Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station, Units 1 and 2 and Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation; Consideration of Approval of Transfer of Licenses, 34282-34285 [2021-13778]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
34282
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 122 / Tuesday, June 29, 2021 / Notices
honor our commitment to the research
and support community to provide a
safe and equitable workplace.
DATES: Comments should be submitted
as soon as possible upon publication of
this notice in the Federal Register.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Suzanne H. Plimpton, Reports Clearance
Officer, National Science Foundation,
2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Room W
18000, Alexandria, Virginia 22314; or
send email to splimpto@nsf.gov.
Individuals who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf
(TDD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–
8339, which is accessible 24 hours a
day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year
(including federal holidays).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. chapter 35; as amended) and 5
CFR part 1320 require each Federal
agency to obtain OMB approval to
initiate an information collection
activity. NSF is seeking OMB approval
for the following information collection:
OMB Control Number: 3145–NEW.
Title: Office of Polar Programs (OPP)
United States Antarctic Program (USAP)
Sexual Assault and Harassment
Prevention and Response (SAHPR) Data
Collection Plan.
Type of Review: Emergency approval
of information collection.
Expected Number of Respondents:
1,000 Survey Respondents; 150 Focus
Group Participants; 30 Stakeholder
Interviewees.
Frequency: Annual survey. Initial
interview and focus groups, with follow
on scheduled as needed.
Estimated Average Burden per
Response: 10–15 minutes/survey; 120
minutes/focus group; 60 minutes/
interview.
Survey. The survey will collect
information about organizational and
community culture on the ice,
perceptions of the issues of sexual
assault and harassment, perceptions of
leadership support, and the formal and
informal interactions between USAP
participants on the ice. The surveys will
enable the data analysis effort to explore
the differences in experience and
perceptions based on demographic
analysis. The survey will be conducted
via an online portal and will not collect
any personally identifiable information.
The questions will be developed by
professionals and will be representative
best practices for similar efforts. The
target audience will be USAP
participants who have deployed to
Antarctica within the previous three
years.
Focus Groups. The purpose of
conducting focus groups is to ascertain
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:06 Jun 28, 2021
Jkt 253001
an understanding of organizational and
community culture on the ice,
perceptions of the issues of sexual
assault and harassment, perceptions of
leadership support, unique needs, and
the formal and informal interactions
between USAP participants on the ice.
The focus groups will be facilitated by
our SAHPR contractor and will follow a
prescribed script. The groups will be
comprised of USAP participants
selected for specific groups based on
organization, deployment type, work
schedule, et cetera.
Stakeholder Interviews. The purpose
of the stakeholder interviews is to gain
a deeper understanding of current
conditions, organizational capacity, and
organizational needs that will inform
and impact the creation of a realistic
and effective USAP SAHPR
implementation plan. Interviews will be
conducted by our SAHPR contractor
with vetted personnel representing
various organizations comprising the
USAP and will follow scripted
questions.
Dated: June 21, 2021.
Suzanne H. Plimpton,
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science
Foundation.
[FR Doc. 2021–13799 Filed 6–28–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50–528, 50–529, and 72–44;
NRC–2021–0126]
Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station,
Units 1 and 2 and Independent Spent
Fuel Storage Installation;
Consideration of Approval of Transfer
of Licenses
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Application for indirect transfer
of license; opportunity to comment,
request a hearing, and petition for leave
to intervene.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC, the Commission)
received and is considering approval of
a license transfer application filed by
Arizona Public Service Company (APS),
on behalf of the Salt River Project
Agricultural Improvement and Power
District (SRP) and Public Service
Company of New Mexico (PNM) on May
19, 2021. The application seeks NRC
approval of the transfer of Renewed
Facility Operating License Nos. NPF–41
and NPF–51 for Palo Verde Nuclear
Generating Station (Palo Verde), Units 1
and 2, respectively, and the general
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00088
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
license for the Palo Verde Independent
Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI)
as a result of SRP acquiring PNM’s
7.9333330 percent share of the
undivided interests in Palo Verde, Unit
1, and 0.7933333 percent share of the
undivided interests in Palo Verde, Unit
2, whereby SRP would own a total of
25.423333 percent of the shares in Unit
1, and 18.2833333 percent of the shares
in Unit 2, and PNM would own a total
of 2.266667 percent of the shares in Unit
1, and 9.4066667 percent of the shares
in Unit 2.
DATES: Comments must be filed by July
29, 2021. Requests for a hearing or
petitions for leave to intervene must be
filed by July 19, 2021.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
by any of the following methods;
however, the NRC encourages electronic
comment submission through the
Federal Rulemaking website:
• Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
for Docket ID NRC–2021–0126. Address
questions about Docket IDs in
Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann;
telephone: 301–287–0624; email:
Stacy.Schumann@nrc.gov. For technical
questions, contact the individual listed
in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section of this document.
• Email comments to:
Hearing.Docket@nrc.gov. If you do not
receive an automatic email reply
confirming receipt, then contact us at
301–415–1677.
• Fax comments to: Secretary, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission at 301–
415–1101.
• Mail comments to: Secretary, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555–0001, ATTN:
Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff.
For additional direction on obtaining
information and submitting comments,
see ‘‘Obtaining Information and
Submitting Comments’’ in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of
this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Siva
P. Lingam, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555–
0001; telephone: 301–415–1564, email:
Siva.Lingam@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Obtaining Information and
Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC–2021–
0126 when contacting the NRC about
the availability of information for this
action. You may obtain publicly
available information related to this
action by any of the following methods:
E:\FR\FM\29JNN1.SGM
29JNN1
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 122 / Tuesday, June 29, 2021 / Notices
• Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
for Docket ID NRC–2021–0126.
• 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
‘‘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 application for transfer of
licenses dated May 19, 2021, is available
in ADAMS under Accession No.
ML21139A330.
• Attention: The PDR, where you may
examine and order copies of public
documents, is currently closed. You
may submit your request to the PDR via
email at pdr.resource@nrc.gov or call 1–
800–397–4209 or 301–415–4737,
between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (ET),
Monday through Friday, except Federal
holidays.
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
B. Submitting Comments
The NRC encourages electronic
comment submission through the
Federal Rulemaking Website (https://
www.regulations.gov). Please include
Docket ID NRC–2021–0126 in your
comment submission.
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 will post all comment
submissions at https://
www.regulations.gov as well as enter 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. Introduction
The NRC is considering the issuance
of an order under § 50.80 and § 72.50 of
title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR) approving the
partial transfer of Renewed Facility
Operating License Nos. NPF–41 and
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:06 Jun 28, 2021
Jkt 253001
NPF–51 for Palo Verde, Units 1 and 2,
respectively, and the general license for
the Palo Verde ISFSI. The proposed
partial license transfer would result
from SRP acquiring PNM’s 7.9333330
percent share of the undivided interests
in Palo Verde, Unit 1, and 0.7933333
percent share of the undivided interests
in Palo Verde, Unit 2.
According to the application, PNM
currently has a 10.2 percent interest in
Palo Verde, Units 1, 2, and 3. While
most of this interest is directly owned
by PNM, the remainder, specifically the
Unit 1 interests and Unit 2 interest, is
leased from financial institutions
pursuant to sale-leaseback transactions
PNM executed in 1985 and 1986 with
investment and banking firms. As the
lessee, PNM retained all of the leasehold
and control rights and responsibility
associated therewith. The NRC
consented to these sale-leaseback
transactions (ADAMS Accession No.
ML021680489). Under the terms of
these past transactions, the Unit 1
interests and the Unit 2 interest are
currently held in trust and leased to
PNM pursuant to the NRC’s prior
orders, license amendments, and
creditor regulations in accordance with
10 CFR 50.81. The sale-leaseback
transactions were structured so that
although the investment and banking
firms own the Unit 1 interests and the
Unit 2 interest, none has direct or
indirect controlling interest in Palo
Verde. Instead, under the leases, PNM
retains leasehold and control rights and
responsibility under the NRC licenses
for these interests.
According to the application, PNM
entered into a total of 11 sale-leaseback
transactions refinancing portions of its
interests in Palo Verde, Units 1 and 2.
Six leases have since expired, leaving
five remaining. This application
concerns those remaining five leases,
which are approaching their expiration
dates and cannot be renewed, with four
leases expiring in 2023 and one in 2024.
The financial institutions have agreed to
sell and transfer these interests to SRP
starting from 2021 and SRP has agreed
to purchase these interests, provided
that SRP and PNM have secured the
requisite approval from the NRC for SRP
ownership of the incremental interests
once the leases expire. After the
proposed transfer, SRP would own a
total of 25.423333 percent of the shares
in Unit 1, and 18.2833333 percent of the
shares in Unit 2, and PNM would own
a total of 2.266667 percent of the shares
in Unit 1, and 9.4066667 percent of the
shares in Unit 2. APS owns a 29.1
percent tenant-in-common interest and
holds both operating and possession
rights in the NRC licenses. Further, APS
PO 00000
Frm 00089
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
34283
operates, and would continue to
operate, each of the Palo Verde units
and the ISFSI pursuant to the operating
rights granted to it under the license of
each Palo Verde unit. The remaining
tenant-in-common co-owners that hold
possession-only rights in the NRC
licenses are: Southern California Edison
Company (15.8 percent); IIF US Holding
2 LP (15.8 percent); Southern California
Public Power Authority (5.91 percent);
and Los Angeles Department of Water
and Power (5.7 percent). Although the
ownership interests in Palo Verde
would change, significant actions
involving operation of the Palo Verde
units require unanimity of all owners of
Palo Verde. Currently, no entity owns
50 percent or more of the voting
interests. The same would be true
following the proposed transfer of the
leased interests. Accordingly, after the
effective date of the transactions, there
would be no change in the control of
operation of Palo Verde; APS would
continue to make all technical decisions
that do not require approval from all
owners of Palo Verde.
No physical changes to the facilities
or operational changes are being
proposed in the application.
The NRC’s regulations at 10 CFR
50.80 and 10 CFR 72.50 state that no
license, or any right thereunder, shall be
transferred, either voluntarily or
involuntarily, directly or indirectly,
through transfer of control of the
license, unless the Commission gives its
consent in writing. The Commission
will approve an application for the
transfer of a license if the Commission
determines that the proposed transferee
is qualified to be the holder of the
license, and that the transfer is
otherwise consistent with applicable
provisions of law, regulations, and
orders issued by the Commission.
III. Opportunity to Comment
Within 30 days from the date of
publication of this notice, persons may
submit written comments regarding the
license transfer application, as provided
for in 10 CFR 2.1305. The Commission
will consider and, if appropriate,
respond to these comments, but such
comments will not otherwise constitute
part of the decisional record. Comments
should be submitted as described in the
ADDRESSES section of this document.
IV. Opportunity To Request a Hearing
and Petition for Leave To Intervene
Within 20 days after the date of
publication of this notice, any persons
(petitioner) whose interest may be
affected by this action may file a request
for a hearing and petition for leave to
intervene (petition) with respect to the
E:\FR\FM\29JNN1.SGM
29JNN1
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
34284
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 122 / Tuesday, June 29, 2021 / Notices
action. Petitions shall be filed in
accordance with the Commission’s
‘‘Agency Rules of Practice and
Procedure’’ in 10 CFR part 2. Interested
persons should consult a current copy
of 10 CFR 2.309. The NRC’s regulations
are accessible electronically from the
NRC Library on the NRC’s website at
https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doccollections/cfr/. If a petition is filed, the
Commission or a presiding officer will
rule on the petition and, if appropriate,
a notice of a hearing will be issued.
As required by 10 CFR 2.309(d) the
petition should specifically explain the
reasons why intervention should be
permitted with particular reference to
the following general requirements for
standing: (1) The name, address, and
telephone number of the petitioner; (2)
the nature of the petitioner’s right to be
made a party to the proceeding; (3) the
nature and extent of the petitioner’s
property, financial, or other interest in
the proceeding; and (4) the possible
effect of any decision or order which
may be entered in the proceeding on the
petitioner’s interest.
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(f),
the petition must also set forth the
specific contentions that the petitioner
seeks to have litigated in the
proceeding. Each contention must
consist of a specific statement of the
issue of law or fact to be raised or
controverted. In addition, the petitioner
must provide a brief explanation of the
bases for the contention and a concise
statement of the alleged facts or expert
opinion that support the contention and
on which the petitioner intends to rely
in proving the contention at the hearing.
The petitioner must also provide
references to the specific sources and
documents on which the petitioner
intends to rely to support its position on
the issue. The petition must include
sufficient information to show that a
genuine dispute exists with the
applicant or licensee on a material issue
of law or fact. Contentions must be
limited to matters within the scope of
the proceeding. The contention must be
one that, if proven, would entitle the
petitioner to relief. A petitioner who
fails to satisfy the requirements at 10
CFR 2.309(f) with respect to at least one
contention will not be permitted to
participate as a party.
Those permitted to intervene become
parties to the proceeding, subject to any
limitations in the order granting leave to
intervene. Parties have the opportunity
to participate fully in the conduct of the
hearing with respect to resolution of
that party’s admitted contentions,
including the opportunity to present
evidence, consistent with the NRC’s
regulations, policies, and procedures.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:06 Jun 28, 2021
Jkt 253001
Petitions must be filed no later than
20 days from the date of publication of
this notice. Petitions and motions for
leave to file new or amended
contentions that are filed after the
deadline will not be entertained absent
a determination by the presiding officer
that the filing demonstrates good cause
by satisfying the three factors in 10 CFR
2.309(c)(1)(i) through (iii). The petition
must be filed in accordance with the
filing instructions in the ‘‘Electronic
Submissions (E-Filing)’’ section of this
document.
A State, local governmental body,
Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or
agency thereof, may submit a petition to
the Commission to participate as a party
under 10 CFR 2.309(h)(1). The petition
should state the nature and extent of the
petitioner’s interest in the proceeding.
The petition should be submitted to the
Commission no later than 20 days from
the date of publication of this notice.
The petition must be filed in accordance
with the filing instructions in the
‘‘Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)’’
section of this document, and should
meet the requirements for petitions set
forth in this section, except that under
10 CFR 2.309(h)(2) a State, local
governmental body, Federally
recognized Indian Tribe, or agency
thereof does not need to address the
standing requirements in 10 CFR
2.309(d) if the facility is located within
its boundaries. Alternatively, a State,
local governmental body, Federally
recognized Indian Tribe, or agency
thereof may participate as a non-party
under 10 CFR 2.315(c).
If a hearing is granted, any person
who is not a party to the proceeding and
is not affiliated with or represented by
a party may, at the discretion of the
presiding officer, be permitted to make
a limited appearance pursuant to the
provisions of 10 CFR 2.315(a). A person
making a limited appearance may make
an oral or written statement of his or her
position on the issues but may not
otherwise participate in the proceeding.
A limited appearance may be made at
any session of the hearing or at any
prehearing conference, subject to the
limits and conditions as may be
imposed by the presiding officer. Details
regarding the opportunity to make a
limited appearance will be provided by
the presiding officer if such sessions are
scheduled.
V. Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)
All documents filed in NRC
adjudicatory proceedings, including a
request for hearing and petition for
leave to intervene (petition), any motion
or other document filed in the
proceeding prior to the submission of a
PO 00000
Frm 00090
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
request for hearing or petition to
intervene, and documents filed by
interested governmental entities that
request to participate under 10 CFR
2.315(c), must be filed in accordance
with the NRC’s E-Filing rule (72 FR
49139; August 28, 2007, as amended at
77 FR 46562, August 3, 2012). The EFiling process requires participants to
submit and serve all adjudicatory
documents over the internet, or in some
cases to mail copies on electronic
storage media. Detailed guidance on
making electronic submissions may be
found in the Guidance for Electronic
Submissions to the NRC and on the NRC
website at https://www.nrc.gov/sitehelp/e-submittals.html. Participants
may not submit paper copies of their
filings unless they seek an exemption in
accordance with the procedures
described below.
To comply with the procedural
requirements of E-Filing, at least 10
days prior to the filing deadline, the
participant should contact the Office of
the Secretary by email at
hearing.docket@nrc.gov, or by telephone
at 301–415–1677, to (1) request a digital
identification (ID) certificate, which
allows the participant (or its counsel or
representative) to digitally sign
submissions and access the E-Filing
system for any proceeding in which it
is participating; and (2) advise the
Secretary that the participant will be
submitting a petition or other
adjudicatory document (even in
instances in which the participant, or its
counsel or representative, already holds
an NRC-issued digital ID certificate).
Based upon this information, the
Secretary will establish an electronic
docket for the hearing in this proceeding
if the Secretary has not already
established an electronic docket.
Information about applying for a
digital ID certificate is available on the
NRC’s public website at https://
www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/
getting-started.html. Once a participant
has obtained a digital ID certificate and
a docket has been created, the
participant can then submit
adjudicatory documents. Submissions
must be in Portable Document Format
(PDF). Additional guidance on PDF
submissions is available on the NRC’s
public website at https://www.nrc.gov/
site-help/electronic-sub-ref-mat.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 EFiling system timestamps the document
and sends the submitter an email notice
E:\FR\FM\29JNN1.SGM
29JNN1
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 122 / Tuesday, June 29, 2021 / Notices
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 document on those
participants separately. Therefore,
applicants and other participants (or
their counsel or representative) must
apply for and receive a digital ID
certificate before adjudicatory
documents are filed so that they can
obtain access to the documents via the
E-Filing system.
A person filing electronically using
the NRC’s adjudicatory E-Filing system
may seek assistance by contacting the
NRC’s Electronic Filing Help Desk
through the ‘‘Contact Us’’ link located
on the NRC’s public website 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
Electronic Filing Help Desk is available
between 9 a.m. and 6 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 stating why there is good cause for
not filing electronically and 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, 11555 Rockville Pike,
Rockville, Maryland, 20852, Attention:
Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff.
Participants filing adjudicatory
documents 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
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:06 Jun 28, 2021
Jkt 253001
electronic hearing docket which is
available to the public at https://
adams.nrc.gov/ehd, unless excluded
pursuant to an order of the Commission
or the presiding officer. If you do not
have an NRC-issued digital ID certificate
as described above, click ‘‘cancel’’ when
the link requests certificates and you
will be automatically directed to the
NRC’s electronic hearing docket where
you will be able to access any publicly
available documents in a particular
hearing docket. Participants are
requested not to include personal
privacy information, such as social
security numbers, home addresses, or
personal phone numbers in their filings,
unless an NRC regulation or other law
requires submission of such
information. For example, in some
instances, individuals provide home
addresses in order to demonstrate
proximity to a facility or site. 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
submission.
The Commission will issue a notice or
order granting or denying a hearing
request or intervention petition,
designating the issues for any hearing
that will be held, and designating the
Presiding Officer. A notice granting a
hearing will be published in the Federal
Register and served on the parties to the
hearing.
For further details with respect to this
application, see the application dated
May 19, 2021 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML21139A330).
Dated: June 23, 2021.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Siva P. Lingam,
Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch IV,
Division of Operating Reactor Licensing,
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2021–13778 Filed 6–28–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. MC2021–104; Order No. 5926]
Mail Classification Schedule
Postal Regulatory Commission.
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
The Commission is
acknowledging a recent Postal Service
filing concerning size changes to the
Mail Classification Schedule related to
presorted First-Class Mail postcards.
This document informs the public of the
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00091
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
34285
filing, invites public comment, and
takes other administrative steps.
DATES: Comments are due: July 6, 2021.
ADDRESSES: Submit comments
electronically via the Commission’s
Filing Online system at https://
www.prc.gov. Those who cannot submit
comments electronically should contact
the person identified in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section by
telephone for advice on filing
alternatives.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
David A. Trissell, General Counsel, at
202–789–6820.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. Commission Action
IIII. Ordering Paragraphs
I. Introduction
On June 23, 2021, the Postal Service
filed a Notice with the Commission
pursuant to 39 CFR 3040.211 to change
the size limitations for presorted FirstClass Mail postcards in Section 1110 in
the Market Dominant Product List in the
Mail Classification Schedule (MCS).1 In
addition to its Notice, the Postal Service
filed the following document:
• Attachment 1 to the Notice—
Revisions to Mail Classification
Schedule of applicable parts of Section
1110 Presorted Letters/Postcards of the
MCS language.
The Postal Service proposed to
‘‘update the maximum size limit for
presorted [First-Class Mail] FCM
postcards, so that it would be 9 inches
length by 6 inches height, instead of the
current 6 inches length by 41⁄4 inches
height.’’ Notice at 2. The Postal Service
describes the proposed changes as a
result of the Postal Service’s outreach to
mailers, who indicated that ‘‘postcards
are an effective engagement and
information tool, and the larger
presorted postcard size would allow
commercial mailers to capitalize on
recipients’ attention for promotion and
information purposes,’’ increasing the
overall utility of postcards to mailers.
Id. at 3.
The Postal Service describes the
impact of the proposed changes on the
users of First-Class Mail postcards as an
expansion of the options available to
commercial mailers, and that it would
not restrict current options in any
manner, as current customers could
either choose to send the larger FirstClass Mail postcards or continue to send
1 Notice of the United States Postal Service of
Update to the Maximum Size Limit for Presorted
First-Class Mail Postcards, June 23, 2021, at 1
(Notice).
E:\FR\FM\29JNN1.SGM
29JNN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 122 (Tuesday, June 29, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34282-34285]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-13778]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-528, 50-529, and 72-44; NRC-2021-0126]
Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station, Units 1 and 2 and
Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation; Consideration of Approval
of Transfer of Licenses
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Application for indirect transfer of license; opportunity to
comment, request a hearing, and petition for leave to intervene.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission)
received and is considering approval of a license transfer application
filed by Arizona Public Service Company (APS), on behalf of the Salt
River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District (SRP) and
Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) on May 19, 2021. The
application seeks NRC approval of the transfer of Renewed Facility
Operating License Nos. NPF-41 and NPF-51 for Palo Verde Nuclear
Generating Station (Palo Verde), Units 1 and 2, respectively, and the
general license for the Palo Verde Independent Spent Fuel Storage
Installation (ISFSI) as a result of SRP acquiring PNM's 7.9333330
percent share of the undivided interests in Palo Verde, Unit 1, and
0.7933333 percent share of the undivided interests in Palo Verde, Unit
2, whereby SRP would own a total of 25.423333 percent of the shares in
Unit 1, and 18.2833333 percent of the shares in Unit 2, and PNM would
own a total of 2.266667 percent of the shares in Unit 1, and 9.4066667
percent of the shares in Unit 2.
DATES: Comments must be filed by July 29, 2021. Requests for a hearing
or petitions for leave to intervene must be filed by July 19, 2021.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods;
however, the NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the
Federal Rulemaking website:
Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2021-0126. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann;
telephone: 301-287-0624; email: [email protected]. For technical
questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section of this document.
Email comments to: [email protected]. If you do not
receive an automatic email reply confirming receipt, then contact us at
301-415-1677.
Fax comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission at 301-415-1101.
Mail comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemakings and
Adjudications Staff.
For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Siva P. Lingam, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-1564, email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2021-0126 when contacting the NRC
about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain
publicly available information related to this action by any of the
following methods:
[[Page 34283]]
Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2021-0126.
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 ``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 [email protected]. The application for transfer of
licenses dated May 19, 2021, is available in ADAMS under Accession No.
ML21139A330.
Attention: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies
of public documents, is currently closed. You may submit your request
to the PDR via email at [email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or
301-415-4737, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (ET), Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays.
B. Submitting Comments
The NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the
Federal Rulemaking Website (https://www.regulations.gov). Please
include Docket ID NRC-2021-0126 in your comment submission.
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 will post all comment submissions at
https://www.regulations.gov as well as enter 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. Introduction
The NRC is considering the issuance of an order under Sec. 50.80
and Sec. 72.50 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)
approving the partial transfer of Renewed Facility Operating License
Nos. NPF-41 and NPF-51 for Palo Verde, Units 1 and 2, respectively, and
the general license for the Palo Verde ISFSI. The proposed partial
license transfer would result from SRP acquiring PNM's 7.9333330
percent share of the undivided interests in Palo Verde, Unit 1, and
0.7933333 percent share of the undivided interests in Palo Verde, Unit
2.
According to the application, PNM currently has a 10.2 percent
interest in Palo Verde, Units 1, 2, and 3. While most of this interest
is directly owned by PNM, the remainder, specifically the Unit 1
interests and Unit 2 interest, is leased from financial institutions
pursuant to sale-leaseback transactions PNM executed in 1985 and 1986
with investment and banking firms. As the lessee, PNM retained all of
the leasehold and control rights and responsibility associated
therewith. The NRC consented to these sale-leaseback transactions
(ADAMS Accession No. ML021680489). Under the terms of these past
transactions, the Unit 1 interests and the Unit 2 interest are
currently held in trust and leased to PNM pursuant to the NRC's prior
orders, license amendments, and creditor regulations in accordance with
10 CFR 50.81. The sale-leaseback transactions were structured so that
although the investment and banking firms own the Unit 1 interests and
the Unit 2 interest, none has direct or indirect controlling interest
in Palo Verde. Instead, under the leases, PNM retains leasehold and
control rights and responsibility under the NRC licenses for these
interests.
According to the application, PNM entered into a total of 11 sale-
leaseback transactions refinancing portions of its interests in Palo
Verde, Units 1 and 2. Six leases have since expired, leaving five
remaining. This application concerns those remaining five leases, which
are approaching their expiration dates and cannot be renewed, with four
leases expiring in 2023 and one in 2024. The financial institutions
have agreed to sell and transfer these interests to SRP starting from
2021 and SRP has agreed to purchase these interests, provided that SRP
and PNM have secured the requisite approval from the NRC for SRP
ownership of the incremental interests once the leases expire. After
the proposed transfer, SRP would own a total of 25.423333 percent of
the shares in Unit 1, and 18.2833333 percent of the shares in Unit 2,
and PNM would own a total of 2.266667 percent of the shares in Unit 1,
and 9.4066667 percent of the shares in Unit 2. APS owns a 29.1 percent
tenant-in-common interest and holds both operating and possession
rights in the NRC licenses. Further, APS operates, and would continue
to operate, each of the Palo Verde units and the ISFSI pursuant to the
operating rights granted to it under the license of each Palo Verde
unit. The remaining tenant-in-common co-owners that hold possession-
only rights in the NRC licenses are: Southern California Edison Company
(15.8 percent); IIF US Holding 2 LP (15.8 percent); Southern California
Public Power Authority (5.91 percent); and Los Angeles Department of
Water and Power (5.7 percent). Although the ownership interests in Palo
Verde would change, significant actions involving operation of the Palo
Verde units require unanimity of all owners of Palo Verde. Currently,
no entity owns 50 percent or more of the voting interests. The same
would be true following the proposed transfer of the leased interests.
Accordingly, after the effective date of the transactions, there would
be no change in the control of operation of Palo Verde; APS would
continue to make all technical decisions that do not require approval
from all owners of Palo Verde.
No physical changes to the facilities or operational changes are
being proposed in the application.
The NRC's regulations at 10 CFR 50.80 and 10 CFR 72.50 state that
no license, or any right thereunder, shall be transferred, either
voluntarily or involuntarily, directly or indirectly, through transfer
of control of the license, unless the Commission gives its consent in
writing. The Commission will approve an application for the transfer of
a license if the Commission determines that the proposed transferee is
qualified to be the holder of the license, and that the transfer is
otherwise consistent with applicable provisions of law, regulations,
and orders issued by the Commission.
III. Opportunity to Comment
Within 30 days from the date of publication of this notice, persons
may submit written comments regarding the license transfer application,
as provided for in 10 CFR 2.1305. The Commission will consider and, if
appropriate, respond to these comments, but such comments will not
otherwise constitute part of the decisional record. Comments should be
submitted as described in the ADDRESSES section of this document.
IV. Opportunity To Request a Hearing and Petition for Leave To
Intervene
Within 20 days after the date of publication of this notice, any
persons (petitioner) whose interest may be affected by this action may
file a request for a hearing and petition for leave to intervene
(petition) with respect to the
[[Page 34284]]
action. Petitions shall be filed in accordance with the Commission's
``Agency Rules of Practice and Procedure'' in 10 CFR part 2. Interested
persons should consult a current copy of 10 CFR 2.309. The NRC's
regulations are accessible electronically from the NRC Library on the
NRC's website at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/cfr/.
If a petition is filed, the Commission or a presiding officer will rule
on the petition and, if appropriate, a notice of a hearing will be
issued.
As required by 10 CFR 2.309(d) the petition should specifically
explain the reasons why intervention should be permitted with
particular reference to the following general requirements for
standing: (1) The name, address, and telephone number of the
petitioner; (2) the nature of the petitioner's right to be made a party
to the proceeding; (3) the nature and extent of the petitioner's
property, financial, or other interest in the proceeding; and (4) the
possible effect of any decision or order which may be entered in the
proceeding on the petitioner's interest.
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(f), the petition must also set
forth the specific contentions that the petitioner seeks to have
litigated in the proceeding. Each contention must consist of a specific
statement of the issue of law or fact to be raised or controverted. In
addition, the petitioner must provide a brief explanation of the bases
for the contention and a concise statement of the alleged facts or
expert opinion that support the contention and on which the petitioner
intends to rely in proving the contention at the hearing. The
petitioner must also provide references to the specific sources and
documents on which the petitioner intends to rely to support its
position on the issue. The petition must include sufficient information
to show that a genuine dispute exists with the applicant or licensee on
a material issue of law or fact. Contentions must be limited to matters
within the scope of the proceeding. The contention must be one that, if
proven, would entitle the petitioner to relief. A petitioner who fails
to satisfy the requirements at 10 CFR 2.309(f) with respect to at least
one contention will not be permitted to participate as a party.
Those permitted to intervene become parties to the proceeding,
subject to any limitations in the order granting leave to intervene.
Parties have the opportunity to participate fully in the conduct of the
hearing with respect to resolution of that party's admitted
contentions, including the opportunity to present evidence, consistent
with the NRC's regulations, policies, and procedures.
Petitions must be filed no later than 20 days from the date of
publication of this notice. Petitions and motions for leave to file new
or amended contentions that are filed after the deadline will not be
entertained absent a determination by the presiding officer that the
filing demonstrates good cause by satisfying the three factors in 10
CFR 2.309(c)(1)(i) through (iii). The petition must be filed in
accordance with the filing instructions in the ``Electronic Submissions
(E-Filing)'' section of this document.
A State, local governmental body, Federally recognized Indian
Tribe, or agency thereof, may submit a petition to the Commission to
participate as a party under 10 CFR 2.309(h)(1). The petition should
state the nature and extent of the petitioner's interest in the
proceeding. The petition should be submitted to the Commission no later
than 20 days from the date of publication of this notice. The petition
must be filed in accordance with the filing instructions in the
``Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)'' section of this document, and
should meet the requirements for petitions set forth in this section,
except that under 10 CFR 2.309(h)(2) a State, local governmental body,
Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or agency thereof does not need to
address the standing requirements in 10 CFR 2.309(d) if the facility is
located within its boundaries. Alternatively, a State, local
governmental body, Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or agency thereof
may participate as a non-party under 10 CFR 2.315(c).
If a hearing is granted, any person who is not a party to the
proceeding and is not affiliated with or represented by a party may, at
the discretion of the presiding officer, be permitted to make a limited
appearance pursuant to the provisions of 10 CFR 2.315(a). A person
making a limited appearance may make an oral or written statement of
his or her position on the issues but may not otherwise participate in
the proceeding. A limited appearance may be made at any session of the
hearing or at any prehearing conference, subject to the limits and
conditions as may be imposed by the presiding officer. Details
regarding the opportunity to make a limited appearance will be provided
by the presiding officer if such sessions are scheduled.
V. Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)
All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, including a
request for hearing and petition for leave to intervene (petition), any
motion or other document filed in the proceeding prior to the
submission of a request for hearing or petition to intervene, and
documents filed by interested governmental entities that request to
participate under 10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in accordance with the
NRC's E-Filing rule (72 FR 49139; August 28, 2007, as amended at 77 FR
46562, August 3, 2012). The E-Filing process requires participants to
submit and serve all adjudicatory documents over the internet, or in
some cases to mail copies on electronic storage media. Detailed
guidance on making electronic submissions may be found in the Guidance
for Electronic Submissions to the NRC and on the NRC website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. Participants may not submit
paper copies of their filings unless they seek an exemption in
accordance with the procedures described below.
To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least 10
days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should contact the
Office of the Secretary by email at [email protected], or by
telephone at 301-415-1677, to (1) request a digital identification (ID)
certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or
representative) to digitally sign submissions and access the E-Filing
system for any proceeding in which it is participating; and (2) advise
the Secretary that the participant will be submitting a petition or
other adjudicatory document (even in instances in which the
participant, or its counsel or representative, already holds an NRC-
issued digital ID certificate). Based upon this information, the
Secretary will establish an electronic docket for the hearing in this
proceeding if the Secretary has not already established an electronic
docket.
Information about applying for a digital ID certificate is
available on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/getting-started.html. Once a participant has obtained a
digital ID certificate and a docket has been created, the participant
can then submit adjudicatory documents. Submissions must be in Portable
Document Format (PDF). Additional guidance on PDF submissions is
available on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/electronic-sub-ref-mat.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 timestamps the document
and sends the submitter an email notice
[[Page 34285]]
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 document on those
participants separately. Therefore, applicants and other participants
(or their counsel or representative) must apply for and receive a
digital ID certificate before adjudicatory documents are filed so that
they can obtain access to the documents via the E-Filing system.
A person filing electronically using the NRC's adjudicatory E-
Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC's Electronic
Filing Help Desk through the ``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC's
public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html, by
email to [email protected], or by a toll-free call at 1-866-672-
7640. The NRC Electronic Filing Help Desk is available between 9 a.m.
and 6 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
stating why there is good cause for not filing electronically and
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, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland, 20852, Attention: Rulemaking and
Adjudications Staff. Participants filing adjudicatory documents 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://adams.nrc.gov/ehd, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the
Commission or the presiding officer. If you do not have an NRC-issued
digital ID certificate as described above, click ``cancel'' when the
link requests certificates and you will be automatically directed to
the NRC's electronic hearing docket where you will be able to access
any publicly available documents in a particular hearing docket.
Participants are requested not to include personal privacy information,
such as social security numbers, home addresses, or personal phone
numbers in their filings, unless an NRC regulation or other law
requires submission of such information. For example, in some
instances, individuals provide home addresses in order to demonstrate
proximity to a facility or site. 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 submission.
The Commission will issue a notice or order granting or denying a
hearing request or intervention petition, designating the issues for
any hearing that will be held, and designating the Presiding Officer. A
notice granting a hearing will be published in the Federal Register and
served on the parties to the hearing.
For further details with respect to this application, see the
application dated May 19, 2021 (ADAMS Accession No. ML21139A330).
Dated: June 23, 2021.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Siva P. Lingam,
Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch IV, Division of Operating
Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2021-13778 Filed 6-28-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
