INDIANAPOLIS (AP) _ Indiana lawmakers who supported a bill to promote nuclear energy in Indiana now say the state should wait to proceed until it knows more about a growing crisis at nuclear plants in earthquake-ravaged Japan.
Republican Sen. Beverly Gard of Greenfield tells The Indianapolis Star the bill that passed the Senate last month should be put on hold.
Indiana has no nuclear plants, and two efforts in the 1980s to build plants were scrapped because of opposition and cost concerns.
Gard’s bill would have provided financial incentives to attract nuclear plants. Opponents say it would have circumvented the state’s utility regulatory review process and damage efforts to boost Indiana’s clean-energy sector.
Supporters say the state shouldn’t react in fear and should continue to look for ways to meet growing electricity needs.
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