[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 148 (Tuesday, August 3, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Page 42154]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-19858]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. STN 50-454 and STN 50-455]


In the Matter of Commonwealth Edison Company; Byron Station, 
Units 1 and 2; Exemption

I

    Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd, the licensee) is the holder of 
Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-37 and NPF-66 for the Byron 
Station, Units 1 and 2. The licenses provide, among other things, that 
the licensee is subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of the 
Commission now or hereafter in effect.
    Byron Station consists of two pressurized water reactors located in 
Ogle County, Illinois.

II

    Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Section 
50.71, ``Maintenance of records, making of reports,'' paragraph (e)(4) 
states, in part, that ``[s]ubsequent revisions [to the Updated Final 
Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR)] must be filed annually or 6 months 
after each refueling outage provided the interval between successive 
updates [to the UFSAR] does not exceed 24 months.'' Byron, Units 1 and 
2, and the Braidwood station, Units 1 and 2, share a common FSAR. 
Therefore, this rule requires the licensee to update the same document 
annually or within 6 months after each unit's refueling outage.

III

    Section 50.12(a) of 10 CFR, ``Specific exemptions,'' states:

    The Commission may, upon application by any interested person or 
upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from the requirements of 
the regulations of this part, which are--(1) Authorized by law, will 
not present an undue risk to the public health and safety, and are 
consistent with the common defense and security. (2) The Commission 
will not consider granting an exemption unless special circumstances 
are present.

    Section 50.12(a)(2)(ii) of 10 CFR states that special circumstances 
are present when ``[a]pplication of the regulation in the particular 
circumstances would not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is 
not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule.'' The 
licensee has proposed updating the Braidwood/Byron UFSAR no later than 
24 calendar months from the date of the previous UFSAR revision 
submittal. The underlying purpose of the rule was to relieve licensees 
of the burden of filing annual UFSAR revisions while assuring that such 
revisions are made at least every 24 months. The Commission reduced the 
burden, in part, by permitting a licensee to submit its UFSAR revisions 
6 months after refueling outages for its facility, but did not provide 
in the rule for multiple unit facilities sharing a common UFSAR. 
Rather, the Commission stated that ``[w]ith respect to . . . multiple 
facilities sharing a common UFSAR, licensees will have maximum 
flexibility for scheduling updates on a case-by-case basis' (57 FR 
39355 (1992)).
    As noted In the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation, the licensee's 
proposed schedule for the Braidwood/Byron UFSAR updates will ensure 
that the UFSAR will be maintained current for both units within 24 
months of the last revision. The proposed schedule satisfies the 
maximum 24-month interval between UFSAR revisions specified by 10 CFR 
50.71(e)(4). The requirement to revise the UFSAR annually or within 6 
months after refueling outages for each unit, therefore, is not 
necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule. Accordingly, 
the Commission has determined that special circumstances are present as 
defined in 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii). The Commission has further 
determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the exemption is authorized 
by law, will not present an undue risk to the public health and safety 
and is consistent with the common defense and security, and is 
otherwise in the public interest.
    The Commission hereby grants the licensee an exemption from the 
requirement of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(4) to submit updates to the Braidwood/
Byron UFSAR annually or within 6 months of each unit's refueling 
outage. The licensee will be required to submit updates to the 
Braidwood/Byron UFSAR within 24 months of the previous UFSAR revision 
submittal.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that 
granting of this exemption will have no significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment (64 FR 39177).
    This exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 27th day of July 1999.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John A. Zwolinski,
Director, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 99-19858 Filed 8-2-99; 8:45 am]
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