House Lawmakers Explore Possibility of Pulling Classified Work From Los Alamos National Laboratory

U.S. lawmakers last week placed additional pressure on Los Alamos National Laboratory managers to improve security procedures, the Santa Fe (N.M.) New Mexican reported Wednesday (see GSN, Feb. 14).

Members of the House energy committee asked the Government Accountability Office to explore “whether it is feasible to move classified activities to other weapons labs where there is a better track record with respect to security,” according to the letter making the request.

The letter follows an embarrassing string of laboratory lapses that resulted in the leakage or loss of classified nuclear weapon information.  Spurred by the security situation, the Energy Department last year turned the laboratory’s management over to a private contractor for the first time (see GSN, June 1, 2006).

“The repeated failures to protect national security assets have cast doubt on whether Los Alamos National Security, LLC ... and the National Nuclear Security Administration are capable of assuring adequate safety, security and sound business management practices,” says the letter, signed by House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell (D-Mich.) and three other panel members.  “More dramatic steps are necessary, and we intend to develop and implement a range of options to solve the problems at LANL.”

New Mexico’s senators said Dingell’s request was unneeded.

The letter was “a dubious response to an issue that deserves productive responses,” said Senator Pete Domenici (R).  “This newest House push against LANL amounts to unnecessary and counterproductive piling-on” (Andy Lenderman, The New Mexican, Feb. 21).

“The lab by definition is focused on projects which in many cases require classification,” said Senator Jeff Bingaman (D).

Laboratory watchdog groups, however, praised the Dingell letter.

“It’s wonderful that somebody in Congress is finally beginning to take oversight of the nuclear weapons laboratories, or at least of Los Alamos, more seriously,” said Greg Mello, head of the Los Alamos Study Group (John Arnold, Albuquerque Journal, Feb. 22).

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