[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 97 (Monday, May 20, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29392-29393]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-11935]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2013-0098]


Embedded Digital Devices in Safety-Related Systems, Systems 
Important to Safety, and Items Relied on for Safety

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Draft regulatory issue summary; request for comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for 
public comment Draft Regulatory Issue Summary (RIS) 2013-XX, ``Embedded 
Digital Devices in Safety-Related Systems, Systems Important to Safety, 
and Items Relied on For Safety.'' The NRC staff has developed the draft 
RIS to clarify the NRC's technical position on existing regulatory 
requirements for the quality and reliability of basic components with 
embedded digital devices.

DATES: Submit comments by July 19, 2013. Comments received after this 
date will be considered, if it is practical to do so, but the NRC staff 
is able to ensure consideration only for comments received on or before 
this date.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comment by any of the following methods 
(unless this document describes a different method for submitting 
comments on a specific subject):
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2013-0098. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-492-
3668; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact 
the individual(s) listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section 
of this document.
     Mail comments to: Cindy Bladey, Chief, Rules, 
Announcements, and Directives Branch (RADB), Office of Administration, 
Mail Stop: TWB-05-B01M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, 
DC 20555-0001.
     Fax comments to: RADB at 301-492-3446.
    For additional direction on accessing information and submitting 
comments, see ``Accessing Information and Submitting Comments'' in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Eugene Eagle, Office of New 
Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001; Telephone: 301-415-3706; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Accessing Information and Submitting Comments

A. Accessing Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2013-0098 when contacting the NRC 
about the availability of information regarding this document. You may 
access information related to this document, which the NRC possesses 
and is publicly-available, by the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2013-0098.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may access publicly available documents online in the NRC 
Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the 
search,

[[Page 29393]]

select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and then select ``Begin Web-based 
ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's 
Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-
4737, or by email to [email protected]. The draft RIS is available 
in ADAMS under Accession No. ML12248A065.
     NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

B. Submitting Comments

    Please include Docket ID NRC-2013-0098 in the subject line of your 
comment submission, in order to ensure that the NRC is able to make 
your comment submission available to the public in this docket.
    The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact 
information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your 
comment submission. The NRC posts all comment submissions at http://www.regulations.gov as well as entering the comment submissions into 
ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove 
identifying or contact information.
    If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons 
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to 
include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be 
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should 
state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to 
remove such information before making the comment submissions available 
to the public or entering the comment submissions into ADAMS.

II. Background

    The RIS discusses, and clarifies, the NRC's technical position on 
existing regulatory requirements for the quality and reliability of 
basic components with embedded digital devices. Further, the purpose is 
to also raise awareness that there may be potential safety issues from 
a postulated common cause failure (CCF) if an undetected software error 
should occur in embedded digital devices located in multiple trains of 
redundant safety equipment in nuclear facilities.
    The NRC plans to hold a public meeting to discuss this RIS and the 
issues associated with embedded digital devices. All comments that are 
to receive consideration in the final RIS must still be submitted 
electronically or in writing as indicated below. Additional details 
regarding the meeting will be posted at least 10 days prior to the 
public meeting on NRC's Public Meeting Schedule Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/public-meetings/index.cfm.
    The NRC issues RISs to communicate with stakeholders on a broad 
range of matters. This may include communicating staff technical 
positions on matters that have not been communicated to, or, are not 
broadly understood by the nuclear industry.

Proposed Action

    The NRC is requesting public comments on the draft RIS. The NRC 
plans to hold a public meeting in the near future to discuss Draft 
Regulatory Issue Summary (RIS) 2013-XX, ``Embedded Digital Devices in 
Safety-Related Systems, Systems Important to Safety, and Items Relied 
on For Safety,'' and to obtain feedback from members of the public. The 
meeting agenda will be posted at least 10 days prior to the public on 
the NRC's Public Meeting Schedule Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/public-meetings/index.cfm. Information regarding topics 
to be discussed, changes to the agenda, whether the meeting has been 
cancelled or rescheduled, and the time allotted for public comments can 
be obtained from the Public Meeting Schedule Web site.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 8th day of May 2013.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Ian C. Jung,
Chief, Instrumentation, Controls and Electronics Engineering Branch 2 
Division of Engineering, Office of New Reactor.
[FR Doc. 2013-11935 Filed 5-17-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P