[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 74 (Monday, April 19, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19207-19208]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-9744]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION


Public Comment on Recommended Improvements to the Oversight 
Processes for Nuclear Power Reactors

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing 
significant revisions to its processes for overseeing the safety 
performance of commercial nuclear power plants that include integrating 
the inspection, assessment, and enforcement processes. As part of its 
proposal, the NRC staff established a new regulatory oversight 
framework with a set of performance indicators and associated 
thresholds, developed a new baseline inspection program that 
supplements and verifies the performance indicators, and created a 
continuous assessment process that includes a method for consistently 
determining the appropriate regulatory actions in response to varying 
levels of safety performance. The changes are the result of continuing 
work on a concept as described in SECY-99-007A,'' Recommendations for 
Reactor Oversight Improvements (Follow-Up to SECY-99-007)'' dated March 
22, 1999. The NRC is soliciting comments from interested public 
interest groups, the regulated industry, States, and concerned 
citizens. The NRC staff will consider comments it receives in 
developing the procedures for implementing the new processes.

DATES: The comment period expires May 14, 1999. Comments received after 
this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the 
Commission is able to ensure consideration only for comments received 
on or before this date.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to: Chief, Rules and Directives 
Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Office of Administration, 
Mail Stop: T-6 D59, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001. Hand deliver comments 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's Public Document Room, 
2120 L Street, NW (Lower Level), Washington, DC.
    Copies of SECY-99-007A, ``Recommendations for Reactor Oversight 
Process Improvements (Follow-Up to SECY-99-007)'' and its attachments 
may be obtained from the NRC's Public Document Room at 2120 L St., NW, 
Washington, DC 20003-1527, telephone 202-634-3273. Copies also may be 
obtained from the NRC's Internet web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRC/
COMMISSION/SECYS/index.html#1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alan Madison, Mail Stop: O-5 H4, 
Inspection Program Branch, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone 
301-415-1490.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    In September 1997, the NRC began an integrated review of the 
processes used for assessing safety performance by commercial nuclear 
power plant licensees. The NRC staff presented to the Commission a 
conceptual design for a new integrated assessment process in Commission 
paper SECY-98-045, dated March 9, 1998.
    In parallel with the staff's work on the IRAP and the development 
of other assessment tools, the nuclear power industry independently 
developed a proposal for a new assessment and regulatory oversight 
process. This proposal, developed by the Nuclear Energy Institute 
(NEI), took a risk-informed and performance-based approach to the 
inspection, assessment, and enforcement of licensee activities on the 
basis of the results of a set of performance indicators.
    The staff set out to develop a single set of recommendations for 
making improvements to the regulatory oversight processes in response 
to NEI's proposal, the Commission's comments on the IRAP proposal, and 
comments made at a Commission meeting on July 17, 1998, with public and 
industry stakeholders and the hearing before the Senate on July 31, 
1998. The IRAP public comment period, a four day public workshop, and a 
series of public meetings were used to facilitate internal and external 
input into the development of these recommendations.
    Following the public workshop, the NRC staff formed three task 
groups to complete the work begun at the workshop and to develop the 
recommendations for the integrated oversight processes: a technical 
framework task group, an inspection task group, and an assessment 
process task group. The technical framework task group was responsible 
for completing the assessment framework and for identifying the 
performance indicators (PIs) and appropriate thresholds that could be 
used to measure safety performance. The inspection task group was 
responsible for developing the scope, the depth, and the frequency of a 
risk-informed baseline inspection program that would be used to 
supplement and verify the PIs. The assessment process task group 
developed methods for integrating PI data and inspection data, 
determining NRC action on the basis of assessment results, and 
communicating results to licensees and the public. Other staff 
activities to improve the enforcement process were coordinated with 
these three task groups to ensure that changes to the enforcement 
process were properly evaluated in the framework structure and that 
changes to the inspection and assessment programs were integrated with 
the changes to the enforcement program.
    The task groups completed their work between October and December 
1998, and developed recommendations to be presented to the Commission. 
On January 20, 1999, the staff briefed the Commission on the staff's 
proposal as described in SECY-99-007, ``Recommendations for Reactor 
Oversight Improvements.'' Following the January Commission briefing, 
the staff analyzed the results of public comments on SECY-99-007, 
completed remaining concept development, and began development of 
detailed implementing procedures. Additional information and noteworthy 
changes as

[[Page 19208]]

a result of these activities was forwarded to the Commission in SECY-
99-007A, ``Recommendations for Reactor Oversight Process Improvements 
(Follow-Up to SECY-99-007),'' to support final Commission approval of 
the proposed reactor oversight process. The staff briefed the 
Commission on SECY-99-007A and its attachments on March 26, 1999.

Scope of the Public Comment Period

    The follow-up recommendations for an integrated oversight process 
are presented in SECY-99-007A,'' Recommendations for Reactor Oversight 
Process Improvements (Follow-Up to SECY-99-007),'' dated March 22, 
1999, and its attachments. This paper includes further development of 
the Significance Determination Process (SDP) and the revised 
Enforcement policy.
    A separate Federal Register notice will be issued to solicit public 
comment on the proposed enforcement policy. However, respondents are 
welcome to address any portion of the enforcement policy in this 
notice. This public comment period will focus on obtaining industry and 
public views on how the NRC should implement the processes for 
overseeing and assessing licensee safety performance as refined in 
SECY-99-007A and discussed in the Commission meeting on March 26, 1999.
    The NRC seeks public comment and feedback on the topics discussed 
in the SECY and its attachments. Respondents are not limited to and are 
not obligated to provide comments on each attachment. In providing 
comments, please key your response to the applicable attachment and be 
as specific as possible. The use of examples is encouraged.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 13th day of April 1999.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Michael R. Johnson,
Acting Chief, Inspection Program Branch Division of Inspection Program 
Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 99-9744 Filed 4-16-99; 8:45 am]
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