[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 63 (Friday, April 2, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 16645-16646]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-7394]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 140

[NRC-2009-0516]
RIN 3150-AI74


Increase in the Primary Nuclear Liability Insurance Premium

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its 
regulations that govern financial protection requirements and indemnity 
agreements to increase the primary nuclear liability insurance layer 
from $300 million to $375 million for liability insurance coverage in 
the event of nuclear incidents at licensed, operating, commercial 
nuclear power plants with a rated capacity of 100,000 kW or more.

DATES: Effective Date: May 3, 2010.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anneliese Simmons, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001, telephone 301-415-2791, e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NRC regulations at 10 CFR part 140, 
``Financial Protection Requirements and Indemnity Agreements,'' provide 
requirements and procedures for implementing the financial protection 
requirements for certain licensees and other persons under section 170 
of the Atomic Energy Act (AEA) of 1954, as amended. Section 
140.11(a)(4) specifies the amount of financial protection required of a 
licensee for a nuclear reactor that is licensed to operate, is designed 
for the production of electrical energy, and has a rated capacity of 
100,000 kW or more. This amount is currently $300 million and will 
increase to $375 million, based on an adjustment by American Nuclear 
Insurers (ANI), which currently writes all nuclear liability policies. 
On a periodic basis, ANI assesses current insurance levels to insure 
that adequate financial protection is available, and adjusts insurance 
levels as required. This adjustment is required by the Price-Anderson 
Amendments Act of 1988.
    To implement this adjustment, the Commission is revising 10 CFR 
140.11(a)(4), effective 30 days after publication in the Federal 
Register, to require large nuclear power plant licensees to maintain 
$375 million in primary financial protection. Because this adjustment 
by the Commission is essentially ministerial in nature, the Commission 
finds that there is good cause for omitting notice and public comment 
(in the form of a proposed rule) on this action as unnecessary, under 
the Administrative Procedure Act of 1946 (5 U.S.C. 553b).

Voluntary Consensus Standards

    The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995, 
Public Law 104-113, requires agencies to use technical standards 
developed or adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies unless the 
use of such standards is inconsistent with applicable law or is 
otherwise impractical. The NRC is amending its regulations to increase 
the primary premium for liability insurance coverage in the event of 
nuclear incidents at licensed, operating, commercial nuclear power 
plants with a rated capacity of 100,000 kW or more. This action does 
not constitute the establishment of a standard that contains generally 
applicable requirements.

[[Page 16646]]

Environmental Impact: Categorical Exclusion

    The NRC has determined that this final rule is the type of action 
described in categorical exclusion 10 CFR 51.22(c)(1). Therefore, 
neither an environmental impact statement nor an environmental 
assessment has been prepared for this final rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement

    This final rule does not contain a new or an amended information 
collection requirement subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). Existing requirements were approved by the 
Office of Management and Budget, approval number 3150-0039.

Public Protection Notification

    If a means used to impose an information collection does not 
display a currently valid OMB control number, the NRC may not conduct 
or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, the information 
collection.

Regulatory Analysis

    Because this increase is required by statute, no other alternatives 
were considered. See also the discussion in the Regulatory Flexibility 
Certification for this rule.

Regulatory Flexibility Certification

    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, (5 U.S.C. 605(b)), 
the Commission certifies that this final rule will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
This final rule affects only the licensing and operation of nuclear 
power plants. The companies that own these plants do not fall within 
the scope of the definition of ``small entities'' set forth in the 
Regulatory Flexibility Act or the size standards established by the NRC 
(10 CFR 2.810).

Backfit Analysis

    The NRC has determined that the backfit rule does not apply to this 
final rule. A backfit analysis is not required for this final rule 
because this amendment is mandated by the Price-Anderson Amendments Act 
of 1988 (Pub. L. 100-408).

Congressional Review Act

    Under the Congressional Review Act of 1996, the NRC has determined 
that this action is not a major rule and has verified this 
determination with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of 
OMB.

List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 140

    Criminal penalty, Extraordinary nuclear occurrence, Insurance, 
Intergovernmental relations, Nuclear materials, Nuclear power plants 
and reactors, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.


0
For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of the 
Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; the Energy Reorganization Act of 
1974, as amended; and 5 U.S.C. 552 and 553; the NRC is adopting the 
following amendment to 10 CFR part 140.

PART 140--FINANCIAL PROTECTION REQUIREMENTS AND INDEMNITY 
AGREEMENTS

0
1. The authority citation for Part 140 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  (42 U.S.C. 2201, 2210); secs. 161, 170, 68 Stat. 
948, 71 Stat. 576, as amended; (42 U.S.C. 2201, 2210); secs. 201, as 
amended, 202, 88 Stat. 1242, as amended, 1244 (42 U.S.C. 5841, 
5842); Sec. 1704, 112 Stat. 2750 (44 U.S.C. 3504 note); Pub. L 109-
58.


0
2. In Sec.  140.11, paragraph (a)(4) is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  140.11  Amounts of financial protection for certain reactors.

    (a) * * *
    (4) In an amount equal to the sum of $375,000,000 and the amount 
available as secondary financial protection (in the form of private 
liability insurance available under an industry retrospective rating 
plan providing for deferred premium charges equal to the pro rata share 
of the aggregate public liability claims and costs, excluding costs 
payment of which is not authorized by Section 170o.(1)(D), in excess of 
that covered by primary financial protection) for each nuclear reactor 
which is licensed to operate and which is designed for the production 
of electrical energy and has a rated capacity of 100,000 electrical 
kilowatts or more: Provided, however, that under such a plan for 
deferred premium charges for each nuclear reactor which is licensed to 
operate, no more than $111,900,000 with respect to any nuclear incident 
(plus any surcharge assessed under Subsection 170o.(1)(E) of the Act) 
and no more than $17,500,000 per incident within one calendar year 
shall be charged. Except that, where a person is authorized to operate 
a combination of 2 or more nuclear reactors located at a single site, 
each of which has a rated capacity of 100,000 or more electrical 
kilowatts but not more than 300,000 electrical kilowatts with a 
combined rated capacity of not more than 1,300,000 electrical 
kilowatts, each such combination of reactors shall be considered to be 
a single nuclear reactor for the sole purpose of assessing the 
applicable financial protection required under this section.
* * * * *

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 4th day of March 2010.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
R.W. Borchardt,
Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2010-7394 Filed 4-1-10; 8:45 am]
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