the regents and I think a lot of others. I have my issues with the university. I think their salaries are way too high, especially the administrators.”" Well at least the the labs the salaries of the managers is not too high...oops, never mind. 

MAY 09, 2017 WIPP Receives Shipment of LANL Waste BY EXCHANGEMONITOR The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico has taken delivery of some transuranic waste generated at the Los Alamos National Laboratory and formerly stored at the privately operated Waste Control Specialists disposal site near Andrews, Texas, sources in New Mexico said. WIPP took delivery of the waste last week. The sources did not quantify the amount of material in the shipment, but did say the waste was not the potentially explosive, improperly packaged nitrate salts from Los Alamos that caused the 2014 radiation leak that shut the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant down for almost three years. The Energy Department and Nuclear Waste Partnership, the prime contractor for WIPP, did not immediately reply to requests for comment Monday. In 2014, Waste Control Specialists took custody of more than 100 barrels of nitrate salt waste from the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The company has stored the material under cont...

DOE asked bidders for the NNSS contract to extend their bids until 30 June 2017. Are they applying lessons learned form the Sandia transition?

UC President forced to testify on audit scandal and coverup of slush fund The Cali performance is a good warm up act for her when she gets hauled before US Congress to testify on how UC is doing such a great job with the NNSA. http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-ca-essential-politics-updates-uc-president-defends-university-1493757771-htmlstory.html Comments: Anonymous May 3, 2017 at 7:48 AM from the LA Times article: "Napolitano said she regretted how the issue was handled, but wanted to make sure the auditors' surveys of campuses were accurate." Anonymous May 4, 2017 at 3:30 PM Numerous e-mails contradict Napolitano testimony on audit cover-up Even if only a fraction of what is in this story is correct, the e-mail trail could lead to numerous resignations and perhaps even some criminal charges. http://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Emails-show-Napolitano-directed-campuses-to-11119483.php

DOE's numbers in the finalized FY17 budget agreement to fund the government through September... The Energy and Water bill provides $31.182 billion for DOE. This amount is $1.438 billion more than the fiscal year 2016 level.  Highlights  Nuclear Weapons: The bill provides $9.318 billion, which is $471 million more than the fiscal year 2016 level, for nuclear weapons activities. This amount will advance life extension programs for the B61 gravity bomb and the W76 and W88 submarine-launched warheads; invest in the science, technology and engineering needed to maintain a safe and secure stockpile without underground nuclear weapons testing; and upgrade or replace aging infrastructure, especially for uranium and plutonium activities.  Scientific Discovery: The bill provides $5.392 billion, $42 million more than the fiscal year 2016 level, for the Office of Science. The Office of Science is the largest federal sponsor of basic research in the physical sciences, and supports 22...