Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., is trying to get RECA reauthorization passed. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Hawley, a skeptic of additional funding to Ukraine, added, "If we can send hundreds of billions of dollars in security assistance to foreign nations, we can spend a fraction of that on our own constituents who deserve help."
Studies show that radiation from decades of mining, processing and enriching continues to permeate sites used during World War II and the Cold War.
In the 1940s, the U.S. was ramping up its military production to prepare for WWII, which included the government converting farmlands in Weldon Springs, Mo. into the Weldon Spring Chemical Plant. The plant produced a massive amount of TNT and DNT explosives for the war effort.
For Hawley, the issue hits close to home. In his home state of Missouri, nuclear waste was reportedly mishandled at one processing site, with leaky barrels left in the open air and contaminating a nearby creek where children have played for years. Hawley says in the letter many of those children have since developed cancer.
CONGRESS LIKELY TO PUNT GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN DEADLINES AGAIN, SOURCES SAY
Atomic plant Vogtle is a 2-unit nuclear power plant located in Burke County, near Waynesboro, Ga. (Pallava Bagla/Corbis via Getty Images)
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This isn't the first time Hawley has tried to increase RECA's reauthorization chances by attaching it to any legislative vehicle that has a chance of passing. Last year, the Senate initially amended the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to include Hawley's RECA amendment, but it was later removed right before the package passed. Hawley's office has speculated it was removed due to cost.
Last year, some Republicans opposed a similar bill by Hawley that included RECA, arguing it would cost $100 billion over the course of a decade. Hawley proceeded to revise that portion of the bill and slashed the multi-billion dollar price tag, but his colleagues were still not convinced.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has opposed the proposal to reauthorize RECA, citing a commitment to shrink the federal deficit.
Fox News' Lawrence Richard contributed to this report.
Jamie Joseph is a writer who covers politics. She leads Fox News Digital coverage of the Senate.
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