Nuclear Regulatory Commission 2017 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has received a petition for rulemaking dated May 1, 2017, from David Lochbaum with co- petitioner Paul Gunter, on behalf of the Union of Concerned Scientists and Beyond Nuclear (the petitioners), requesting that the NRC ``promulgate regulations that establish acceptable conditions for use of compensatory measures (e.g., fire watches, surveillance cameras, etc.) during periods when fire protection regulations are not met.'' The petition was docketed by the NRC on May 26, 2017, and has been assigned Docket No. PRM-50-115. The NRC is examining the issues raised in PRM- 50-115 to determine whether they should be considered in rulemaking. The NRC is requesting public comment on this petition.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is granting exemption to allow a departure from the certification information of Tier 1 of the generic design control document (DCD) and is issuing License Amendment Nos. 84 and 83 to Combined Licenses (COL), NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively. The COLs were issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc., and Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, MEAG Power SPVM, LLC, MEAG Power SPVJ, LLC, MEAG Power SPVP, LLC, Authority of Georgia, and the City of Dalton, Georgia (the licensee); for construction and operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (VEGP) Units 3 and 4, located in Burke County, Georgia. The granting of the exemption allows the changes to Tier 1 information that is requested in the amendment. Because the acceptability of the exemption was determined in part by the acceptability of the amendment, the exemption and amendment are being issued concurrently.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering issuance of an amendment and exemption to Combined Licenses (NPF-91 and NPF-92), issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc. (SNC), and Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, MEAG Power SPVM, LLC, MEAG Power SPVJ, LLC, MEAG Power SPVP, LLC, Authority of Georgia, and the City of Dalton, Georgia (together ``the licensees''), for construction and operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (VEGP), Units 3 and 4, located in Burke County, Georgia.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is announcing the availability of the latest version of NRC Form 3, ``Notice to Employees.'' The NRC Form 3 describes certain responsibilities and rights of employers and employees who engage in NRC-regulated activities. Licensees are required by law to post the form at prominent locations at the workplace to permit workers to view it easily. Additionally, the NRC is announcing that future revisions of Form 3 will be publicized through an alternative electronic means in addition to the Federal Register.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued renewed Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-76 and NPF-80 to STP Nuclear Operating Company (licensee), the operator of the South Texas Project (STP), Units 1 and 2. Renewed Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-76 and NPF-80 authorize operation of STP by the licensee at reactor core power levels not in excess of 3,853 megawatts thermal for each unit, in accordance with the provisions of the STP renewed licenses and technical specifications. In addition, the NRC has prepared a record of decision (ROD) that supports the NRC's decision to renew Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-76 and NPF-80.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) received and is considering approval of three amendment requests. The amendment requests are for Hope Creek Generating Station, R.E. Ginna Nuclear Power Plant, and Wolf Creek Generating Station. For each amendment request, the NRC proposes to determine that they involve no significant hazards consideration. Because the amendment requests contain sensitive unclassified non-safeguards information (SUNSI) and safeguards information (SGI), an order imposes procedures to obtain access to SUNSI and SGI for contention preparation.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing a revision to its policy statement on reporting abnormal occurrences (AOs) to Congress. The revised policy statement adds more specific criteria for determining those incidents and events that the Commission considers significant from the standpoint of public health or safety for reporting to Congress and the public, and makes the policy consistent with recent changes to NRC regulations. The revised AO criteria contain more discrete reporting thresholds, making them easier to implement and ensuring more consistent reporting.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has recently submitted a proposed collection of information to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The information collection is entitled, ``Solicitation of Non-Power Reactor Operator Licensing Examination Data.''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an environmental assessment (EA) and finding of no significant impact (FONSI) regarding the request for regulatory exemption from specific requirements that would allow the use of operator manual actions related to loss of instrument air regarding Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-65 held by Dominion Nuclear Connecticut, Inc. (Dominion, the licensee) for the operation of Millstone Power Station, Unit No. 2 (Millstone 2).

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend its spent fuel storage regulations by revising the Standardized NUHOMS[supreg] Horizontal Modular Storage System (NUHOMS[supreg] System) listing within the ``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' to renew, for an additional 40-year period, Revision 1 of the initial certificate and Amendment Nos. 1 through 11, and 13, and Amendment No. 14 of Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1004. These changes require, among other things, that all future amendments and revisions to this CoC include evaluations of the impacts to aging management activities (i.e., time-limited aging analyses and aging management programs (AMPs)) to ensure that they remain adequate for any changes to spent fuel storage cask systems, structures, and components (SSCs) within the scope of the renewal. Each general licensee using a NUHOMS[supreg] System at a reactor site must have a program to establish, implement, and maintain written procedures for each AMP described in the AREVA Inc. (AREVA) Updated Final Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR). In addition, the renewals reflect the change in the name of the CoC holder from AREVA to TN Americas LLC, and make several other changes as described in Section IV, ``Discussion of Changes,'' in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of a companion direct final rule published in the Rules and Regulations section of this issue of the Federal Register.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing Revision 0 of Regulatory Guide (RG) 5.88, ``Physical Inventories and Material Balances at Fuel Cycle Facilities.'' This regulatory guide (RG) describes approaches and methods that the staff considers acceptable for licensees and applicants to use when developing material control and accounting (MC&A) system capabilities. This RG pertains to the performance, evaluation, and reporting of physical inventories and material balances at fuel cycle facilities.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has recently submitted a request for renewal of an existing collection of information to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The information collection is entitled, ``Domestic Licensing of Special Nuclear Material.''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is requesting comment on draft NUREG-1614, Volume 7, ``Draft Strategic Plan: Fiscal Years 2018-2022.'' The draft Strategic Plan provides the agency's strategic goals and objectives and proposed strategies for achieving them. The NRC encourages and welcomes public comments that can help it respond to challenges and shape its strategic direction over the next four years, particularly comments on the plan's goals, objectives, and strategies.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is publishing this notice to advise the public of the availability of its Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 Service Contract Inventory and FY 2015 Service Contract Inventory Analysis. The NRC's FY 2016 Service Contract Inventory is included as part of a Government-wide service contract inventory. The inventory includes covered service contracts that were awarded in FY 2016. The FY 2015 Inventory Analysis provides information on specific contract actions that were analyzed as part of the NRC's FY 2015 Service Contract Inventory.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) invites public comment on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for an existing collection of information. The information collection is entitled, ``Public Records.'' NRC updated two forms integral to the agency's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process, NRC Form 509, ``Statement of Estimated Fees for Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request'' and NRC Form 507, ``Freedom of InformationPrivacy Act Record Request Form.''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is withdrawing draft Regulatory Issue Summary (RIS) 2017-XX, ``Status of Regulatory Actions Taken to Address Gas Accumulation in Emergency Core Cooling, Decay Heat Removal, and Containment Spray Systems.'' The NRC has decided to withdraw this RIS after reviewing the comments received during the public comment period.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has recently submitted a request for renewal of an existing collection of information to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The information collection is entitled, ``Fitness-for-Duty Programs.''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has recently submitted a request for renewal of an existing collection of information to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The information collection is entitled, ``Grant and Cooperative Agreement Provisions.''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) invites public comment on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for an existing collection of information. The information collection is entitled, NRC Form 445, ``Request for Approval of Foreign Travel.''