Variable Annual Fee Structure for Small Modular Reactors; Corrections, 45963-45965 [2016-16659]

Agencies

• NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 136 (Friday, July 15, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 45963-45965]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-16659]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 171

[NRC-2008-0664]
RIN 3150-AI54


Variable Annual Fee Structure for Small Modular Reactors; 
Corrections

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; correcting amendments.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) published a final 
rule in the Federal Register on May 24, 2016, amending its licensing, 
inspection, and annual fee regulations to establish a variable annual 
fee

[[Page 45964]]

structure for light-water small modular reactors. The final rule 
contained a grammatical error in a definition, an incorrect reference 
format, and an incomplete signature date. This document corrects the 
final rule by revising the sections that contain these errors and 
completing the signature date.

DATES: This rule is effective on July 15, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2008-0664 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-2008-0664. 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 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 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: Michele Kaplan, Office of the Chief 
Financial Officer, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001, telephone: 301-415-5256, email: Michele.Kaplan@nrc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NRC published a final rule in the 
Federal Register on May 24, 2016 (81 FR 32617), effective June 23, 
2016, amending its licensing, inspection, and annual fee regulations in 
parts 170 and 171 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations to 
establish a variable annual fee structure for light-water small modular 
reactors. The final rule contained a grammatical error in the 
definition of variable rate that was added to Sec.  171.5, 
``Definitions,'' and an incorrect reference format in a paragraph that 
was added to Sec.  171.15, ``Annual fees: Reactor licenses and 
independent spent fuel storage licenses.'' The final rule also included 
an incomplete signature date for the rule. This document corrects the 
final rule by revising the definition for variable rate, revising the 
reference format in Sec.  171.15(e)(1), and correcting the signature 
date for the final rule.

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. As authorized by 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B), the NRC 
finds good cause to waive notice and opportunity for comment on the 
amendments because they will have no substantive impact and are of a 
minor and administrative nature dealing with corrections to certain CFR 
sections related only to management, organization, procedure, and 
practice. Specifically, these amendments are to correct grammatical 
errors and to revise cross-references to comply with the Office of the 
Federal Register's Document Drafting Handbook. These amendments do not 
require action by any person or entity regulated by the NRC. Also, the 
final rule does not change the substantive responsibilities of any 
person or entity regulated by the NRC. Furthermore, for the reasons 
stated above, the NRC finds, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), that good 
cause exists to make this rule effective upon publication of this 
notice.

Correction to the Signature Date

    In FR Doc. 2016-11975 appearing on page 32617 in the Federal 
Register of Tuesday, May 24, 2016, the following correction to the 
signature date is made:
    1. On page 32628, in the first column, the signature date is 
corrected to read as follows: Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 6th 
day of May, 2016.

List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 171

    Annual charges, Byproduct material, Holders of certificates, 
registrations, approvals, Intergovernmental relations, Nonpayment 
penalties, Nuclear materials, Nuclear power plants and reactors, Source 
material, Special nuclear material.

    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 correcting amendments to 10 CFR part 171:

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

0
1. The authority citation for part 171 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: Atomic Energy Act of 1954, secs. 11, 161(w), 223, 234 
(42 U.S.C. 2014, 2201(w), 2273, 2282); Energy Reorganization Act of 
1974, sec. 201 (42 U.S.C. 5841); 42 U.S.C. 2214; 44 U.S.C. 3504 
note.


0
2. In Sec.  171.5, revise the definition of variable rate to read as 
follows:


Sec.  171.5  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Variable rate means a per-MWt fee factor applied to all bundled 
units on site with a licensed thermal power rating less than or equal 
to 2,000 MWt. For the first bundled unit on a site with a licensed 
thermal power rating greater than 250 MWt and less than or equal to 
2,000 MWt, the variable rate is based on the difference between the 
maximum fee and the minimum fee, divided by 1,750 MWt (the variable fee 
licensed thermal rating range). For additional bundled units with a 
licensed thermal power rating less than or equal to 2,000 MWt, the 
variable rate is based on the maximum fee divided by 2,000 MWt.

0
3. In Sec.  171.15, revise paragraph (e)(1) to read as follows:


Sec.  171.15  Annual fees: Reactor licenses and independent spent fuel 
storage licenses.

* * * * *
    (e)(1) Each person holding an operating license for an SMR issued 
under 10 CFR part 50 or a combined license issued under 10 CFR part 52 
after the Commission has made the finding under 10 CFR 52.103(g), shall 
pay the annual fee for all licenses held for an SMR site. The annual 
fee will be determined using the cumulative licensed thermal power 
rating of all SMR units and the bundled unit concept, during the fiscal 
year in which the fee is due. For a given site, the use of the bundled 
unit concept is independent of the number of SMR plants, the number of 
SMR licenses issued, or the sequencing of the SMR licenses that have 
been issued.
* * * * *


[[Page 45965]]


    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 8th day of July 2016.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Theresa Barczy,
Acting Branch Chief, Rules, Announcements and Directives Branch, 
Division of Administrative Services, Office of Administration.
[FR Doc. 2016-16659 Filed 7-14-16; 8:45 am]
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