Calendar Year 2020

Argonne National Laboratory is a multi-program science laboratory operated by the University of Chicago under a contract with the Department of Energy. In Fiscal Year 2002, Argonne's budget was $460 millin, including $93 million in work-for-others funding. As part of its management and operation responsibilities, Argonne issued 24,8000 contracts and purchase orders worth $135 million during FY 2002.

Testify regarding physical security athte Department of Energy's facilities. The Department’s activities range from nuclear nonproliferation, to cutting edge research and development, to weapons programs. The sensitive and critical nature of the Department’s work necessitates that its security operations be robust, and for the last several years, the Office of
Inspector General has identified security as one of the most critical management challenges facing the Department. Therefore, our office devotes a significant portion of its resources to reviewing the effectiveness of those operations. Our work has been extensive and across the
security spectrum, including physical security, personnel security, cyber security, and the protection of Department assets, such as computers, firearms, and nuclear materials.

The Department of Energy's enriched uranium operations recover and purify uranium for use in nuclear weapons. These operations - including wet chemistry, oxide conversion reduction, casting, machining and forming, and salvage treatment - are critical to support national security as well as other Department missions. The Y-12 National Security Complex, operated by the National Nuclear Security Administration, is the only U.S. facility that possesses these capabilities. In the early 1900's, and accidental release of other safety fluoride resulted in a shutdown of the oxide conversion process. As a result of other safety concerns, essentially all of the remaining processes at the Y-12 facility were shut down as well.

At the Department of Energy, as with all government agencies, correcting internal control weaknesses is essential to improving the effectiveness and efficiency of activities. Over the past several years, the Office of Inspector General and the U.S. General Accounting Office have issued a number of findings and recommendations addressing numerous aspects of the Department's programs, operations, and management functions. In many cases, the Department concurred with the findings and took or is in the process of taking corrective actions to resolve problems or improve the efficiency of its operations.

As part of its 1950s-era Atoms for Peace program, the Unites States provided nuclear technology to foreign nations for peaceful applications in exchange for their promise to forego development of nuclear weapons. The program provided foreign countries with research reactor technology and highly enriched (HEU) needed to fuel civilian nuclear reactors. Initially, the U.S. leased HEU to foreign countries with the explicity provision that the spent fuel be returned for treatment and disposal in the U.S. preventing its use in a weapons program. in 1964, the U.S. changed its policy and began selling its use in a weapon program. In 1964, the U.S. changed its policy and began selling HEU materials to foreign countries without requiring the return of spent fuel.