UT SCR003

Utah Legislature urges the U.S. government not to resume explosive nuclear weapons testing, citing Utah's history of radioactive fallout from over 1,000 tests conducted between 1945-1992, including 100 above-ground tests in Nevada.

The U.S. and Russia have maintained a moratorium on explosive nuclear testing since the early 1990s, observed by presidents of both parties, with the Stockpile Stewardship Program certifying weapon safety and reliability for over 25 years without testing.

Resuming testing would likely trigger other nuclear-armed nations (North Korea, Russia, China) to follow suit, escalating the arms race, while providing greater benefit to those countries since the U.S. already possesses more test data.

The resolution directs copies be sent to the President, congressional leadership, and Utah's congressional delegation, urging them to convey opposition and consider supporting the RESTRAIN Act (H.R. 5894) and No Nuclear Testing Act (S.3090).

187 countries have signed the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, and a 2024 University of Maryland poll found 75% of U.S. adults oppose resuming explosive nuclear testing.