In the Matter of: Jennifer O'Neill-Torres; Order Prohibiting Involvement in NRC-Licensed Activities, 14166-14167 [E9-6995]

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• NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 59 (Monday, March 30, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14166-14167]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-6995]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[IA-08-072]; [NRC-2009-0141]


In the Matter of: Jennifer O'Neill-Torres; Order Prohibiting 
Involvement in NRC-Licensed Activities

I

    Jennifer O'Neill-Torres is the President and Radiation Safety 
Officer (RSO) at S&M Testing Laboratory (S&M Testing) (Licensee) in 
Gurabo, Puerto Rico (PR). S&M Testing Laboratory holds License No. 52-
25133-01 originally issued to Turabo Corporation by the Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) pursuant to 10 CFR Part 30 on 
March 25, 1991, and transferred to S&M Testing on December 31, 2002. 
The license authorizes possession and use of sealed radioactive sources 
for use in portable gauging devices for measuring physical properties 
of materials in accordance with the conditions specified therein. 
Jennifer O'Neill-Torres is listed on the license as the Radiation 
Safety Officer.

II

    An NRC inspection was conducted from May 1, 2007, through September 
23, 2008, and an investigation by the NRC Office of Investigations (OI) 
was initiated on March 7, 2008, regarding licensed activities at S&M 
Testing Laboratory. An OI investigation was conducted, in part, to 
determine whether a deliberate violation of NRC requirements had 
occurred and was completed on November 10, 2008. Based on the results 
of the inspection and the investigation, the NRC concluded that 
Jennifer O'Neill-Torres deliberately caused the Licensee to be in 
violation of NRC regulations, namely: (1) 10 CFR 30.34I, in that she 
deliberately failed to obtain NRC approval via an amendment to S&M 
Testing's NRC license to authorize storage of licensed gauges at an 
alternate location prior to moving all gauges from authorized storage 
location in Caguas, PR to an unauthorized storage location in Gurabo, 
PR; and (2) 10 CFR 30.52(a), in that she deliberately failed to provide 
the NRC an opportunity to inspect the gauges after she: failed to 
respond to repeated contact attempts by the NRC; was uncooperative and 
refused to provide an NRC inspector information regarding the licensed 
gauges including their location and conditions of storage during a 
telephone conversation on December 6, 2007; and failed to respond to 
subsequent contact attempts until located by the NRC OI with assistance 
from the Federal Bureau of Investigation on August 6, 2008.

III

    Based on the above, it appears that Jennifer O'Neill-Torres, an 
employee of S&M Testing has engaged in deliberate misconduct, contrary 
to 10 CFR 30.10, which states, in part, that any Licensee or employee 
of a Licensee may not engage in deliberate misconduct that causes a 
Licensee to be in violation of any rule, regulation, or order issued by 
the Commission. The NRC must be able to rely on the Licensee and its 
employees to comply with NRC requirements. Jennifer O'Neill-Torres's 
action in deliberately causing the Licensee to violate NRC 
requirements, including 10 CFR 30.34I and 10 CFR 30.52(a), has raised 
serious doubt as to whether she can be relied upon to comply with NRC 
requirements.
    Consequently, I lack the requisite reasonable assurance that 
licensed activities can be conducted in compliance with the 
Commission's requirements and that the health and safety of the public 
will be protected if Jennifer O'Neill-Torres were permitted at this 
time to be involved in NRC-licensed activities. Therefore, the public 
health, safety and interest require that Jennifer O'Neill-Torres be 
prohibited from any involvement in NRC-licensed activities for a period 
of 5 years from the date of this Order. Additionally, Jennifer O'Neill-
Torres is required to notify the NRC of her first employment in NRC-
licensed activities for a period of 5 years following the prohibition 
period.

IV

    Accordingly, pursuant to sections 81, 161b, 161i, 161o, 182 and 186 
of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the Commission's 
regulations in 10 CFR 2.202, 10 CFR 30.10, and 10 CFR 150.20, it is 
hereby ordered, that:
    1. Jennifer O'Neill-Torres is prohibited for 5 years from the date 
of this Order from engaging in NRC-licensed activities. NRC-licensed 
activities are those activities that are conducted pursuant to a 
specific or general license issued by the NRC, including, but not 
limited to, those activities of Agreement State licensees conducted 
pursuant to the authority granted by 10 CFR 150.20.
    2. If Jennifer O'Neill-Torres is currently involved with another 
licensee in NRC-licensed activities, she must immediately cease those 
activities, and inform the NRC of the name, address and telephone 
number of the employer, and provide a copy of this order to the 
employer.
    3. For a period of 5 years after the 5 year period of prohibition 
has expired, Jennifer O'Neill-Torres shall, within 20 days of 
acceptance of her first employment offer involving NRC-licensed 
activities or her becoming involved in NRC-licensed activities, as 
defined in Paragraph IV.1 above, provide notice to the Director, Office 
of Enforcement, U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001, of the name, address, and telephone number of the employer 
or the entity where she is, or will be, involved in the NRC-licensed 
activities. In the notification, Jennifer O'Neill-Torres shall include 
a statement of her commitment to compliance with regulatory 
requirements and the basis why the Commission should have confidence 
that she will now comply with applicable NRC requirements.
    The Director, OE, may, in writing, relax or rescind any of the 
above conditions upon demonstration by Jennifer O'Neill-Torres of good 
cause.

V

    In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202, Jennifer O'Neil-Torres must, and 
any other person adversely affected by this Order may, submit an answer 
to this Order within 20 days of its issuance. In addition, Jennifer 
O'Neil-Torres and any other person adversely affected by this Order may 
request a hearing on this Order within 20 days of its issuance. Where 
good cause is shown, consideration will be given to extending the time 
to answer or request a hearing. A request for extension of time must be 
directed to the Director, Office of Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, and include a statement of good cause for the 
extension.
    A request for a hearing must be filed in accordance with the NRC E-
Filing rule, which the NRC promulgated in August 2007, 72 FR 49,139 
(Aug. 28, 2007). The E-Filing process requires participants to submit 
and serve documents over the internet or, in some cases, to mail copies 
on electronic optical storage media. Participants may not submit paper 
copies of their filings unless they seek a waiver in accordance with 
the procedures described below.
    To comply with the procedural requirements associated with E-
Filing, at least five (5) days prior to the filing deadline the 
requestor must contact the Office of the Secretary by e-mail at 
HEARINGDOCKET@NRC.GOV, or by calling (301) 415-1677, to request (1) a 
digital ID certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or 
representative) to digitally sign documents and access the E-Submittal 
server for any NRC proceeding in which

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it is participating; and/or (2) creation of an electronic docket for 
the proceeding (even in instances when the requestor (or its counsel or 
representative) already holds an NRC-issued digital ID certificate). 
Each requestor will need to download the Workplace Forms 
ViewerTM to access the Electronic Information Exchange 
(EIE), a component of the E-Filing system. The Workplace Forms 
ViewerTM is free and is available at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/install-viewer.html. Information about applying 
for a digital ID certificate also is available on NRC's public Web site 
at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/apply-certificates.html.
    Once a requestor has obtained a digital ID certificate, had a 
docket created, and downloaded the EIE viewer, it can then submit a 
request for a hearing through EIE. Submissions should be in Portable 
Document Format (PDF) in accordance with NRC guidance available on the 
NRC public Web site at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. 
A filing is considered complete at the time the filer submits its 
document through EIE. To be timely, electronic filings must be 
submitted to the EIE system no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on 
the due date. Upon receipt of a transmission, the E-Filing system time-
stamps the document and sends the submitter an e-mail notice confirming 
receipt of the document. The EIE system also distributes an e-mail 
notice that provides access to the document to the NRC Office of the 
General Counsel and any others who have advised the Office of the 
Secretary that they wish to participate in the proceeding, so that the 
filer need not serve the document on those participants separately. 
Therefore, any others who wish to participate in the proceeding (or 
their counsel or representative) must apply for and receive a digital 
ID certificate before a hearing request is filed so that they may 
obtain access to the document via the E-Filing system.
    A person filing electronically may seek assistance through the 
``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC Web site at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html or by calling the NRC technical help line, 
which is available between 8:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m., Eastern Time, 
Monday through Friday. The electronic filing Help Desk can be contacted 
by telephone at 1-866-672-7640 or by e-mail at MHSD.Resource@nrc.gov.
    Participants who believe that they have good cause for not 
submitting documents electronically must file a motion, in accordance 
with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper filing requesting 
authorization to continue to submit documents in paper format. Such 
filings must be submitted by (1) first class mail addressed to the 
Office of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemaking and 
Adjudications Staff; or (2) courier, express mail, or expedited 
delivery service to the Office of the Secretary, Sixteenth Floor, One 
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, 
Attention: Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff. Participants filing a 
document in this manner are responsible for serving the document on all 
other participants. Filing is considered complete by first-class mail 
as of the time of deposit in the mail, or by courier, express mail, or 
expedited delivery service upon depositing the document with the 
provider of the service.
    Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in 
NRC's electronic hearing docket which is available to the public at 
https://ehd.nrc.gov/EHD_Proceeding/home.asp, unless excluded pursuant 
to an order of the Commission, an Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, or 
a Presiding Officer. Participants are requested not to include personal 
privacy information, such as social security numbers, home addresses, 
or home phone numbers in their filings. With respect to copyrighted 
works, except for limited excerpts that serve the purpose of the 
adjudicatory filings and would constitute a Fair Use application, 
Participants are requested not to include copyrighted materials in 
their works.
    If a person other than Jennifer O'Neill-Torres requests a hearing, 
that person shall set forth with particularity the manner in which his 
interest is adversely affected by this Order and shall address the 
criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.309(d).
    If a hearing is requested by Jennifer O'Neill-Torres or a person 
whose interest is adversely affected, the Commission will issue an 
Order designating the time and place of any hearings. If a hearing is 
held, the issue to be considered at such hearing shall be whether this 
Order should be sustained. In the absence of any request for hearing, 
or written approval of an extension of time in which to request a 
hearing, the provisions specified in Section IV above shall be final 20 
days from the date of this Order without further order or proceedings. 
If an extension of time for requesting a hearing has been approved, the 
provisions specified in Section IV shall be final when the extension 
expires if a hearing request has not been received.

    Dated this 23rd day of March 2009.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Cynthia A. Carpenter,
Director, Office of Enforcement.
[FR Doc. E9-6995 Filed 3-27-09; 8:45 am]
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