Nuclear Regulatory Commission October 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Notice is hereby given that the staff of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has prepared a model safety evaluation (SE) relating to the modification of shutdown testing requirements in technical specifications (TS) for Boiling Water Reactors (BWR). The NRC staff has also prepared a model no-significant-hazards-consideration (NSHC) determination relating to this matter. The purpose of these models is to permit the NRC to efficiently process amendments that propose to modify LCO 3.10.1. The proposed changes would revise LCO 3.10.1, and the associated Bases, to expand its scope to include provisions for temperature excursions greater than [200] [deg]F as a consequence of inservice leak and hydrostatic testing, and as a consequence of scram time testing initiated in conjunction with an inservice leak or hydrostatic test, while considering operational conditions to be in Mode 4. Licensees of nuclear power reactors to which the models apply could then request amendments, confirming the applicability of the SE and NSHC determination to their reactors.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend its regulations to incorporate by reference the latest revisions of two previously incorporated regulatory guides (RGs) that approve Code cases published by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). These RGs are 1.84, ``Design and Fabrication Code Case Acceptability, ASME Section III,'' Revision 34 and RG 1.147, ``Inservice Inspection Code Case Acceptability, ASME Section XI, Division 1,'' Revision 15. This proposed action would allow licensees to use the Code Cases listed in the regulatory guides as alternatives to requirements in the ASME BPV Code regarding the construction and inservice inspection of nuclear power plant components.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend the current security regulations and add new security requirements pertaining to nuclear power reactors. Additionally, this rulemaking includes new security requirements for Category I strategic special nuclear material (SSNM) facilities for access to enhanced weapons and firearms background checks. The proposed rulemaking would: Make generically applicable security requirements imposed by Commission orders issued after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, based upon experience and insights gained by the Commission during implementation; fulfill certain provisions of the Energy Policy Act of 2005; add several new requirements that resulted from insights from implementation of the security orders, review of site security plans, and implementation of the enhanced baseline inspection program and force-on-force exercises; update the regulatory framework in preparation for receiving license applications for new reactors; and impose requirements to assess and manage site activities that can adversely affect safety and security. The proposed safety and security requirements would address, in part, a petition for rulemaking (PRM 50- 80) that requests the establishment of regulations governing proposed changes to facilities which could adversely affect the protection against radiological sabotage.

On October 12, 2006 (71 FR 60200), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued for public comment NUREG 1852, ``Demonstrating the Feasibility and Reliability of Operator Manual Actions in Response to Fire, Draft Report for Comment.'' A request has been made to extend the public comment period such that the public will have a full 60 days to review this report. Currently, the Federal Register specifies that the public comment period ends on November 6, 2006, less than 30 days after the issuance of the Federal Register Notice.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to supplement its proposed rule entitled ``Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants,'' which was published on March 13, 2006 (71 FR 12782). The NRC is proposing to supplement that proposed rule by amending the regulations applicable to limited work authorizations (LWA), which allow limited construction activities on nuclear power plants to commence before a construction permit or combined license is issued. This supplemental proposed rule would modify the scope of activities that are considered construction requiring a LWA and would also make changes to the review and approval process for LWA requests. The NRC is proposing these changes to enhance the efficiency of its licensing and approval process for new nuclear reactors.

This policy statement presents the revised abnormal occurrence (AO) criteria the Commission uses for selecting AO's for the annual report to Congress as required by Section 208 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93-438). Section 208 of the act defines an AO as an unscheduled incident or event which the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) determines to be significant from the standpoint of public health or safety. The AO criteria have been amended to ensure that the criteria are consistent with the NRC's Strategic Plan for Fiscal Year (FY) 2004-2009 and the NRC rulemaking on Title 10, Part 35, of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR Part 35), ``Medical Use of Byproduct Material.'' Additionally, risk-informed criteria based on the NRC Accident Sequence Precursor (ASP) Program and Reactor Oversight Process (ROP) have been added for selecting abnormal occurrences at commercial nuclear power plants for the report to Congress. The ASP program assesses the risk significance of issues and events. The ROP is a risk-informed, tiered approach to ensuring the safety of nuclear power plants. The ROP is a process for collecting information about licensee performance, assessing the safety significance of the information, taking appropriate actions, and ensuring that licensees correct deficiencies. Some sections of the AO criteria have been restructured. The restructuring accommodates the changes in the criteria and minimizes duplication.

The NRC is soliciting comments from members of the public, licensees, and interest groups related to the implementation of the Reactor Oversight Process (ROP). An electronic version of the survey questions may be obtained from https://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/ rop2006survey.pdf. This solicitation will provide insights into the self-assessment process and a summary of the feedback will be included in the annual ROP self-assessment report to the Commission.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has conducted a comprehensive review of all its Privacy Act systems of records. The NRC is revising and republishing all its systems of records (systems) notices as a result of this review. The systems revisions are minor corrective and administrative changes that do not meet the threshold criteria established by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for either a new or altered system of records.