Proposed Revision to Site Characteristics and Site Parameters, 30285-30287 [2015-12785]

Download as PDF mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 101 / Wednesday, May 27, 2015 / Notices Submittal server are detailed in the NRC’s ‘‘Guidance for Electronic Submission,’’ which is available on the agency’s public Web site at https:// www.nrc.gov/site-help/esubmittals.html. Participants may attempt to use other software not listed on the Web site, but should note that the NRC’s E-Filing system does not support unlisted software, and the NRC Meta System Help Desk will not be able to offer assistance in using unlisted software. If a participant is electronically submitting a document to the NRC in accordance with the E-Filing rule, the participant must file the document using the NRC’s online, Web-based submission form. In order to serve documents through the Electronic Information Exchange System, users will be required to install a Web browser plug-in from the NRC’s Web site. Further information on the Webbased submission form, including the installation of the Web browser plug-in, is available on the NRC’s public Web site at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/esubmittals.html. Once a participant has obtained a digital ID certificate and a docket has been created, the participant can then submit a request for hearing or petition for leave to intervene. Submissions should be in Portable Document Format (PDF) in accordance with NRC guidance available on the NRC’s public Web site at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/esubmittals.html. A filing is considered complete at the time the documents are submitted through the NRC’s E-Filing system. To be timely, an electronic filing must be submitted to the E-Filing 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 email notice confirming receipt of the document. The E-Filing system also distributes an email notice that provides access to the document to the NRC’s 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 documents on those participants separately. Therefore, applicants and other participants (or their counsel or representative) must apply for and receive a digital ID certificate before a hearing request/ petition to intervene is filed so that they can obtain access to the document via the E-Filing system. A person filing electronically using the NRC’s adjudicatory E-Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC Meta System Help Desk through VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:45 May 26, 2015 Jkt 235001 the ‘‘Contact Us’’ link located on the NRC’s public Web site at https:// www.nrc.gov/site-help/esubmittals.html, by email to MSHD.Resource@nrc.gov, or by a tollfree call at 1–866–672–7640. The NRC Meta System Help Desk is available between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, excluding government holidays. Participants who believe that they have a good cause for not submitting documents electronically must file an exemption request, 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. A presiding officer, having granted an exemption request from using E-Filing, may require a participant or party to use E-Filing if the presiding officer subsequently determines that the reason for granting the exemption from use of E-Filing no longer exists. Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in the NRC’s electronic hearing docket which is available to the public at https:// ehd1.nrc.gov/ehd/, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the Commission, or the 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, unless an NRC regulation or other law requires submission of such information. However, a request to intervene will require including information on local residence in order to demonstrate a proximity assertion of interest in the proceeding. 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 PO 00000 Frm 00080 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 30285 copyrighted materials in their submission. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 22nd day of April, 2015. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Scott W. Moore, Acting Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards. [FR Doc. 2015–12664 Filed 5–26–15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590–01–P NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [Docket No. 50–271–LA] In the Matter of Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC and Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station); Notice of Appointment of Adjudicatory Employee Pursuant to 10 CFR 2.4, notice is hereby given that Mr. Daniel M, Barss, Team Leader, Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response, Division of Preparedness and Response, has been appointed as a Commission adjudicatory employee within the meaning of section 2.4, to advise the Commission regarding issues relating to review of the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board’s Memorandum and Order LBP–15–4 in this license amendment proceeding. Mr. Barss has not previously performed any investigative or litigating function in connection with this or any related proceeding. Until such time as a final decision is issued in this matter, interested persons outside the agency and agency employees performing investigative or litigating functions in this proceeding are required to observe the restrictions of 10 CFR 2.347 and 2.348 in their communications with Mr. Barss. It is so ordered. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 20th day of May, 2015. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Annette L. Vietti-Cook, Secretary of the Commission. [FR Doc. 2015–12805 Filed 5–26–15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590–01–P NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC–2015–0131] Proposed Revision to Site Characteristics and Site Parameters Nuclear Regulatory Commission. AGENCY: E:\FR\FM\27MYN1.SGM 27MYN1 30286 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 101 / Wednesday, May 27, 2015 / Notices Standard review plan-draft section revision; request for comment. ACTION: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is soliciting public comment on NUREG–0800, ‘‘Standard Review Plan (SRP) for the Review of Safety Analysis Reports for Nuclear Power Plants: LWR Edition,’’ Section 2.0, ‘‘Site Characteristics and Site Parameters.’’ The NRC seeks comments on the proposed revised section of the SRP concerning site characteristics and site parameters. DATES: Submit comments by July 27, 2015. Comments received after this date will be considered, if it is practical to do so, but the Commission is able to ensure consideration only for comments received on or before this date. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods (unless this document describes a different method for submitting comments on a specific subject): • Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC–2015–0131. Address questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301–415–3463; email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document. • Mail comments to: Cindy Bladey, Office of Administration, Mail Stop: O12–H08, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555– 0001. • For additional direction on accessing information and submitting comments, see ‘‘Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments’’ in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Notich, telephone: 301–415–3053; email: Mark.Notich@nrc.gov, or Demetrius Murray, telephone: 301–415– 7646; email: Demetrius.Murray@nrc.gov, both are staff of the Office of New Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555– 0001. SUMMARY: SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments A. Obtaining Information Please refer to Docket ID NRC–2015– 0131 when contacting the NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You may obtain publicly-available information related to this action by the following methods: VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:45 May 26, 2015 Jkt 235001 • Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC–2015–0131. • NRC’s Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS): You may obtain publiclyavailable documents online in the ADAMS Public Documents collection 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 numbers for the documents associated with the proposed revisions are available in ADAMS as follows: SRP Section 2.0, ‘‘Site Characteristics and Site Parameters.’’ proposed Revision 1 (ADAMS Accession No. ML15043A732), current Revision 0 (ADAMS Accession No. ML070400364), and the redline document (ADAMS Accession No. ML14091B080). • 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. B. Submitting Comments Please include Docket ID NRC–2015– 0131 in the subject line of your comment submission, in order to ensure that the NRC is able to make your comment submission available to the public in this docket. The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your comment submission. The NRC posts all comment submissions at https:// www.regulations.gov as well as entering the comment submissions into ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove identifying or contact information. If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove such information before making the comment submissions available to the public or entering the comment submissions into ADAMS. PO 00000 Frm 00081 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 II. Further Information The NRC proposes to revise SRP Section 2.0, ‘‘Site Characteristics and Site Parameters,’’ in Chapter 2 of NUREG–0800, ‘‘Standard Review Plan for the Review of Safety Analysis Reports for Nuclear Power Plants: LWR Edition.’’ The proposed changes to the SRP Section 2.0 reflect the current staff review methods and practices based on lessons learned from NRC reviews of early site permit, design certification and combined license applications completed since the last revision of this section. The changes include: (1) Clarifying the areas of review by providing definitions and a more detailed description of what is reviewed under part 52 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), application; (2) adding more detailed to text and references to regulations to clarify acceptance criteria requirements; and (3) providing clarification on the review of site parameters and site characteristics. Following the NRC staff’s evaluation of public comments, the NRC intends to finalize SRP Section 2.0, Revision 1 in ADAMS and post it on the NRC’s public Web site https://www.nrc.gov/readingrm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr0800/. The SRP is a guidance for the NRC staff. The SRP is not a substitute for the NRC’s regulations, and compliance with the SRP is not required. III. Backfitting and Issue Finality Issuance of this SRP section revisions does not constitute backfitting as defined in 10 CFR 50.109 (the Backfit Rule) nor is it inconsistent with the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR part 52. The NRC’s position is based upon the following considerations. 1. The SRP Positions Would Not Constitute Backfitting, Inasmuch as the SRP Is Internal Guidance to the NRC Staff The SRP provides internal guidance to the NRC staff on how to review an application for NRC regulatory approval in the form of licensing. Changes in internal staff guidance are not matters for which either nuclear power plant applicants or licensees are protected under either the Backfit Rule or the issue finality provisions of 10 CFR part 52. 2. The NRC Staff Has No Intention To Impose the SRP Positions on Existing Licensees Either Now or in the Future The NRC staff does not intend to impose or apply the positions described in the SRP to existing licenses and regulatory approvals. Hence, the issuance of this SRP—even if E:\FR\FM\27MYN1.SGM 27MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 101 / Wednesday, May 27, 2015 / Notices considered guidance within the purview of the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR part 52—does not need to be evaluated as if it were a backfit or as being inconsistent with issue finality provisions. If, in the future, the NRC staff seeks to impose a position in the SRP on holders of already issued licenses in a manner that does not provide issue finality as described in the applicable issue finality provision, then the staff must make the showing as set forth in the Backfit Rule or address the criteria for avoiding issue finality as described in the applicable issue finality provision. 3. Backfitting and Issue Finality Do Not—With Limited Exceptions Not Applicable Here—Protect Current or Future Applicants mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES Applicants and potential applicants are not, with certain exceptions, protected by either the Backfit Rule or any issue finality provisions under 10 CFR part 52. Neither the Backfit Rule nor the issue finality provisions under 10 CFR part 52—with certain exclusions—were intended to apply to every NRC action that substantially changes the expectations of current and future applicants. The exceptions to the general principle are applicable whenever an applicant references a 10 CFR part 52 license (e.g., an early site permit) or NRC regulatory approval (e.g., a design certification rule) with specified issue finality provisions. The NRC staff does not, at this time, intend to impose the positions represented in the SRP in a manner that is inconsistent with any issue finality provisions. If, in the future, the staff seeks to impose a position in the SRP section in a manner that does not provide issue finality as described in the applicable issue finality provision, then the staff must address the criteria for avoiding issue finality as described in the applicable issue finality provision. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 14th day of May 2015. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Joseph Colaccino, Chief, New Reactor Rulemaking and Guidance Branch, Division of Advanced Reactors and Rulemaking, Office of New Reactors. [FR Doc. 2015–12785 Filed 5–26–15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590–01–P VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:45 May 26, 2015 Jkt 235001 NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC–2015–0132] Fire Probabilistic Risk Assessment Courses Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Notice of public workshop. AGENCY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research (RES), in cooperation with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), will hold joint courses on fire probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). Since 2002, RES and EPRI, under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Cooperative Nuclear Safety Research, have been developing state-of-the-art methods for conduct of fire PRA. In September 2005, this work produced the ‘‘EPRI/NRC– RES Fire PRA Methodology for Nuclear Power Facilities,’’ NUREG/CR–6850 (EPRI 1011989). DATES: Five modules will be held between July 20, 2015, and September 28, 2015. See Section II, Public Workshop, of this document for more information. SUMMARY: Please refer to Docket ID NRC–2015–0132 when contacting the NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You may obtain publicly-available information related to this document using any of the following methods: • Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC–2015–0132. Address questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301–415–3463; email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document. • NRC’s Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS): You may obtain publiclyavailable documents online in the ADAMS Public Documents collection 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 (if it available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is referenced. ADDRESSES: PO 00000 Frm 00082 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 30287 • 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: Kendra Hill, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research; U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555–0001; telephone: 301–251– 3300; email: Kendra.Hill@nrc.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Background The courses cover the state-of-the-art methodology presented in NUREG/CR– 6850 (EPRI 1011989). Training will also include discussions relating the fire PRA portion of the ASME/ANS PRA Standard to the methodology of NUREG/CR–6850 (EPRI 1011989). Five modules cover the major technical areas of the fire PRA methodology. This year each module will be offered only one time at either the NRC or EPRI offices. Participants may attend as many modules as they wish during the year. II. Public Workshop Module I PRA will be held September 28–October 2, 2015, at the EPRI Office, 1300 W. W.T. Harris Boulevard, Building 3–741 A&D, Charlotte, North Carolina 28262. Module II Electrical Analysis will be held August 24–28, 2015, at the NRC, Three White Flint North, 11601 Landsdown Street, North Bethesda, Maryland 20852. Module III Fire Analysis will be held July 20–24, 2015, at the NRC in North Bethesda, Maryland. Module IV HRA will be held September 28–October 2, 2015, at the EPRI office in Charlotte, North Carolina. Module V Advanced Fire Modeling will be held August 17–21, 2015, at the NRC in North Bethesda, Maryland. To register for the courses use the following links: Module I—PRA EPRI/NRC–RES Fire Probabilistic Risk Assessment Training—Module I— Probabilistic Risk Assessment September 28–October 2, 2015—EPRI Offices, Charlotte, NC Module II—Electrical Analysis EPRI/NRC–RES Fire Probabilistic Risk Assessment Training—Module II— Electrical Analysis August 24–28, 2015—NRC Offices, North Bethesda, MD Module III—Fire Analysis EPRI/NRC–RES Fire Probabilistic Risk Assessment Training—Module III— Fire Analysis July 20–24, 2015—NRC Offices, North E:\FR\FM\27MYN1.SGM 27MYN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 101 (Wednesday, May 27, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30285-30287]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-12785]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2015-0131]


Proposed Revision to Site Characteristics and Site Parameters

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

[[Page 30286]]


ACTION: Standard review plan-draft section revision; request for 
comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is soliciting 
public comment on NUREG-0800, ``Standard Review Plan (SRP) for the 
Review of Safety Analysis Reports for Nuclear Power Plants: LWR 
Edition,'' Section 2.0, ``Site Characteristics and Site Parameters.'' 
The NRC seeks comments on the proposed revised section of the SRP 
concerning site characteristics and site parameters.

DATES: Submit comments by July 27, 2015. Comments received after this 
date will be considered, if it is practical to do so, but the 
Commission is able to ensure consideration only for comments received 
on or before this date.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods 
(unless this document describes a different method for submitting 
comments on a specific subject):
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2015-0131. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact 
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this document.
     Mail comments to: Cindy Bladey, Office of Administration, 
Mail Stop: O12-H08, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001.
     For additional direction on accessing information and 
submitting comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting 
Comments'' in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Notich, telephone: 301-415-3053; 
email: Mark.Notich@nrc.gov, or Demetrius Murray, telephone: 301-415-
7646; email: Demetrius.Murray@nrc.gov, both are staff of the Office of 
New Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2015-0131 when contacting the NRC 
about the availability of information regarding this document. You may 
obtain publicly-available information related to this action by the 
following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2015-0131.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the 
ADAMS Public Documents collection 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 numbers for the documents associated with the proposed 
revisions are available in ADAMS as follows: SRP Section 2.0, ``Site 
Characteristics and Site Parameters.'' proposed Revision 1 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML15043A732), current Revision 0 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML070400364), and the redline document (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML14091B080).
     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.

B. Submitting Comments

    Please include Docket ID NRC-2015-0131 in the subject line of your 
comment submission, in order to ensure that the NRC is able to make 
your comment submission available to the public in this docket.
    The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact 
information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your 
comment submission. The NRC posts all comment submissions at https://www.regulations.gov as well as entering the comment submissions into 
ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove 
identifying or contact information.
    If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons 
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to 
include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be 
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should 
state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to 
remove such information before making the comment submissions available 
to the public or entering the comment submissions into ADAMS.

II. Further Information

    The NRC proposes to revise SRP Section 2.0, ``Site Characteristics 
and Site Parameters,'' in Chapter 2 of NUREG-0800, ``Standard Review 
Plan for the Review of Safety Analysis Reports for Nuclear Power 
Plants: LWR Edition.'' The proposed changes to the SRP Section 2.0 
reflect the current staff review methods and practices based on lessons 
learned from NRC reviews of early site permit, design certification and 
combined license applications completed since the last revision of this 
section. The changes include: (1) Clarifying the areas of review by 
providing definitions and a more detailed description of what is 
reviewed under part 52 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
(10 CFR), application; (2) adding more detailed to text and references 
to regulations to clarify acceptance criteria requirements; and (3) 
providing clarification on the review of site parameters and site 
characteristics.
    Following the NRC staff's evaluation of public comments, the NRC 
intends to finalize SRP Section 2.0, Revision 1 in ADAMS and post it on 
the NRC's public Web site https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr0800/. The SRP is a guidance for the NRC 
staff. The SRP is not a substitute for the NRC's regulations, and 
compliance with the SRP is not required.

III. Backfitting and Issue Finality

    Issuance of this SRP section revisions does not constitute 
backfitting as defined in 10 CFR 50.109 (the Backfit Rule) nor is it 
inconsistent with the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR part 52. The 
NRC's position is based upon the following considerations.

1. The SRP Positions Would Not Constitute Backfitting, Inasmuch as the 
SRP Is Internal Guidance to the NRC Staff

    The SRP provides internal guidance to the NRC staff on how to 
review an application for NRC regulatory approval in the form of 
licensing. Changes in internal staff guidance are not matters for which 
either nuclear power plant applicants or licensees are protected under 
either the Backfit Rule or the issue finality provisions of 10 CFR part 
52.

2. The NRC Staff Has No Intention To Impose the SRP Positions on 
Existing Licensees Either Now or in the Future

    The NRC staff does not intend to impose or apply the positions 
described in the SRP to existing licenses and regulatory approvals. 
Hence, the issuance of this SRP--even if

[[Page 30287]]

considered guidance within the purview of the issue finality provisions 
in 10 CFR part 52--does not need to be evaluated as if it were a 
backfit or as being inconsistent with issue finality provisions. If, in 
the future, the NRC staff seeks to impose a position in the SRP on 
holders of already issued licenses in a manner that does not provide 
issue finality as described in the applicable issue finality provision, 
then the staff must make the showing as set forth in the Backfit Rule 
or address the criteria for avoiding issue finality as described in the 
applicable issue finality provision.

3. Backfitting and Issue Finality Do Not--With Limited Exceptions Not 
Applicable Here--Protect Current or Future Applicants

    Applicants and potential applicants are not, with certain 
exceptions, protected by either the Backfit Rule or any issue finality 
provisions under 10 CFR part 52. Neither the Backfit Rule nor the issue 
finality provisions under 10 CFR part 52--with certain exclusions--were 
intended to apply to every NRC action that substantially changes the 
expectations of current and future applicants. The exceptions to the 
general principle are applicable whenever an applicant references a 10 
CFR part 52 license (e.g., an early site permit) or NRC regulatory 
approval (e.g., a design certification rule) with specified issue 
finality provisions. The NRC staff does not, at this time, intend to 
impose the positions represented in the SRP in a manner that is 
inconsistent with any issue finality provisions. If, in the future, the 
staff seeks to impose a position in the SRP section in a manner that 
does not provide issue finality as described in the applicable issue 
finality provision, then the staff must address the criteria for 
avoiding issue finality as described in the applicable issue finality 
provision.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 14th day of May 2015.
    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Joseph Colaccino,
Chief, New Reactor Rulemaking and Guidance Branch, Division of Advanced 
Reactors and Rulemaking, Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2015-12785 Filed 5-26-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
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