URGENT: Call Speaker Mike Johnson TODAY to support justice for nuclear affected communities November 8, 2023

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It’s time for urgent action: Congress only has 20 days left in session for the entire year, and there is a lot of important legislation to pass before the end of the year. One bill that passes every year is the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), and this year, the NDAA could help thousands see long-awaited justice.  

Make a call to the key decision-maker on the NDAA today and urge him to keep provisions to strengthen the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) in the bill.  

As you may know, RECA provides partial compensation to communities exposed to radiation from nuclear weapons testing and uranium mining. Earlier this year, a group of bipartisan Senators passed an amendment to the NDAA that would significantly strengthen RECA by including many previously excluded communities and improving benefits.    

Unfortunately, we’ve been hearing bad news out of the House, and it seems like RECA could be cut out of the NDAA. But there’s still hope. There is basically one person who can still decide to support the RECA amendment and keep it alive: Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana, the new Speaker of the House. And the good news is, Mike Johnson himself recognized that “this is a bipartisan concern” in a 2021 hearing on the issue.

We can’t let this opportunity to bring justice to the communities unknowingly and unwillingly exposed to radiation pass us by. These victims are veterans, former uranium workers, and regular people who were exploited and neglected by the U.S. government for the sake of global nuclear dominance.

 We have to fight to keep RECA in the NDAA. Usually, we ask you to call your own members of Congress, but because he’s a national figure and we know how important Mike Johnson is to this fight, we want everyone to make this one call.  

Call Rep Mike Johnson today and demand that Congress supports these communities. You can find Rep. Johnson’s office number and a call script below. 

Every call counts. Use your voice today to fight for justice. 

Call Script:  

Mike Johnson’s Office number: (202) 225 4000 (this number should take you to a person in his new office who can take your call)  

Hi, my name is [your name]. I’m calling to urge Speaker Mike Johnson to keep provisions to strengthen the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA [pronounced REEK-AH], in the NDAA. S.Amendment 1058, introduced and passed by Sen Hawley in the Senate, would improve RECA by finally including radiation-exposed communities that have been fighting for decades for justice. Congressman Johnson has said in the past that this issue “is a bipartisan concern,” and Rep Jim Jordan has said repeatedly: “No one here disputes that if the Federal Government recklessly took actions that led to our citizens getting cancer, we should provide compensation for that harm” We know the government did expose its own people to radiation. RECA is the remedy for that harm. Please make sure RECA stays in the NDAA.