[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 121 (Monday, June 24, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 37721-37722]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-15021]


 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
 the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
 notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
 the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 121 / Monday, June 24, 2013 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 37721]]



NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 50

[NRC-2009-0359]
RIN 3150-AI72


Approval of American Society of Mechanical Engineers' Code Cases

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Draft regulatory guides; request for comment.

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for 
public comment three draft regulatory guides (DG), DG-1230, ``Design, 
Fabrication and Materials Code Case Acceptability, ASME Section III''; 
DG-1231, ``Inservice Inspection Code Case Acceptability, ASME Section 
XI, Division 1''; and DG-1232, ``Operation and Maintenance code Case, 
Acceptability, ASME OM Code.'' The subject DGs list the Code Cases that 
the NRC has approved for use by applicants and licensees. Code Cases 
provide an acceptable voluntary alternative to the mandatory American 
Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel (BPV) 
Code and Operation and Maintenance (OM) of nuclear power plant 
provisions approved by the NRC.

DATES: Submit comments by September 9, 2013. Comments received after 
this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the NRC 
is able to ensure consideration only for comments received on or before 
this date. Although a time limit is given, comments and suggestions in 
connection with items for inclusion in guides currently being developed 
or improvements in all published guides are encouraged at any time.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 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-2009-0359. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-492-
3668; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact 
the individuals 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.
    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: Wallace E. Norris, telephone: 301-251-
7650, email: [email protected]; or Hector Rodriguez-Luccioni, 
telephone: 301-251-7685 or email: [email protected]. 
Both of the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Accessing Information and Submitting Comments

A. Accessing Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2009-0359 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 any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2009-0359.
     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, 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 ADAMS accession number 
for each document referenced in this document (if that document is 
available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is 
referenced.
     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.
    Regulatory guides are not copyrighted, and NRC approval is not 
required to reproduce them.

B. Submitting Comments

    Please include Docket ID NRC-2009-0359 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 you 
comment submission. The NRC will post all comment submissions at http://www.regulations.gov as well as enter 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. Discussion

    The NRC is issuing for public comment three DGs in the NRC's 
``Regulatory Guide'' series. In a notice of proposed rulemaking, 
``Approval of American Society of Mechanical Engineers' Code Cases'' 
(RIN 3150-AI72; NRC-2009-0359), published elsewhere in the Proposed 
Rules section of today's Federal Register (the ``underlying proposed 
rule''), the NRC is proposing to incorporate by reference these three 
DGs into the Commission's regulations at Sec.  50.55a of Title 10 of 
the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR). The underlying proposed rule 
would allow nuclear power plant applicants

[[Page 37722]]

and licensees, and applicants for standard design certifications, and 
standard design approvals to use the Code Cases listed in these three 
DGs as alternatives to requirements in those Editions and Addenda of 
the ASME BPV and OM Codes which the NRC has incorporated by reference 
into 10 CFR 50.55a.

III. Description of Draft Regulatory Guides

    Code Cases provide ASME approved voluntary alternatives to the BPV 
and OM Codes. The DGs are incorporated by reference in 10 CFR 50.55a. 
The NRC-approved Code Cases provide an acceptable voluntary alternative 
to the mandatory ASME Code provisions, but all of the provisions of a 
Code Case must be used, with any identified limitations or 
modifications, if implemented by an applicant or licensee. The NRC 
approves Code Cases in the three DGs described below regarding the 
construction, in-service inspection, and in-service testing of nuclear 
power plant components.
    The DG entitled, ``Design, Fabrication and Materials Code Case 
Acceptability, ASME Section III,'' is temporarily identified by its 
task number, DG-1230 (ADAMS Accession No. ML102590003). The DG-1230 is 
proposed Revision 36 of Regulatory Guide 1.84. Revision 35 of 
Regulatory Guide 1.84 was published in October 2010 (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML101800532).
    The DG entitled, ``Inservice Inspection Code Case Acceptability, 
ASME Section XI, Division1,'' is temporarily identified by its task 
number, DG-1231 (ADAMS Accession No. ML102590004). The DG-1231 is 
proposed Revision 17 of Regulatory Guide 1.147. Revision 16 of 
Regulatory Guide 1.147 was published in October 2010 (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML101800536).
    The DG entitled, ``Operation and Maintenance code Case, 
Acceptability, ASME OM Code,'' is temporarily identified by its task 
number, DG-1232 (ADAMS Accession No. ML102600001). The DG-1232 is 
proposed Revision 1 of Regulatory Guide 1.192. Revision 0 of Regulatory 
Guide 1.192 was published in June 2003 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML030730430).
    The DG-1230 lists the new and revised ASME BPV Section III, ``Rules 
for Construction of Nuclear Power Plant Components,'' Code Cases that 
the NRC has approved for use. The DG-1231 lists the new and revised 
ASME BPV Section XI, ``Rules for Inservice Inspection of Nuclear Power 
Plant Components,'' Code Cases that the NRC has approved for use. The 
new and revised OM Code Cases that the NRC has approved for use are 
listed in DG-1232, ``Operation and Maintenance Code Case Acceptability, 
ASME OM Code.'' For these regulatory guide revisions, the NRC reviewed 
the Code Cases listed in Supplements 1 through 10 to the 2007 Edition 
of the ASME BPV Code and the 2002 through 2006 Addenda of OM Code.

IV. Regulatory Analysis

    The regulatory analysis for the underlying proposed rule also 
addresses these three DGs. Therefore, the NRC did not prepare a 
separate regulatory analysis for these DGs. The NRC is proposing to 
incorporate by reference these DGs into 10 CFR 50.55a, ``Codes and 
standards'' in of the aforementioned proposed rulemaking published 
elsewhere in the Proposed Rules section of today's Federal Register.

V. Backfitting and Issue Finality

    These regulatory guides would approve for use (at the option of 
nuclear power plant applicants and licensees) the ASME Code Cases 
listed in the applicable regulatory guide. In some cases, the NRC's 
approval is conditioned on meeting certain requirements or 
prerequisites (``conditions''). The NRC is proposing to incorporate by 
reference these DGs, with conditions, into 10 CFR 50.55a, Codes and 
standards, in the aforementioned proposed rulemaking published 
elsewhere in the Proposed Rules section of today's Federal Register.
    These DGs, if finalized, do not constitute backfitting as defined 
in 10 CFR 50.109 (the Backfit Rule) and are not otherwise inconsistent 
with the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR Part 52, ``Licenses, 
Certifications and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants.'' The 
backfitting and issue finality considerations for these regulatory 
guides are addressed in the Federal Register notice for the underlying 
proposed rule, and introduces no new backfitting or issue finality 
matters not already addressed in that Federal Register notice. 
Therefore, the NRC's consideration of backfitting and issue finality 
matters for the underlying proposed rule also serves as the NRC's 
consideration of the same backfitting and issue finality matters for 
the issuance of these DGs.
    In addition, these DGs identify NRC-approved ASME Code Cases which 
applicants and licensees may voluntarily utilize as way of meeting the 
NRC requirements in 10 CFR 50.55a. An applicant's and/or licensees' 
voluntary application of an approved Code Case does not constitute 
backfitting, inasmuch as there is no imposition of a new requirement or 
new position. Similarly, voluntary application of an approved Code Case 
by a 10 CFR Part 52 applicant or licensee does not represent NRC 
imposition of a requirement or action which is inconsistent with any 
issue finality provision in 10 CFR Part 52. Therefore, the NRC 
concludes that these DGs, if finalized, do not constitute backfitting 
as defined in 10 CFR 50.109 and are not otherwise inconsistent with the 
issue finality provisions in 10 CFR Part 52.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 29th day of May, 2013.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Thomas H. Boyce,
 Chief, Regulatory Guide Development Branch, Division of Engineering, 
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.
[FR Doc. 2013-15021 Filed 6-21-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P