[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 88 (Wednesday, May 7, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24997-24998]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-11833]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION


NUREG-1606, Proposed Regulatory Guidance Related to 
Implementation of 10 CFR 50.59 (Changes, Tests or Experiments)

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued for public 
comment NUREG-1606, a document that presents proposed regulatory 
guidance and staff interpretations regarding implementation of 10 CFR 
50.59. Section 50.59 defines the conditions under which reactor 
licensees may make changes to the facility or procedures as described 
in the safety analysis report (SAR) and the conduct of tests or 
experiments not described in the SAR without prior NRC approval. 
Changes (including tests or experiments) involving a change to the 
technical specifications or an unreviewed safety question require NRC 
approval by a license amendment before implementation. The NRC has been 
evaluating the need to develop or clarify guidance on aspects related 
to 10 CFR 50.59 over the last several months. This draft NUREG issued 
for comment, entitled ``Proposed Regulatory Guidance Related to 
Implementation of 10 CFR 50.59 (Changes, Tests or Experiments)'' 
presents the results of the NRC's review. The draft report was 
forwarded to the Commission in SECY-97-035, dated February 12, 1997. 
The proposed regulatory guidance reaffirms existing regulatory practice 
in many areas; clarifies the NRC's expectations and positions in areas 
where industry practice or position differs from the NRC's expectations 
for implementation of 10 CFR 50.59; and establishes guidance in areas 
where previous guidance did not exist. The NUREG also briefly discusses 
some policy issues related to potential rulemaking for 10 CFR 50.59. 
This document is being issued to seek comment on whether the proposed 
regulatory guidance is clear and whether there are other areas in which 
guidance or changes to the rule would be useful.
    Draft NUREG-1606 is available for inspection and copying for a fee 
at the NRC Public Document Room, 2120 L Street NW (Lower Level), 
Washington D.C. 20555-0001. A free single copy of draft NUREG-1606, to 
the extent of supply, may be requested by writing to Distribution 
Services, Printing, Graphics and Distribution Branch, Office of 
Information Resources Management, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington D.C. 20555-0001.

DATES: The comment period ends July 7, 1997. Comments received after 
that date will be considered to the extent practical. Following review 
of public comments, NRC will determine whether to issue a regulatory 
guide or to take other action. Any changes in industry guidance or 
requirements will be subject to 10 CFR 50.109 backfit review before 
issuance.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments on the NRC document (NUREG-1606) to 
the Chief, Rules and Directives Branch, Division of Administrative 
Services, Office of Administration, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington D.C. 20555-0001. Comments may be hand-delivered to 11545 
Rockville Pike, Rockville Maryland, between 7:45 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. on 
Federal workdays. Copies of comments received may be examined at the 
NRC Public Document Room, 2120 L Street NW, Washington DC.
    Comments may be submitted electronically, in either ASCII text or 
WordPerfect format (version 5.1 or later) by calling the NRC Electronic 
Bulletin Board on FedWorld. The bulletin board may be accessed using a 
personal computer, a modem, and one of the commonly available software 
packages, or directly via Internet.
    If using a personal computer and modem, the NRC subsystem on

[[Page 24998]]

FedWorld can be accessed directly by dialing the toll free number: 1-
800-303-9672. Communication software parameters should be set as 
follows: parity to none, data bits to 8, and stop bits to 1 (N,8,1). 
Using NSAI or VT-100 terminal emulation, the NRC NUREGs and RegGuides 
for Comment subsystem can then be accessed by selecting the ``Rules 
Menu'' option for the ``NRC Main Menu.'' For further information about 
options available for NRC at FedWorld, consult the ``Help/Information 
Center'' from the ``NRC Main Menu.'' Users will find the ``FedWorld 
Online User's Guides'' particularly helpful. Many NRC subsystems and 
databases also have a ``Help/Information Center'' option that is 
tailored to the particular subsystem.
    The NRC subsystem on FedWorld can also be accessed by a direct dial 
phone number for the main FedWorld BBS, 703-321-3339, or by using 
Telnet via Internet, fedworld.gov. If using 703-321-3339 to contact 
FedWorld, the NRC subsystem will be accessed from the main FedWorld 
menu by selecting the ``Regulatory, Government Administration and State 
Systems'', then selecting ``Regulatory Information Mail.'' At that 
point, a menu will be displayed that has an option ``U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission'' that will take you to the NRC Online main menu. 
The NRC Online area also can be accessed directly by typing ``/go nrc'' 
at a FedWorld command line. If you access NRC from FedWorld's main menu 
you may return to FedWorld by selecting the ``Return to FedWorld'' 
option from the NRC Online Main Menu. However, if you access NRC at 
FedWorld by using NRC's toll-free number, you will have full access to 
all NRC systems but you will not have access to the main FedWorld 
system.
    If you contact FedWorld using Telnet, you will see the NRC area and 
menus, including the Rules menu. Although you will be able to download 
documents and leave messages, you will not be able to write comments or 
upload files (comments). If you contact FedWorld using FTP, all files 
can be accessed and downloaded but uploads are not allowed; all you 
will see is a list of files without descriptions (normal Gopher look). 
An index file listing all files within a subdirectory, with 
descriptions, is included. There is a 15-minute time limit for FTP 
access.
    Although FedWorld can be accessed through the World Wide Web, like 
FTP that mode only provides access for downloading files and does not 
display the NRC Rules menu. For more information on NRC bulletin 
boards, call Mr. Arthur Davis, Systems Integration and Development 
Branch, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 20555, 
telephone (301) 415-5780, e-mail AXD[email protected].
    The NUREG report is also electronically available for downloading 
from the Internet through the NRC home page at: ``http://www.nrc.gov/
NRC/NUREGS/SR1606/index.html''. However, comments cannot be provided 
electronically by this means; see above discussion about the NRC BBS 
for electronic filing of comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Eileen McKenna, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington D.C. 
20555, telephone (301) 415-2189; e-mail [email protected].

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 30th day of April 1997.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Marylee M. Slosson,
Acting Director, Division of Reactor Program Management, Office of 
Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 97-11833 Filed 5-6-97; 8:45 am]
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