Inflation Adjustments to the Price-Anderson Act Financial Protection Regulations, 41835-41836 [2013-16732]

Agencies

• NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 134 (Friday, July 12, 2013)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 41835-41836]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-16732]



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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 134 / Friday, July 12, 2013 / Rules 
and Regulations

[[Page 41835]]



NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 140

[NRC-2013-0072]
RIN 3150-AJ25


Inflation Adjustments to the Price-Anderson Act Financial 
Protection Regulations

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (AEA), requires the 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to adjust the maximum total 
and annual standard deferred premiums specified in the Price-Anderson 
Act for inflation at least once during each 5-year period following 
August 20, 2003. The NRC is amending its regulations to satisfy this 
requirement.

DATES: This rule is effective on September 10, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2013-0072 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information for this final rule. You may 
access information related to this final rule, which the NRC possesses 
and is publicly available, using any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2013-0072. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-492-
3668; email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact 
the individual(s) listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section 
of this final rule.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may access publicly available documents online in the NRC 
Library at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the 
search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and then select ``Begin Web-
based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's 
Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-
4737, or by email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. The ADAMS accession number 
for each document referenced in this document (if that document is 
available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is 
referenced.
     NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ryan K. Lighty, Office of the General 
Counsel, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; 
telephone: 301-415-1938, email: ryan.lighty@nrc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
II. Discussion of Final Rule
III. Rulemaking Procedure
IV. Voluntary Consensus Standard
V. Environmental Impact: Categorical Exclusion
VI. Paperwork Reduction Act Statement
VII. Regulatory Analysis
VIII. Regulatory Flexibility Certification
IX. Plain Writing
X. Backfit Analysis and Issue Finality
XI. Congressional Review Act

I. Background

    Section 604 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, Public Law 109-58, 
amended section 170 of the AEA (Price-Anderson Act) to require the NRC 
to adjust the maximum total and annual standard deferred premiums not 
less than once during each 5-year period following August 20, 2003, in 
accordance with the aggregate percentage change in the Consumer Price 
Index. The NRC made the initial changes to the Price-Anderson Act 
amounts on October 27, 2005 (70 FR 61885), and the first periodic 
inflation adjustments on September 29, 2008 (73 FR 56451). This final 
rule makes the second required periodic inflation adjustments to the 
maximum total and annual standard deferred premiums.

II. Discussion of the Final Rule

    Section 170t., ``Inflation Adjustment,'' of the AEA requires the 
NRC to ``adjust the amount of the maximum total and annual standard 
deferred premium under subsection b.(1) not less than once during each 
5-year period following August 20, 2003 in accordance with the 
aggregate percentage change in the Consumer Price Index.'' The NRC's 
implementing regulations for the Price-Anderson Act are found in part 
140 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR). 
Accordingly, the Commission is amending 10 CFR 140.11, ``Amounts of 
financial protection for certain reactors,'' to adjust for the increase 
in inflation since the last adjustments on September 29, 2008.
    The September 2008 inflation adjustments raised the maximum total 
deferred premium in 10 CFR 140.11(a)(4) to $111,900,000 and the maximum 
annual deferred premium to $17,500,000. The Consumer Price Index used 
in calculating the September 2008 inflation adjustments was 214.823 
(April 2008). The inflation adjustments promulgated in this rulemaking 
are based on a Consumer Price Index of 232.773 (March 2013). This 
represents an increase of approximately 8.36 percent. When this 
increase is applied to the maximum total and annual standard deferred 
premiums and rounded to the nearest thousand, the new maximum total 
deferred premium is $121,255,000, and the maximum annual deferred 
premium is $18,963,000. Section 140.11(a)(4) is being changed 
accordingly.

III. Rulemaking Procedure

    Under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553(b)), an agency 
may waive the normal notice and comment requirements if it finds, for 
good cause, that they are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to 
the public interest. This rule incorporates mandatory statutory 
requirements. Accordingly, good cause exists under 5 U.S.C. section 
553(d)(3) to publish this final rule without soliciting public comment 
because the Commission has no discretion in these matters and public 
comment would serve no useful purpose. The NRC is required only to 
perform ministerial computations. The revisions are being published as 
a final rule that will become effective 60 days from the date of 
publication in the Federal Register.

[[Page 41836]]

IV. Voluntary Consensus Standards

    The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995, 
Public Law 104-113, requires that Federal agencies use technical 
standards that are developed or adopted by voluntary consensus 
standards bodies unless using such a standard is inconsistent with 
applicable law or is otherwise impractical. In this rule, the NRC is 
revising its regulations to reflect statutory mandates contained in the 
Energy Policy Act of 2005. This action does not constitute the 
establishment of a standard that contains generally applicable 
requirements.

V. Environmental Impact: Categorical Exclusion

    The Commission has determined that this final rule is the type of 
action described as a categorical exclusion in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(1) and 
(2). Therefore, neither an environmental impact statement nor an 
environmental assessment has been prepared for this final rule.

VI. Paperwork Reduction Act Statement

    This final rule does not contain information collection 
requirements and, therefore, is not subject to the requirements of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

Public Protection Notification

    The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to 
respond to, a request for information or an information collection 
requirement unless the requesting document displays a currently valid 
OMB control number.

VII. Regulatory Analysis

    A regulatory analysis has not been prepared for this regulation. 
This rule amends NRC regulations to be consistent with provisions of 
the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended. This rule does not involve 
an exercise of Commission discretion and, therefore, does not 
necessitate preparation of a regulatory analysis.

VIII. Regulatory Flexibility Certification

    As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, 5 U.S.C. 
605(b), the Commission certifies that this final rule would not have a 
significant economic impact upon a substantial number of small 
entities.

IX. Plain Writing

    The Plain Writing Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-274) requires Federal 
agencies to write documents in a clear, concise, and well-organized 
manner. The NRC has written this document to be consistent with the 
Plain Writing Act as well as the Presidential Memorandum, ``Plain 
Language in Government Writing,'' published June 10, 1998 (63 FR 
31883).

X. Backfit Analysis and Issue Finality

    The NRC has determined that the backfit provisions at 10 CFR 
50.109, 70.76, 72.62, and 76.76 do not apply to this final rule because 
the amendments of this final rule are mandated by the Energy Policy Act 
of 2005.

XI. Congressional Review Act

    The Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs, has determined that this action is a ``major rule'' 
pursuant to the definitions in the Congressional Review Act. However, 
this rule does not involve an exercise of Commission discretion. The 
NRC is required by statute to perform ministerial computations and to 
implement the periodic inflation adjustments, reflecting changes in the 
Consumer Price Index, as mandated by the AEA.

List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 140

    Criminal penalties, Extraordinary nuclear occurrence, Insurance, 
Intergovernmental relations, Nuclear materials, Nuclear power plants 
and reactors, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of 
the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; the Energy Reorganization 
Act of 1974, as amended; and 5 U.S.C. 552 and 553, the NRC is adopting 
the following amendment to 10 CFR part 140:

PART 140--FINANCIAL PROTECTION REQUIREMENTS AND INDEMNITY 
AGREEMENTS

0
1. The authority citation for part 140 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  Atomic Energy Act secs. 161, 170, 223, 234 (42 
U.S.C. 2201, 2210, 2273, 2282); Energy Reorganization Act secs. 201, 
as amended, 202 (42 U.S.C. 5841, 5842); Government Paperwork 
Elimination Act sec. 1704 (44 U.S.C. 3504 note); Energy Policy Act 
of 2005, Pub. L. 109-58, 119 Stat. 594 (2005).

0
2. In Sec.  140.11, paragraph (a)(4) is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  140.11  Amounts of financial protection for certain reactors.

    (a) * * *
    (4) In an amount equal to the sum of $375,000,000 and the amount 
available as secondary financial protection (in the form of private 
liability insurance available under an industry retrospective rating 
plan providing for deferred premium charges equal to the pro rata share 
of the aggregate public liability claims and costs, excluding costs 
payment of which is not authorized by section 170o.(1)(D) of the Act, 
in excess of that covered by primary financial protection) for each 
nuclear reactor which is licensed to operate and which is designed for 
the production of electrical energy and has a rated capacity of 100,000 
electrical kilowatts or more: Provided, however, that under such a plan 
for deferred premium charges for each nuclear reactor which is licensed 
to operate, no more than $121,255,000 with respect to any nuclear 
incident (plus any surcharge assessed under subsection 170o.(1)(E) of 
the Act) and no more than $18,963,000 per incident within one calendar 
year shall be charged. Except that, where a person is authorized to 
operate a combination of 2 or more nuclear reactors located at a single 
site, each of which has a rated capacity of 100,000 or more electrical 
kilowatts but not more than 300,000 electrical kilowatts with a 
combined rated capacity of not more than 1,300,000 electrical 
kilowatts, each such combination of reactors shall be considered to be 
a single nuclear reactor for the sole purpose of assessing the 
applicable financial protection required under this section.
* * * * *

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 1st day of July, 2013.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
R.W. Borchardt,
Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2013-16732 Filed 7-11-13; 8:45 am]
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