[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 217 (Friday, November 8, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68210-68211]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-28482]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[IA-02-022]


Ms. Patricia A. McGinn; Order Prohibiting Involvement in NRC-
Licensed Activities (Effective Immediately)

    From December 1995 to May 2000, Ms. Patricia A. McGinn was a Human 
Resources Coordinator for Cataract/RCM Technologies, Inc., (Cataract/
RCM or Contractor) located at 2500 McClellan Avenue, Suite 350, 
Pennsauken, New Jersey 08109. Cataract/RCM was a contractor to 
facilities licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or 
Commission) pursuant to 10 CFR Part 50.
    On September 29, 2000, the NRC's Office of Investigations (OI) 
initiated an investigation to determine whether Patricia A. McGinn, 
while employed by Cataract/RCM Technologies, Inc., deliberately 
falsified background information that was used to support the granting 
of unescorted access authorizations at Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) 
and other NRC licensee facilities.
    As background, 10 CFR 73.56, ``Personnel access authorization 
requirements for nuclear power plants,'' requires that background 
investigations be conducted prior to allowing unescorted access to 
protected and vital areas of nuclear power plants. At a minimum, a 
background investigation must verify an individual's true identity, and 
develop information concerning an individual's employment history, 
education history, credit history, criminal history, military service, 
and verify an individual's character and reputation.
    The investigation determined that on January 6, 1998, TVA received 
the results of an employee's (Employee A) criminal history check from 
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) indicating that Employee A 
had prior misdemeanor charges. This information had not been 
highlighted or identified during the process conducted by Cataract/RCM 
to issue Employee A a temporary unescorted access authorization 
clearance. This process included documenting answers to criminal 
history questions from the employee that reasonably should have 
revealed the existence of the prior misdemeanor charges. No such 
history was documented in the records produced by Cataract/RCM. When 
confronted, Employee A indicated that he had not been questioned about 
his criminal history. Ms. McGinn, the Cataract/RCM Human Resources 
Coordinator at the time, claimed that the employee had been asked the 
questions, yet had not disclosed anything derogatory.
    Subsequently, the TVA Office of the Inspector General (OIG) 
conducted an investigation. The TVA OIG investigation concluded that 
Ms. McGinn did not contact four of the five references for Employee A 
which she documented as having contacted. TVA OIG also concluded that 
Ms. McGinn had falsified information in Cataract/RCM's security files 
for three other individuals. TVA OIG determined from the background 
investigation files for three other individuals that documentation of 
reference checks existed for references who either did not exist, did 
not remember being contacted by Ms. McGinn, or did not make the 
statements attributed to them.
    OI contacted 13 individuals whom Ms. McGinn reportedly contacted in 
the course of her background investigations for other licensees. These 
individuals denied knowing or providing the names given by the Human 
Resources Coordinator as developed references. Some questioned the 
responses attributed to them, stating that the information provided on 
the Cataract/RCM Reference Forms was, in part, inaccurate or 
incomplete.
    OI subsequently interviewed Ms. McGinn. During that interview Ms. 
McGinn provided similar information as she did during the TVA OIG 
interview. Based on the interviews and records reviews discussed above, 
OI concluded she deliberately falsified Cataract/RCM background 
investigations, allowing unescorted access for numerous contractors at 
TVA and other NRC-licensed facilities.
    Based on the above, the NRC has concluded that Ms. McGinn's actions 
constitute a violation of 10 CFR 50.5(a)(2), which prohibits an 
individual from deliberately submitting to the NRC, a licensee, or a 
licensee's contractor, information that the person submitting the 
information knows to be incomplete or inaccurate in some respect 
material to the NRC. The inaccurate information was material in that it 
was relied upon to grant unescorted access to individuals who 
potentially could have presented a security threat to nuclear power 
plants.
    Ms. McGinn's actions in deliberately falsifying information 
relating to numerous background investigations, and her 
unresponsiveness to the NRC, have raised serious doubt as to whether 
she can be relied upon to comply with NRC requirements.
    Consequently, I lack the requisite reasonable assurance that 
licensed

[[Page 68211]]

activities can be conducted in compliance with the Commission's 
requirements and that the health and safety of the public will be 
protected if Ms. McGinn were permitted at this time to be involved in 
NRC licensed activities. Therefore, the public health, safety and 
interest require that Ms. McGinn be prohibited from any involvement in 
NRC-licensed activities for a period of three years from the date of 
this Order. Additionally, Ms. McGinn is required to notify the NRC of 
her first employment in NRC-licensed activities at any time following 
the prohibition period. Furthermore, pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202, I find 
that the deliberate nature of Ms. Patricia A. McGinn's conduct 
described above, in a sensitive area like nuclear security, is such 
that the public health, safety and interest require that this Order be 
immediately effective.
    Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 53, 103, 161b, 161i, 161o, 182 
and 186 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the 
Commission's regulations in 10 CFR 2.202, 10 CFR 50.5, and 10 CFR 
150.20, it is hereby ordered, effective immediately, that:
    1. Ms. Patricia A. McGinn is prohibited for three years from the 
date of this Order from engaging in NRC-licensed activities. NRC-
licensed activities are those activities that are conducted pursuant to 
a specific or general license issued by the NRC, including, but not 
limited to, those activities of Agreement State licensees conducted 
pursuant to the authority granted by 10 CFR 150.20.
    2. If Ms. Patricia A. McGinn is currently involved with another 
licensee in NRC-licensed activities, she must immediately cease those 
activities, and inform the NRC of the name, address and telephone 
number of the employer, and provide a copy of this order to the 
employer.
    3. At any time after the three year period of prohibition has 
expired, Ms. Patricia A. McGinn shall, within 20 days of acceptance of 
her first employment offer involving NRC-licensed activities or her 
becoming involved in NRC-licensed activities, as defined in Paragraph 
IV.1 above, provide notice to the Director, Office of Enforcement, U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, of the name, 
address, and telephone number of the employer or the entity where she 
is, or will be, involved in the NRC-licensed activities. In the 
notification, Ms. McGinn shall include a statement of her commitment to 
compliance with regulatory requirements and the basis why the 
Commission should have confidence that she will now comply with 
applicable NRC requirements.
    The Director, Office of Enforcement, may, in writing, relax or 
rescind any of the above conditions upon demonstration by Ms. Patricia 
A. McGinn of good cause.
    In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202, Ms. Patricia A. McGinn must, and 
any other person adversely affected by this Order may, submit an answer 
to this Order, and may request a hearing on this Order, within 20 days 
of the date of this Order. Where good cause is shown, consideration 
will be given to extending the time to request a hearing. A request for 
extension of time must be made in writing to the Director, Office of 
Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, 
and include a statement of good cause for the extension. The answer may 
consent to this Order. Unless the answer consents to this Order, the 
answer shall, in writing and under oath or affirmation, specifically 
admit or deny each allegation or charge made in this Order and shall 
set forth the matters of fact and law on which Ms. Patricia A. McGinn 
or other person adversely affected relies and the reasons as to why the 
Order should not have been issued. Any answer or request for a hearing 
shall be submitted to the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Attn: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, Washington, DC 
20555. Copies also shall be sent to the Director, Office of 
Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, 
to the Assistant General Counsel for Materials Litigation and 
Enforcement at the same address, to the Regional Administrator, NRC 
Region II, 61 Forsyth St. SW, Suite 23T85, Atlanta, GA 30303-8931, and 
to Ms. Patricia A. McGinn if the answer or hearing request is by a 
person other than Ms. Patricia A. McGinn. Because of continuing 
disruptions in delivery of mail to United States Government offices, it 
is requested that answers and requests for hearing be transmitted to 
the Secretary of the Commission either by means of facsimile 
transmission to 301-415-1101 or by e-mail to [email protected] and 
also to the Office of the General Counsel either by means of facsimile 
transmission to 301-415-3725 or by e-mail to [email protected]. If 
a person other than Ms. Patricia A. McGinn requests a hearing, that 
person shall set forth with particularity the manner in which his or 
her interest is adversely affected by this Order and shall address the 
criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.714(d).\1\
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    \1\ The most recent version of Title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations, published January 1, 2002, inadvertently omitted the 
last sentence of 10 CFR 2.714 (d) and paragraphs (d)(1) and (d)(2) 
regarding petitions to intervene and contentions. For the complete, 
corrected text of 10 CFR 2.714 (d), please see 67 FR 20884; April 
29, 2002.
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    If a hearing is requested by Ms. Patricia A. McGinn or a person 
whose interest is adversely affected, the Commission will issue an 
Order designating the time and place of any hearing. If a hearing is 
held, the issue to be considered at such hearing shall be whether this 
Order should be sustained.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202(c)(2)(i), Ms. Patricia A. McGinn, may, in 
addition to demanding a hearing, at the time the answer is filed or 
sooner, move the presiding officer to set aside the immediate 
effectiveness of the Order on the ground that the Order, including the 
need for immediate effectiveness, is not based on adequate evidence but 
on mere suspicion, unfounded allegations, or error.
    In the absence of any request for hearing, or written approval of 
an extension of time in which to request a hearing, the provisions 
specified in Section IV above shall be effective and final 20 days from 
the date of this Order without further order or proceedings. If an 
extension of time for requesting a hearing has been approved, the 
provisions specified in Section IV shall be final when the extension 
expires if a hearing request has not been received. An answer or a 
request for hearing shall not stay the immediate effectiveness of this 
order.

    Dated this 31st day of October 2002.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
William F. Kane,
Deputy Executive Director for Reactor Programs.
[FR Doc. 02-28482 Filed 11-7-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P