New Mexico and the federal government have yet to sign a final agreement aimed at settling dozens of violations stemming from a radiation leak at an underground nuclear waste repository.
The state Environment Department's chief attorney briefed lawmakers on the status of the settlement during a meeting Thursday in Santa Fe.
Jeff Kendall says the debate is over the amount of money that will be funneled to New Mexico over what period of time.
The general terms of the agreement were announced in April, with the U.S. Department of Energy agreeing to spend more than $73 million on road improvements and environmental projects in New Mexico.
The state initially levied more than $54 million in penalties against DOE and its contractors for violations at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant and Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.