Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for FY 2005, 8678-8703 [05-3128]

Agencies

• NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 34 (Tuesday, February 22, 2005)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 8678-8703]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-3128]



[[Page 8677]]

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Part III





Nuclear Regulatory Commission





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10 CFR Parts 170 and 171



Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for FY 2005; Proposed Rule

Federal Register / Vol. 70 , No. 34 / Tuesday, February 22, 2005 / 
Proposed Rules

[[Page 8678]]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Parts 170 and 171

RIN 3150-AH61


Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for FY 2005

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend 
the licensing, inspection, and annual fees charged to its applicants 
and licensees. The proposed amendments are necessary to implement the 
Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (OBRA-90), as amended, which 
requires that the NRC recover approximately 90 percent of its budget 
authority in fiscal year (FY) 2005, less the amounts appropriated from 
the Nuclear Waste Fund (NWF). The total amount to be recovered for FY 
2005 is approximately $540.7 million. After accounting for carryover 
and billing adjustments, the net amount to be recovered through fees is 
approximately $538 million.

DATES: The comment period expires March 24, 2005. Comments received 
after this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the 
NRC is able to ensure only that comments received on or before this 
date will be considered. Because OBRA-90 requires that the NRC collect 
the FY 2005 fees by September 30, 2005, requests for extensions of the 
comment period will not be granted.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any one of the following methods. 
Please include number RIN 3150-AH61 in the subject line of your 
comments. Comments on rulemakings submitted in writing or in electronic 
form will be made available to the public in their entirety on the NRC 
rulemaking Web site. Personal information will not be removed from your 
comments.
    Mail comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attn: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff.
    E-mail comments to: SECY@nrc.gov. If you do not receive a reply e-
mail confirming that we have received your comments, contact us 
directly at (301) 415-1966. You may also submit comments via the NRC's 
rulemaking Web site at https://ruleforum.llnl.gov. Address questions 
about our Web site to Ms. Carol Gallagher, (301) 415-5905; e-mail 
CAG@nrc.gov. Comments can also be submitted via the Federal eRulemaking 
Portal at https://www.regulations.gov.
    Hand deliver comments to: 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 
20852, between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. Federal workdays. (Telephone 
(301) 415-1966).
    Fax comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission at 
(301) 415-1101.
    Publicly available documents related to this rulemaking may be 
viewed electronically on the public computers located at the NRC's 
Public Document Room (PDR), Room O1 F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland. The PDR reproduction contractor 
will copy documents for a fee. Selected documents, including comments, 
may be viewed and downloaded electronically via the NRC rulemaking Web 
site at https://ruleforum.llnl.gov.
    Publicly available documents created or received at the NRC after 
November 1, 1999, are available electronically at the NRC's Electronic 
Reading Room at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. From this 
site, the public can gain entry into the NRC's Agencywide Documents 
Access and Management System (ADAMS), which provides text and image 
files of NRC's public documents. If you do not have access to ADAMS or 
if there are problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, 
contact the NRC PDR Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209; (301) 415-4737 
or by e-mail at pdr@nrc.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tammy Croote, telephone (301) 415-
6041; Office of the Chief Financial Officer, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
II. Proposed Action
III. Plain Language
IV. Voluntary Consensus Standards
V. Environmental Impact: Categorical Exclusion
VI. Paperwork Reduction Act Statement
VII. Regulatory Analysis
VIII. Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
IX. Backfit Analysis

I. Background

    For FYs 1991 through 2000, OBRA-90, as amended, required that the 
NRC recover approximately 100 percent of its budget authority, less the 
amount appropriated from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) 
administered NWF, by assessing fees. To address fairness and equity 
concerns raised by the NRC related to charging NRC license holders for 
agency budgeted costs that do not provide a direct benefit to the 
licensee, the FY 2001 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act 
amended OBRA-90 to decrease the NRC's fee recovery amount by 2 percent 
per year beginning in FY 2001, until the fee recovery amount is 90 
percent in FY 2005. As a result, the NRC is required to recover 
approximately 90 percent of its FY 2005 budget authority, less the 
amounts appropriated from the NWF, through fees. In the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act of 2005 (Pub. L. 108-447), as adjusted by the 
rescission discussed in Section 122(a), Congress appropriated $669.3 
million to the NRC for FY 2005. This sum includes $68.5 million 
appropriated from the NWF. The total amount NRC is required to recover 
in fees for FY 2005 is approximately $540.7 million. After accounting 
for carryover and billing adjustments, the net amount to be recovered 
through fees is approximately $538 million.
    While the total amount that the NRC must recover in fees in FY 2005 
has been determined by Congress and, therefore, is outside the scope of 
this rulemaking, the NRC notes that it has supported previous 
legislative efforts to remove additional costs from the fee base and 
continues to do so. In the 2003 Congressional session, an Energy Policy 
Bill (H.R. 6) was introduced that would have amended OBRA-90 to remove 
many homeland security costs from the fee base (except homeland 
security costs associated with fingerprinting, background checks, and 
security inspections). In its August 29, 2003, letter to the House 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Commission supported the fee 
recovery provisions of this bill. The NRC continues to support 
legislative efforts to remove homeland security costs from the fee 
base.
    The NRC assesses two types of fees to meet the requirements of 
OBRA-90, as amended. First, license and inspection fees, established in 
10 CFR part 170 under the authority of the Independent Offices 
Appropriation Act of 1952 (IOAA), 31 U.S.C. 9701, recover the NRC's 
costs of providing special benefits to identifiable applicants and 
licensees. Examples of the services provided by the NRC for which these 
fees are assessed are the review of applications for new licenses and, 
for certain types of existing licenses, the review of renewal 
applications, the review of amendment requests, and inspections. 
Second, annual fees established in 10 CFR part 171 under the authority 
of OBRA-90, recover generic and other regulatory costs not otherwise 
recovered through 10 CFR part 170 fees.

[[Page 8679]]

II. Proposed Action

    The NRC is proposing to amend its licensing, inspection, and annual 
fees to recover approximately 90 percent of its FY 2005 budget 
authority less the appropriations received from the NWF. The NRC's 
total budget authority for FY 2005 is $669.3 million, of which 
approximately $68.5 million has been appropriated from the NWF. Based 
on the 90 percent fee recovery requirement, the NRC must recover 
approximately $540.7 million in FY 2005 through part 170 licensing and 
inspection fees, part 171 annual fees, and other offsetting receipts. 
The total amount to be recovered through fees and other offsetting 
receipts for FY 2005 is $4.6 million less than the amount estimated for 
recovery in FY 2004.
    The FY 2005 fee recovery amount is reduced by a $2.2 million 
carryover from additional collections in FY 2004 that were 
unanticipated at the time the final FY 2004 fee rule was published, and 
by an additional $0.5 million for billing adjustments (i.e., for FY 
2005 invoices that the NRC estimates will not be paid during the fiscal 
year, and for payments received in FY 2005 for FY 2004 invoices). This 
leaves approximately $538 million to be recovered in FY 2005 through 
part 170 licensing and inspection fees, part 171 annual fees, and other 
offsetting receipts.
    The NRC estimates that approximately $166.8 million will be 
recovered in FY 2005 from part 170 fees and other offsetting receipts. 
The NRC derived this estimate based on the previous four quarters of 
billing data for each license class, with adjustments to account for 
changes in the NRC's FY 2005 budget as appropriate. The remaining 
$371.2 million would be recovered through the part 171 annual fees, 
compared to $389.9 million for FY 2004.
    The primary reason for the decrease in total fees for FY 2005 is 
that the NRC's fee recovery is 90 percent in FY 2005, compared to 92 
percent in FY 2004, in accordance with the FY 2001 Energy and Water 
Development Appropriations Act. This decrease in the NRC's required fee 
recovery is sufficient to offset the increase of 1.5 percent in the 
NRC's non-NWF budget in FY 2005.
    Table I summarizes the budget and fee recovery amounts for FY 2005.

          Table 1.--Budget and Fee Recovery Amounts for FY 2005
                          [Dollars in millions]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Budget Authority.......................................     $669.3
  Less NWF...................................................     - 68.5
                                                              ----------
    Balance..................................................     $600.8
  Fee Recovery Rate for FY 2005..............................    x 90.0%
                                                              ----------
Total Amount To Be Recovered for FY 2005.....................     $540.7
  Less Carryover From FY 2004................................      - 2.2
                                                              ----------
  Less Part 171 Billing Adjustments..........................  .........
    Unpaid FY 2005 Invoices (estimated)......................        2.7
    Less Payments Received in FY 2005 for Prior Year Invoices      - 3.2
     (estimated).............................................
                                                              ----------
    Subtotal.................................................       -0.5
                                                              ==========
Amount To Be Recovered Through Parts 170 and 171 Fees........     $538.0
  Less Estimated Part 170 Fees...............................    - 166.8
                                                              ==========
Part 171 Fee Collections Required............................     $371.2
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The FY 2005 final fee rule will be a ``major rule'' as defined by 
the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996. 
Therefore, the NRC's fee schedules for FY 2005 would become effective 
60 days after publication of the final rule in the Federal Register. 
The NRC will send an invoice for the amount of the annual fee to 
reactors and major fuel cycle facilities upon publication of the FY 
2005 final rule. For these licensees, payment would be due on the 
effective date of the FY 2005 rule. Those materials licensees whose 
license anniversary date during FY 2005 falls before the effective date 
of the final FY 2005 rule would be billed for the annual fee during the 
anniversary month of the license at the FY 2004 annual fee rate. Those 
materials licensees whose license anniversary date falls on or after 
the effective date of the final FY 2005 rule would be billed for the 
annual fee at the FY 2005 annual fee rate during the anniversary month 
of the license, and payment would be due on the date of the invoice.
    As a matter of courtesy, the NRC plans to continue mailing the 
proposed fee rule to all licensees, although, as a cost saving measure, 
in accordance with its FY 1998 announcement, the NRC has discontinued 
mailing the final fee rule to all licensees. Accordingly, the NRC does 
not plan to routinely mail the FY 2005 final fee rule or future final 
fee rules to licensees.
    However, the NRC will send the final rule to any licensee or other 
person upon specific request. To request a copy, contact the License 
Fee Team, Division of Financial Management, Office of the Chief 
Financial Officer, at (301) 415-7554, or e-mail fees@nrc.gov. The NRC 
plans to publish the final fee rule in May 2005. In addition to 
publication in the Federal Register, the final rule will be available 
on the Internet at https://ruleforum.llnl.gov for at least 90 days after 
the effective date of the final rule.
    The NRC is proposing to make changes to 10 CFR parts 170 and 171 as 
discussed in Sections A and B below.

A. Amendments to 10 CFR Part 170: Fees for Facilities, Materials, 
Import and Export Licenses, and Other Regulatory Services Under the 
Atomic Energy Act of 1954, As Amended

    The NRC is proposing to establish the hourly rates used to 
calculate fees and to adjust the part 170 fees based on the proposed 
hourly rates and the results of the agency's biennial review of fees 
required by the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-
578, November 15, 1990, 104 Stat. 2838). Additionally, the NRC is 
proposing to revise part 170 to provide for the assessment of full cost 
fees for licensee-

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specific activities resulting from most orders and decommissioning 
activities associated with unlicensed sites; clarify that part 170 fee 
waivers need to be requested from, and granted by, the CFO in writing 
in certain instances; notify licensees that the NRC intends to apply 
its existing full cost recovery policy for project managers to license 
renewal project managers; and make minor administrative changes to 
enhance consistency between the fee categories used in part 170 and 
part 171.
    The NRC is proposing the following changes:
1. Hourly Rates
    The NRC is proposing to establish in Sec.  170.20 two professional 
hourly rates for NRC staff time. These proposed rates would be based on 
the number of FY 2005 direct program full time equivalents (FTEs) and 
the FY 2005 NRC budget, excluding direct program support costs and 
NRC's appropriations from the NWF. These rates are used to determine 
the part 170 fees. The proposed rate for the reactor program is $205 
per hour ($296,898 per direct FTE). This rate would be applicable to 
all activities for which fees are assessed under Sec.  170.21 of the 
fee regulations. The proposed rate for the materials program (nuclear 
materials and nuclear waste programs) is $198 per hour ($285,944 per 
direct FTE). This rate would be applicable to all activities for which 
fees are assessed under Sec.  170.31 of the fee regulations. In the FY 
2004 final fee rule, the reactor and materials program rates were $157 
and $156, respectively. The increase to the reactor and the materials 
program rates is primarily due to the NRC's use of a revised estimate 
of the number of direct hours per FTE in calculating these rates. The 
recent Government-wide pay raise is another reason for the proposed 
increase in the hourly rates.
    As described in further detail below, the NRC currently assumes 
1,776 hours per direct FTE are available for direct program work, while 
the new hourly rate assumes 1,446 hours per direct FTE are available 
for direct program work. Because the NRC's hourly rates are calculated 
by dividing the total annual costs of a direct FTE by average annual 
direct hours per FTE, the lower the number of direct hours per FTE used 
in the calculation, the higher the hourly rates.
    The NRC is proposing to revise its estimate of direct hours per FTE 
to more accurately reflect the NRC's costs of providing part 170 
services, which would allow the NRC to more fully recover the costs of 
these services through part 170 fees. Because costs not recovered under 
part 170 are recovered through part 171 annual fees, the increase in 
total part 170 fees (caused by the hourly rate increase) would result 
in a reduction to total annual fees of the same amount. As such, this 
hourly rate increase would shift some fee recovery from part 171 annual 
fees to part 170 fees for licensee-specific services. (Because revenue 
from these increased part 170 fees would not be received by the NRC 
until FY 2006--in light of the effective date of the final rule and the 
timing of the NRC's regular billing cycle--the reduction in annual fees 
from this change would not occur until FY 2006.)
    Previously, the NRC used an estimate of 1,776 hours per FTE to 
calculate the reactor and materials program hourly rates, based on the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in Circular A-76, ``Performance 
of Commercial Activities.'' However, this Circular provides assumptions 
to be used to estimate personnel costs for the competition of 
commercial activities, and does not provide guidance about assumptions 
to be used for purposes of fee calculation. (OMB's Circular A-25, 
``User Charges,'' also does not specifically address the number of 
hours to assume per FTE in calculating fees, but does emphasize that 
agency fees should reflect the full cost of providing services to 
identifiable beneficiaries.) The 1,776 estimate from Circular A-76 
includes time for administrative, training, and other activities a 
direct program FTE may perform that, while relevant to consider for 
certain costing purposes, would more accurately be considered overhead. 
Therefore, this estimate should not be assumed to be ``direct'' time 
for purposes of calculating a rate per hour of direct activities, which 
is the intended purpose of the NRC's hourly rates. While the 1,776 
estimate would be a useful fee calculation input were more detailed 
information not available, the NRC has been collecting more detailed 
information from its new time and labor system since November 2001, 
which is now the NRC's established source of data for employee work 
activities. The NRC has performed a review of its time and labor data, 
which indicates that 1,446 hours per FTE more accurately reflects the 
time expended by NRC program employees performing activities directly 
associated with the programmatic mission of the NRC.
    The NRC recognizes that the proposed increase to the hourly rates 
is more significant than those hourly rate changes that have occurred 
in previous years. However, the NRC believes that this increase is 
justified in light of the review of the NRC's time and labor data, 
which showed that NRC direct employees spend, on average, 1,446 hours 
per year on activities directly associated with the programmatic 
mission of the NRC. The NRC believes that the use of 1,446 hours per 
FTE is more appropriate for the purpose of the NRC's fee calculation 
than other estimates of hours per FTE used for different agency 
financial purposes. By using an estimate of hours per FTE that reflects 
only direct staff time, the resulting hourly rates more accurately 
reflect the full cost of providing services under part 170. For this 
reason, the NRC believes that this revised estimate of hours per FTE is 
consistent with guidance provided in OMB Circular A-25 on recovering 
the full cost of services provided to identifiable recipients. This 
change also supports industry comments that consistently recommend that 
the NRC collect more of its budget through part 170 fees-for-services 
vs. part 171 annual fees.
    Higher hourly rates would result in (1) increased full cost fees 
for licensing and inspection activities, and (2) increased materials 
flat fees for license applications. As noted, total part 171 annual 
fees would decrease by the same amount as the increase in total part 
170 fees. This shift from part 171 to part 170 would be greater for 
those fee classes with a higher proportion of part 170 to part 171 work 
activities (e.g., operating power reactors, uranium recovery, rare 
earth). Because annual fees are adjusted to recover the remainder of 
the budgeted resources for a license fee class not recovered under part 
170, the total estimated fees (parts 170 plus 171) recovered from a 
license fee class are the same regardless of the amount of the hourly 
rate, however, when implemented, higher hourly rates would result in 
some individual licensees paying less total fees than if this change 
were not enacted. This would be true for those licensees for whom the 
NRC performs fewer hours of part 170 services than it does, on average, 
for a licensee in that class. Similarly, licensees for which the NRC 
performs more hours of part 170 services would pay more in total fees 
under the proposed higher hourly rates.
    The method used to determine the two professional hourly rates is 
as follows:
    a. Direct program FTE levels are identified for the reactor program 
and the materials program (nuclear materials and nuclear waste 
programs). All program costs, except contract support, are included in 
the hourly rate for each program by allocating them uniformly based on 
the total number of direct FTEs

[[Page 8681]]

for the program. Direct contract support, which is the use of contract 
or other services in support of the line organization's direct program, 
is excluded from the calculation of the hourly rates because the costs 
for direct contract support are recovered directly through either part 
170 or 171 fees.
    b. All non-program costs for management and support and the Office 
of the Inspector General, are allocated to each program based on that 
program's costs.
    This method results in the following costs, which are included in 
the hourly rates. Due to rounding, adding the individual numbers in the 
table may result in a total that is slightly different than the one 
shown.

   Table II.--FY 2005 Budget Authority To Be Included In Hourly Rates
                          [Dollars in millions]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                    Reactor    Materials
                                                    program     program
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Direct Program Salaries & Benefits..............     $150.5M      $39.0M
Overhead Salaries & Benefits, Program Travel and       77.5M       17.8M
 Other Support..................................
Allocated Agency Management and Support.........      126.1M       31.4M
                                                 -------------
    Subtotal....................................      354.1M       88.3M
Less Offsetting Receipts........................       -0.1M      -0.00M
                                                 -------------
    Total Budget Included in Hourly Rate........      354.0M       88.3M
Program Direct FTEs.............................     1,192.5       308.7
Rate per Direct FTE.............................     296,898     285,944
Professional Hourly Rate (Rate per direct FTE            205         198
 divided by 1,446 hours)........................
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As shown in Table II, dividing the $354.0 million budgeted amount 
(rounded) included in the hourly rate for the reactor program by the 
reactor program direct FTEs (1,192.5) results in a rate for the reactor 
program of $296,898 per FTE for FY 2005. The Direct FTE Hourly Rate for 
the reactor program would be $205 per hour (rounded to the nearest 
whole dollar). This rate is calculated by dividing the cost per direct 
FTE ($296,898) by the number of direct billable hours in one year 
(1,446 hours). Similarly, dividing the $88.3 million budgeted amount 
(rounded) included in the hourly rate for the materials program by the 
program direct FTEs (308.7) results in a rate of $285,944 per FTE for 
FY 2005. The Direct FTE Hourly Rate for the materials program would be 
$198 per hour (rounded to the nearest whole dollar). This rate is 
calculated by dividing the cost per direct FTE ($285,944) by the number 
of direct billable hours in one year (1,446 hours).
2. Fee Adjustments
    The NRC is proposing to adjust the current part 170 fees in 
Sec. Sec.  170.21 and 170.31 to reflect both the proposed hourly rates 
and the results of the biennial review of part 170 fees required by the 
CFOs Act. To comply with the requirements of the CFOs Act, the NRC has 
evaluated historical professional staff hours used to process a new 
license application for those materials licensees whose fees are based 
on the average cost method, or ``flat'' fees. This review also included 
new license and amendment applications for import and export licenses.
    Evaluation of the historical data shows that fees based on the 
average number of professional staff hours required to complete 
licensing actions in the materials program should be increased in some 
fee categories and decreased in others to more accurately reflect 
current costs incurred in completing these licensing actions. The data 
for the average number of professional staff hours needed to complete 
new licensing actions was last updated in FY 2003 (68 FR 36714; June 
18, 2003). Thus, the revised average professional staff hours in this 
proposed fee rule reflect the changes in the NRC licensing review 
program that have occurred since FY 2003.
    As a result of the biennial review, the proposed licensing fees 
that are based on the average professional staff hours reflect an 
increase in average time for new license applications for five of the 
33 materials program fee categories, a decrease in average time for 
eight fee categories, and the same average time for the remaining 20 
fee categories. The average time for new license applications and 
amendments for export and import licenses remained the same for each of 
the five fee categories in Sec. Sec.  170.21 and 170.31.
    The proposed licensing fees for fee categories K.1 through K.5 of 
Sec.  170.21, and fee categories 1C, 1D, 2B, 2C, 3A through 3P, 4B 
through 9D, 10B, 15A through 15E, and 16 of Sec.  170.31 are based on 
the revised average professional staff hours needed to process the 
licensing actions multiplied by the proposed materials program 
professional hourly rate for FY 2005. As previously noted, the proposed 
higher hourly rate of $198 for the materials program is a key reason 
for the increases in the proposed licensing fees.
    The biennial review also included the ``flat'' fee for the general 
license registrations covered by fee Category 3.Q. As a result of this 
review, the proposed fee per registration is $630, compared to the 
current fee of $610. The proposed fee is based on the current estimated 
number of registrants, current annual resource estimates for the 
program, and the FY 2005 materials program hourly rate. The next 
biennial review of the registration fee will be included in the FY 2007 
fee rule; however, the registration fee may change in the FY 2006 fee 
rule if there is a change to the materials program hourly rate for FY 
2006.
    The amounts of the materials licensing ``flat'' fees are rounded as 
follows: Fees under $1,000 are rounded to the nearest $10, fees that 
are greater than $1,000 but less than $100,000 are rounded to the 
nearest $100, and fees that are greater than $100,000 are rounded to 
the nearest $1,000. Applications filed on or after the effective date 
of the final rule would be subject to the revised fees in this proposed 
rule.
3. Charging Fees for Licensee-Specific Activities Resulting From Most 
Orders
    The NRC proposes to amend Sec. Sec.  170.21 and 170.31 to provide 
that part 170 fees will be assessed for any licensee-specific activity 
resulting from orders issued by the Commission not related to civil 
penalties or other civil sanctions. Currently, part 170 fees are not 
assessed for amendments or other

[[Page 8682]]

licensee-specific activities resulting from the requirements of 
Commission orders. This is because in cases where the order proposes 
the imposition of a civil penalty or other civil sanctions, the 
assessment of additional costs could be viewed as augmenting the amount 
of the civil penalty and could discourage licensees from contesting 
proposed enforcement actions. However, in recent years, the NRC's use 
of orders to impose additional requirements for safety or security 
reasons has increased. For example, subsequent to the September 11, 
2001, terrorist attacks, the Commission imposed security requirements 
on various groups of licensees through orders. These orders resulted in 
the NRC's review of licensee-specific amendments and other activities 
that normally would have been billable under part 170, except that they 
were associated with orders.
    Given the changing regulatory environment and the extent of 
licensee-specific activities that are resulting from orders unrelated 
to civil penalties or other civil sanctions, the NRC is proposing that 
its regulations be revised to allow for full cost recovery of these 
activities under part 170 from NRC licensees. The NRC is not proposing 
to change cost recovery for the development of these orders; these 
costs would continue to be recovered under part 171.
4. Charging Fees for Unlicensed Sites in Decommissioning
    The NRC currently does not charge part 170 fees to owners or 
operators of unlicensed sites in decommissioning. However, the NRC does 
perform work related to the decommissioning of these sites that is 
recoverable under IOAA through part 170 fees because this work is 
associated with an identifiable beneficiary. These costs are currently 
recovered through either a surcharge that is included in NRC licensees' 
annual fees or through taxpayer-funded appropriations (i.e., Department 
of Treasury's General Fund). Recovering the site-specific 
decommissioning costs associated with these unlicensed sites through 
part 170 fees is consistent with the full cost recovery provisions of 
IOAA and the OMB's guidance in Circular A-25, ``User Charges.'' By 
recovering the costs of decommissioning activities from the owners or 
operators of these unlicensed sites, as NRC does from licensed sites, 
the NRC believes the fairness and equity of its fee schedule would be 
enhanced. Therefore, the NRC is proposing to add a new category (14B) 
to ``Schedule of Materials Fees'' at Sec.  170.31 that would provide 
for the assessment of part 170 fees to recover the full cost of site-
specific decommissioning activities for unlicensed sites. (The current 
Category 14 at Sec.  170.31 would be renumbered as Category 14A.) 
Section 170.2 would also be revised to expand the scope of part 170 to 
cover an owner or operator of an unlicensed site in decommissioning 
being conducted under NRC oversight.
5. Fee Waivers
    Under Sec.  170.11(a)(1)(iii), part 170 fees are not required for a 
report/request that has been submitted to the NRC specifically for the 
purpose of supporting NRC's development of generic guidance and 
regulations. The NRC proposes to clarify this section by stating that 
this fee exemption applies only when it is requested from, and granted 
by, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in writing. While this is 
consistent with current practice in requesting and granting these fee 
waivers, the NRC believes this revision would enhance clear 
communication about implementation of this fee waiver provision.
6. Full Cost Recovery of Project Manager Time
    The FY 1999 final fee rule (64 FR 31448; June 10, 1999) expanded 
the scope of part 170 fee assessments to include full cost recovery for 
project managers assigned to a specific plant or facility. Under this 
policy at Sec.  170.12(b)(iv), most project managers' time, excluding 
leave and time spent on generic activities such as rulemaking, is 
recovered through part 170 fees assessed to the specific applicant or 
licensee to which the project manager is assigned. The NRC will begin 
applying this policy to ``license renewal'' project managers as of the 
effective date of this final rule. Although the NRC does not currently 
apply this full cost recovery policy to license renewal project 
managers, this change does not require a modification to its 
regulations. Rather, given the increase in license renewal activities 
since 1999, when full cost recovery for project managers was enacted, 
the NRC recognizes that the existing policy should also apply to 
license renewal project managers. However, because this is a change in 
the application of existing policy, the NRC is notifying licensees of 
this change through this proposed rule and will not implement it until 
the effective date of the final rule.
7. Administrative Amendments
    The NRC is proposing to modify the number or letter identifiers 
associated with fee categories listed in Sec.  170.31, as well as make 
other minor administrative changes, so that the fee categories under 
part 170 are consistent with those used in the `Schedule of Materials 
Annual Fees and Fees for Government Agencies Licensed by NRC' at Sec.  
171.16(d). While the fee categories are, for the most part, consistent 
between the fee tables at Sec. Sec.  170.31 and 171.16(d), in some 
instances they are slightly different. This change would enhance the 
NRC's ability to track parts 170 and 171 fees for license categories 
and simplify communication to licensees about applicable fee 
categories.
    In summary, the NRC is proposing the following changes under 10 CFR 
part 170 --
    1. Establish revised materials and reactor programs hourly rates to 
better reflect the full cost of providing part 170 services;
    2. Revise the licensing fees to be assessed to reflect the reactor 
and materials program hourly rates and to comply with the CFO Act 
requirement that fees be reviewed biennially and revised as necessary 
to reflect the cost to the agency;
    3. Revise Sec. Sec.  170.21 and 170.31 to provide that part 170 
fees will be assessed for any licensee-specific activity resulting from 
orders issued by the Commission not related to civil penalties or other 
civil sanctions;
    4. Revise Sec. Sec.  170.2 and 170.31 to provide that part 170 fees 
will be assessed for any licensee-specific activities associated with 
unlicensed sites in decommissioning being conducted under NRC 
oversight;
    5. Revise Sec.  170.11 to clarify that certain fee waivers need to 
be requested from, and granted by, the CFO in writing;
    6. Apply the existing policy at Sec.  170.12 of full cost recovery 
for project managers to license renewal project managers; and
    7. Make minor administrative changes to Sec.  170.31 to enhance 
consistency in the identification of fee categories between parts 170 
and 171.

B. Amendments to 10 CFR Part 171: Annual Fees for Reactor Licenses, and 
Fuel Cycle Licenses and Materials Licenses, Including Holders of 
Certificates of Compliance, Registrations, and Quality Assurance 
Program Approvals and Government Agencies Licensed by the NRC

    The NRC proposes to revise the annual fees for FY 2005 to reflect 
the FY 2005 budget and changes in the number of NRC licensees 
(including those resulting from the transfer of regulatory 
responsibility to Agreement States), eliminate `size of reactor' as a 
reason for granting annual fee exemptions, and make certain 
administrative

[[Page 8683]]

amendments. The proposed amendments are as follow:
1. Annual Fees
    The NRC is proposing to establish rebaselined annual fees for FY 
2005. The Commission's policy commitment, made in the statement of 
considerations accompanying the FY 1995 fee rule (60 FR 32218; June 20, 
1995), and further explained in the statement of considerations 
accompanying the FY 1999 fee rule (64 FR 31448; June 10, 1999), 
determined that base annual fees will be re-established (rebaselined) 
at least every third year, and more frequently if there is a 
substantial change in the total NRC budget or in the magnitude of the 
budget allocated to a specific class of licensees. The fees were last 
rebaselined in FY 2004. Based on the change in the magnitude of the 
budget allocated to certain classes of licensees, the Commission has 
determined that it is appropriate to rebaseline the annual fees again 
this year. Rebaselining fees would result in decreased annual fees 
compared to FY 2004 for five classes of licenses (operating power 
reactors, test and research reactors, spent fuel storage/reactor 
decommissioning, rare earth mills, and transportation), and increased 
annual fees for two classes (fuel facilities and uranium recovery). For 
the materials users class, two categories (sub-classes) of licenses 
would have decreased annual fees while the remainder would have 
increased annual fees. The annual fee for industrial users of nuclear 
material (Category 3P), which is the largest materials users category 
and includes nearly 1,700 of the NRC's approximately 4,500 materials 
licensees, would not change.
    The annual fees in Sec. Sec.  171.15 and 171.16 would be revised 
for FY 2005 to recover approximately 90 percent of the NRC's FY 2005 
budget authority, less the estimated amount to be recovered through 
part 170 fees and the amounts appropriated from the NWF. The total 
amount to be recovered through annual fees for FY 2005 is $371.2 
million, compared to $389.9 million for FY 2004.
    Within the eight fee classes of licensees that pay annual fees, the 
FY 2005 annual fees would increase for many categories of licenses, 
decrease for others, and remain the same in two instances. The 
increases in annual fees range from approximately two percent for a 
master materials license to approximately 267 percent for registrations 
issued for device or product safety evaluations. The proposed decreases 
in annual fees range from approximately six percent for operating power 
reactors to approximately 55 percent for rare earth mills.
    Factors affecting the changes to the annual fee amounts include: 
adjustments in budgeted costs for the different classes of licenses; 
the reduction in the fee recovery rate from 92 percent for FY 2004 to 
90 percent for FY 2005; the estimated part 170 collections for the 
various classes of licenses; the decrease in the number of licensees 
for certain categories of licenses; and the $2.2 million carryover from 
additional collections in FY 2004 that were unanticipated at the time 
the FY 2004 final rule was published (i.e., this FY 2004 carryover was 
used to reduce the FY 2005 fees).
    Table III below shows the proposed rebaselined annual fees for FY 
2005 for a representative list of categories of licenses. The FY 2004 
fee is also shown for comparative purposes.

             Table III.--Rebaselined Annual Fees for FY 2005
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                 FY 2004       FY 2005
         Class/category of licenses            annual fee    annual fee
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Operating Power Reactors (including Spent       $3,283,000    $3,067,000
 Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning annual
 fee).......................................
Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning..       203,000       164,000
Test and Research Reactors (Nonpower                62,500        54,400
 Reactors)..................................
High Enriched Uranium Fuel Facility.........     4,573,000     5,383,000
Low Enriched Uranium Fuel Facility..........     1,533,000     1,612,000
UF6 Conversion Facility.....................       657,000       691,000
Conventional Mills..........................        14,500        27,700
Transportation:
  Users/Fabricators.........................        91,300        80,200
  Users Only................................         7,400         4,300
Typical Materials Users:
  Radiographers.............................        11,900        12,800
  Well Loggers..............................         4,600         4,100
  Gauge Users (Category 3P).................         2,500         2,500
  Broad Scope Medical.......................        25,000        27,300
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The annual fees assessed to each class of licenses include a 
surcharge to recover those NRC budgeted costs that are not directly or 
solely attributable to the classes of licenses, but must be recovered 
from licensees to comply with the requirements of OBRA-90, as amended. 
Based on the FY 2001 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act, 
which amended OBRA-90 to decrease the NRC's fee recovery amount by 2 
percent per year beginning in FY 2001 until the fee recovery amount is 
90 percent in FY 2005, the total surcharge costs for FY 2005 will be 
reduced by approximately $60.1 million. The total FY 2005 budgeted 
costs for these activities and the reduction to the total surcharge 
amount for fee recovery purposes are shown in Table IV.

                       Table IV.--Surcharge Costs
                          [Dollars in millions]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                FY 2005
                      Category of costs                        budgeted
                                                                 costs
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Activities not attributable to an existing NRC licensee
 or class of licensee:
    a. International activities.............................       $10.0

[[Page 8684]]

 
    b. Agreement State oversight............................         8.1
    c. Activities for unlicensed sites (includes                     3.5
     decommissioning costs associated with unlicensed sites,
     formerly referred to as site decommissioning management
     plan activities not recovered under part 170; also
     includes activities associated with unregistered
     general licensees).....................................
2. Activities not assessed part 170 licensing and inspection
 fees or part 171 annual fees based on existing law or
 Commission policy:
    a. Fee exemption for nonprofit educational institutions.         8.8
    b. Licensing and inspection activities associated with           1.4
     other Federal agencies.................................
    c. Costs not recovered from small entities under 10 CFR          5.9
     171.16(c)..............................................
3. Activities supporting NRC operating licensees and others:
    a. Regulatory support to Agreement States\1\............        13.9
    b. Generic decommissioning/reclamation (except those            10.0
     related to power reactors).............................
        Total surcharge costs...............................        61.6
Less 10 percent of NRC's FY 2005 total budget (less NWF)....       -60.1
                                                             -----------
        Total surcharge costs to be recovered...............        1.5
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ This estimate includes the costs of homeland security activities
  associated with sources in Agreement States, even though regulatory
  authority remains with the NRC for these activities. However, fees are
  not assessed to sources in Agreement States for these activities,
  therefore these costs are included in this surcharge category.

    As shown in Table IV, $1.5 million would be the total surcharge 
cost allocated to the various classes of licenses for FY 2005 (i.e., 
that portion of the total surcharge not covered by the NRC's 10 percent 
fee relief). The NRC would continue to allocate these surcharge costs 
to each class of licenses based on the percent of the budget for that 
fee class compared to the NRC's total budget. The proposed surcharge 
costs allocated to each class would be included in the annual fee 
assessed to each licensee. The proposed FY 2005 surcharge costs 
allocated to each class of licenses are shown in Table V. Separately, 
the NRC would continue to allocate the low-level waste (LLW) surcharge 
costs based on the volume of LLW disposal of certain classes of 
licenses. For FY 2005, the LLW surcharge costs are $2.8 million.

                                        Table V.--Allocation of Surcharge
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                          LLW surcharge         Non-LLW surcharge       Total
                                                    ------------------------------------------------  surcharge
                                                                                                    ------------
                                                       Percent       $M        Percent       $M           $M
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Operating Power Reactors...........................          74         2.1        82.4         1.2          3.3
Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decomm..................  ..........  ..........         4.7         0.1          0.1
Nonpower Reactors..................................  ..........  ..........         0.1           0            0
Fuel Facilities....................................           8         0.2         7.2         0.1          0.3
Materials Users....................................          18         0.5         4.0         0.1          0.6
Transportation.....................................  ..........  ..........         1.0           0            0
Rare Earth Facilities..............................  ..........  ..........         0.2           0            0
Uranium Recovery...................................  ..........  ..........         0.4           0            0
                                                    -------------
    Total Surcharge................................         100         2.8       100.0         1.5          4.3
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The budgeted costs allocated to each class of licenses and the 
calculations of the rebaselined fees are described in a. through h. 
below. The workpapers which support this proposed rule show in detail 
the allocation of NRC's budgeted resources for each class of licenses 
and how the fees are calculated. The workpapers are available 
electronically at the NRC's Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at 
Web site address https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. During the 
30-day public comment period, the workpapers may also be examined at 
the NRC Public Document Room located at One White Flint North, Room O-
1F22, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852-2738.
    a. Fuel Facilities. The FY 2005 budgeted cost to be recovered in 
annual fees assessment to the fuel facility class of licenses is 
approximately $23.8 million compared to $21.6 million in FY 2004. The 
annual fee increase is partly attributable to the decrease in estimated 
part 170 revenue for the fuel facility class compared to FY 2004. This 
FY 2005 decrease results partly from part 170 fuel facilities' revenue 
in FY 2004 including a one-time $2.1 million adjustment (increase) for 
revenue to account for fuel facilities fees that were improperly coded 
(i.e., costs associated with the Duke Cogema Stone and Webster 
application) and not factored into the fee calculations for FY 2001, FY 
2002, and FY 2003, as discussed in the FY 2004 final fee rule. The 
annual fee increase is also due to an increase in budgeted resources 
for this class of licensees. The annual fees are allocated to the 
individual fuel facility licensees based on the effort/fee 
determination matrix established in the FY 1999 final fee rule (64 FR 
31448; June 10, 1999). In the matrix (which is included in the NRC 
workpapers that are publicly

[[Page 8685]]

available), licensees are grouped into categories according to their 
licensed activities (i.e., nuclear material enrichment, processing 
operations, and material form) and according to the level, scope, depth 
of coverage, and rigor of generic regulatory programmatic effort 
applicable to each category from a safety and safeguards perspective. 
This methodology can be applied to determine fees for new licensees, 
current licensees, licensees in unique license situations, and 
certificate holders.
    This methodology is adaptable to changes in the number of licensees 
or certificate holders, licensed or certified material and/or 
activities, and total programmatic resources to be recovered through 
annual fees. When a license or certificate is modified, it may result 
in a change of category for a particular fuel facility licensee as a 
result of the methodology used in the fuel facility effort/fee matrix. 
Consequently, this change may also have an effect on the fees assessed 
to other fuel facility licensees and certificate holders. For example, 
if a fuel facility licensee amends its license/certificate in such a 
way (e.g., decommissioning or license termination) that results in it 
not being subject to part 171 costs applicable to the fee class, then 
the budgeted costs for the safety and/or safeguards components will be 
spread among the remaining fuel facility licensees/certificate holders.
    The methodology is applied as follows. First, a fee category is 
assigned based on the nuclear material and activity authorized by 
license or certificate. Although a licensee/certificate holder may 
elect not to fully use a license/certificate, the license/certificate 
is still used as the source for determining authorized nuclear material 
possession and use/activity. Next, the category and license/certificate 
information are used to determine where the licensee/certificate holder 
fits into the matrix. The matrix depicts the categorization of 
licensees/certificate holders by authorized material types and use/
activities, and the relative generic regulatory programmatic effort 
associated with each category. The programmatic effort (expressed as a 
value in the matrix) reflects the safety and safeguards risk 
significance associated with the nuclear material and use/activity, and 
the commensurate generic regulatory program (i.e., scope, depth and 
rigor) level of effort.
    The effort factors for the various subclasses of fuel facility 
licenses, including the proposed new subclass, are summarized in Table 
VI.

              Table VI.--Effort Factors for Fuel Facilities
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                   Effort factors  (in
                                    Number of           percent)
          Facility type             facilities -------------------------
                                                   Safety     Safeguards
------------------------------------------------------------------------
High Enriched Uranium Fuel.......            2   101 (38.0)    86 (58.1)
Enrichment.......................            2    70 (26.3)    34 (23.0)
Low Enriched Uranium Fuel........            3    66 (24.8)    18 (12.2)
UF6 Conversion...................            1     12 (4.5)        0 (0)
Limited Operations Facility......            1      8 (3.0)      3 (2.0)
Others...........................            2      9 (3.4)      7 (4.7)
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Applying these factors to the safety, safeguards, and surcharge 
components of the $23.8 million total annual fee amount for the fuel 
facility class results in annual fees for each licensee within the 
categories of this class summarized in Table VII.

               Table VII.--Annual Fees for Fuel Facilities
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               FY 2005
                       Facility type                         annual fee
------------------------------------------------------------------------
High Enriched Uranium Fuel................................    $5,383,000
Uranium Enrichment........................................     2,994,000
Low Enriched Uranium......................................     1,612,000
UF6 Conversion............................................       691,000
Limited Operations Facility...............................       633,000
Others....................................................       461,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    b. Uranium Recovery Facilities. The proposed FY 2005 budgeted cost, 
including surcharge costs, to be recovered through annual fees assessed 
to the uranium recovery class is approximately $677,611. Approximately 
$539,000 of this amount would be assessed to DOE. The remaining 
$139,000 would be recovered through annual fees assessed to 
conventional mills, in-situ leach solution mining facilities, and 
11e.(2) mill tailings disposal facilities. The annual fees for these 
facilities would increase in FY 2005 due to a slight increase in 
budgeted resources for this license fee class, and because the NRC 
estimates that a smaller proportion of these resources will be 
recovered under part 170.
    Consistent with the change in methodology adopted in the FY 2002 
final fee rule (67 FR 42612; June 24, 2002), the total annual fee 
amount, less the amounts specifically budgeted for Title I activities, 
is allocated equally between Title I and Title II licensees. This would 
result in an annual fee being assessed to DOE to recover the costs 
specifically budgeted for NRC's Title I activities plus 50 percent of 
the remaining annual fee amount, including the surcharge and generic/
other costs, for the uranium recovery class. The remaining 50 percent 
of the surcharge and generic/other costs are assessed to the NRC Title 
II program licensees that are subject to annual fees. The costs to be 
recovered through annual fees assessed to the uranium recovery class 
are shown below.

[[Page 8686]]



------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
DOE Annual Fee Amount (UMTRCA Title I and Title II general
 licenses):
    UMTRCA Title I budgeted costs..........................     $400,322
    50 percent of generic/other uranium recovery budgeted        135,619
     costs.................................................
    50 percent of uranium recovery surcharge...............        3,026
                                                            ------------
        Total Annual Fee Amount for DOE....................      538,966
                                                            ============
Annual Fee Amount for UMTRCA Title II Specific Licenses:
    50 percent of generic/other uranium recovery budgeted        135,619
     costs.................................................
    50 percent of uranium recovery surcharge...............        3,026
                                                            ------------
        Total Annual Fee Amount for Title II Specific            138,644
         Licenses..........................................
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The matrix used to allocate the costs of various categories of 
Title II specific licensees has been updated to equally weight the 
effort levels for each category of uranium recovery facilities, in 
accordance with the NRC's FY 2005 budgeted activities. It has also been 
revised to reflect two fewer uranium recovery facilities, in light of 
the fact that regulatory responsibility for these two facilities has 
been transferred to Utah (see discussion under ``Agreement State 
Activities'' below). However, consistent with the methodology 
established in the FY 1995 fee rule (60 FR 32218; June 20, 1995), the 
approach for establishing part 171 annual fees for Title II uranium 
recovery licensees has not changed, and is as follows:
    (1) The methodology identifies three categories of licenses: 
conventional uranium mills (Class I facilities), uranium solution 
mining facilities (Class II facilities), and mill tailings disposal 
facilities (11e.(2) disposal facilities). Each of these categories 
benefits from the generic uranium recovery program efforts (e.g., 
rulemakings, staff guidance documents);
    (2) The matrix relates the category and the level of benefit by 
program element and subelement;
    (3) The two major program elements of the generic uranium recovery 
program are activities related to facility operations and those related 
to facility closure;
    (4) Each of the major program elements was further divided into 
three subelements; and
    (5) The three major subelements of generic activities associated 
with uranium facility operations are regulatory efforts related to the 
operation of mills, handling and disposal of waste, and prevention of 
groundwater contamination. The three major subelements of generic 
activities associated with uranium facility closure are regulatory 
efforts related to decommissioning of facilities and land clean-up, 
reclamation and closure of tailings impoundments, and groundwater 
clean-up. Weighted values were assigned to each program element and 
subelement considering health and safety implications and the 
associated effort to regulate these activities. The applicability of 
the generic program in each subelement to each uranium recovery 
category was qualitatively estimated as either significant, some, 
minor, or none.
    The relative weighted factors per facility type for the various 
categories of specifically licensed Title II uranium recovery licensees 
are as follows:

                           Table VIII.--Weighted Factors for Uranium Recovery Licenses
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                              Level of benefit
                                                                  Number of     Category        total weight
                         Facility type                           facilities      weight    ---------------------
                                                                                              Value     Percent
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Class I (conventional mills)..................................             1           800        800         20
Class II (solution mining)....................................             3           800      2,400         60
11e.(2) disposal..............................................             0             0          0          0
11e.(2) disposal incidental to existing tailings sites........             1           800        800         20
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Applying these factors to the approximately $139,000 in budgeted 
costs to be recovered from Title II specific licensees results in the 
following revised annual fees:

          Table IX.--Annual Fees for Title II Specific Licenses
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               FY 2005
                       Facility type                          annual fee
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Class I (conventional mills)...............................      $27,700
Class II (solution mining).................................       27,700
11e.(2) disposal...........................................          N/A
11e.(2) disposal incidental to existing tailings sites.....       27,700
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Note because there are no longer any 11e.(2) disposal facilities 
under the NRC's regulatory jurisdiction, the NRC has not allocated any 
budgeted resources for these facilities, and therefore has not 
established an annual fee for this fee category. If NRC issues a 
license for this fee category in the future, then the Commission will 
establish the appropriate annual fee.
    In the FY 2001 final rule (66 FR 32478; June 14, 2001), the NRC 
revised Sec.  171.19 to establish a quarterly billing schedule for 
Class I and Class II licensees, regardless of the annual fee

[[Page 8687]]

amount. Therefore, as provided in Sec.  171.19(b), if the amounts 
collected in the first three quarters of FY 2005 exceed the amount of 
the revised annual fee, the overpayment will be refunded; if the 
amounts collected in the first three quarters are less than the final 
revised annual fee, the remainder will be billed after the FY 2005 
final fee rule is published. The remaining categories of Title II 
facilities are subject to billing based on the anniversary date of the 
license as provided in Sec.  171.19(c).
    c. Operating Power Reactors. The approximately $301.9 million in 
budgeted costs to be recovered through FY 2005 annual fees assessed to 
the power reactor class, including budgeted costs for homeland security 
activities related to power reactors, is divided equally among the 104 
power reactors licensed to operate. This results in a FY 2005 annual 
fee of $2,903,000 per reactor. Additionally, each power reactor 
licensed to operate will be assessed the FY 2005 spent fuel storage/
reactor decommissioning annual fee of $164,000. This results in a total 
FY 2005 annual fee of $3,067,000 for each power reactor licensed to 
operate. While budgeted resources for power reactors increased in FY 
2005, annual fees would decrease because the NRC estimates that it will 
collect more of these resources through part 170 fees to power 
reactors.
    d. Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning. For FY 2005, 
budgeted costs of approximately $20 million for spent fuel storage/
reactor decommissioning are to be recovered through annual fees 
assessed to part 50 power reactors, and to part 72 licensees who do not 
hold a part 50 license. Those reactor licensees that have ceased 
operations and have no fuel onsite are not subject to these annual 
fees. The costs are divided equally among the 122 licensees (with the 
exception of a new license issued on November 30, 2004, which will pay 
an 83 percent prorated annual fee), resulting in a FY 2005 annual fee 
of $164,000 per licensee. Annual fees would decrease for these 
licensees due to a reduction in budgeted resources for this license fee 
class.
    e. Test and Research Reactors (Nonpower Reactors). Approximately 
$218,000 in budgeted costs is to be recovered through annual fees 
assessed to the test and research reactor class of licenses for FY 
2005. This amount is divided equally among the four test and research 
reactors subject to annual fees. This results in a FY 2005 annual fee 
of $54,400 for each licensee. While budgeted resources for test and 
research reactors increase in FY 2005, annual fees would decrease due 
to a projected increase in the proportion of these resources recovered 
through part 170 fees to test and research reactors.
    f. Rare Earth Facilities. The FY 2005 budgeted costs of $71,000 for 
rare earth facilities to be recovered through annual fees will be 
assessed to the one licensee who has a specific license for receipt and 
processing of source material, resulting in a FY 2005 annual fee of 
$71,000. While total budgeted resources for the