“(a) Findings.—The Congress finds that—“(1) fallout emitted during the Government’s atmospheric nuclear tests exposed individuals to radiation that is presumed to have generated an excess of cancers among these individuals;
“(2) the health of the individuals who were exposed to radiation in these tests was put at risk to serve the national security interests of the United States;
“(3) radiation released in underground uranium mines that were providing uranium for the primary use and benefit of the nuclear weapons program of the United States Government exposed miners to large doses of radiation and other airborne hazards in the mine environment that together are presumed to have produced an increased incidence of lung cancer and respiratory diseases among these miners;
“(4) the United States should recognize and assume responsibility for the harm done to these individuals; and
“(5) the Congress recognizes that the lives and health of uranium miners and of individuals who were exposed to radiation were subjected to increased risk of injury and disease to serve the national security interests of the United States.
“(b) Purpose.—It is the purpose of this Act to establish a procedure to make partial restitution to the individuals described in subsection (a) for the burdens they have borne for the Nation as a whole.
“(c) Apology.—The Congress apologizes on behalf of the Nation to the individuals described in subsection (a) and their families for the hardships they have endured.
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