[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 186 (Wednesday, September 25, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59068-59073]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-23318]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[EA-12-189; NRC-2013-0220]
Chicago Bridge and Iron; Confirmatory Order (Effective
Immediately)
I.
Chicago Bridge and Iron (CB&I), is a large multinational
conglomerate engineering, procurement and construction company serving
various industries in the United States and overseas; some of which are
regulated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). CB&I's main
office is located in The Woodlands, Texas.
II.
This Confirmatory Order (referenced as Confirmatory Order or Order)
is the result of an agreement reached during alternative dispute
resolution (ADR) mediation sessions conducted on June 11, 2013, and
July 29, 2013, in Rockville Maryland.
On June 4, 2011, the NRC's Office of Investigations (OI) issued its
report of investigation (OI Report No. 2-2011-047). The investigation
related to a nuclear construction site in South Carolina, operated by
CB&I, formerly known as Shaw Nuclear Services, Inc. and hereafter
referred to as Shaw. Based upon evidence developed during its
investigation, the NRC identified an apparent violation of Title 10 of
the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 52.5, ``Employee protection,''
involving a former Shaw employee who was terminated, in part, for
notifying Shaw and Louisiana Energy Service (at the direction of the
individual's supervisor, a Shaw official), of a potential 10 CFR part
21 issue regarding selected heats of rebar that had failed the ASME
bend test and may have been shipped to the Louisiana Energy Service
facility. In addition, the NRC found Shaw's Code of Corporate Conduct
to be overly restrictive and may prevent employees from raising nuclear
safety concerns.
By letter dated October 19, 2012, the NRC identified to CB&I the
apparent violation of 10 CFR 52.5 and offered CB&I the opportunity to
provide a response in writing, attend a pre-decisional enforcement
conference, or to request ADR in which a neutral mediator with no
decision-making
[[Page 59069]]
authority would facilitate discussions between the NRC and CB&I, and if
possible, assist the NRC and the parties in reaching an agreement on
resolving the concerns. In a letter dated January 15, 2013, CB&I
provided a written response to the apparent violation. In the letter,
CB&I denied it had violated 10 CFR 52.5, contending that the individual
did not engage in a legally protected activity and was terminated
solely for violating the company's Code of Conduct, which prohibited
disclosing company confidential material to an unauthorized third
party.
Based upon the information gathered through the NRC's investigation
and the information provided in the written response, the NRC issued a
Notice of Violation (Notice) and Proposed Imposition of Civil Penalties
to CB&I on April 18, 2013. As part of the Notice, the NRC required CB&I
to either reply in writing to the Notice or to request ADR. CB&I
continued to oppose the violation and, in lieu of continuing the
enforcement process and eventually requesting a hearing on the
violation, requested ADR.
On June 11, 2013 and July 29, 2013, the NRC and CB&I met in
Rockville, Maryland for ADR sessions mediated by a professional
mediator, arranged through Cornell University's Institute on Conflict
Resolution. This Confirmatory Order is issued pursuant to the agreement
reached during the ADR process.
III.
The NRC acknowledges that CB&I agreed to undertake actions related
to a chilled work environment at its site in Lake Charles, Louisiana,
formerly known as Shaw Modular Solutions. These actions were agreed to
by CB&I in their May 17, 2013, letter in response to the NRC's chilling
effect letter dated April 18, 2013. These actions include:
1. Perform an independent focused assessment to determine if
effective programmatic controls are in place at CB&I Lake Charles in
the following five areas: control of special processes; inspections;
personnel training and qualification; instructions, procedures, and
drawings; and corrective actions.
2. Review the independent contractor's 2012 nuclear safety culture
assessment report and initiate corrective actions, as necessary.
3. Enter the conditions associated with the Chilling Effect Letter
into its corrective action program (CAP), characterize it as a
significant condition adverse to quality (SCAQ), and complete a root
cause analysis. CB&I shall evaluate the potential for similar issues at
other CB&I nuclear facilities.
During the ADR mediation session, an agreement in principle was
reached in which CB&I agreed to take additional actions within CB&I's
business groups where nuclear related activities take place including:
1. Communicating CB&I's strategy to improve its nuclear safety
culture recognizing that efforts to date have not been fully effective.
This communication is to include a brief summary regarding employee
protection, the NRC's concerns expressed in its April 18, 2013,
Chilling Effect Letter regarding CB&I's Lake Charles site, and CB&I's
experience, insights, lessons learned, and corrective actions both
taken and planned. This communication will be followed by all-hands
meetings for management to discuss the importance of the above written
communication; and to allow employees to provide feedback and ask
questions of management.
2. Ensuring that its nuclear safety culture and safety conscious
work environment policies, guidance and related materials are in place,
updated, and consistent with: 1) The NRC's March 2011 Safety Culture
Policy Statement and associated traits; and 2) the NRC's May 1996
Safety Conscious Work Environment Policy Statement; and is informed by:
(1) The NRC's Regulatory Issue Summary 2005-18, ``Guidance for
Establishing and Maintaining a Safety Conscious Work Environment''; and
(2) the industry's common language initiative (i.e., INPO 12-012,
Revision 1, April 2013).
3. Sharing the company's experience and insights with respect to
improving nuclear safety culture, including lessons learned and actions
taken in a presentation to other nuclear vendors in the industry at an
NRC sponsored vendor conference; and if requested by the NRC, as a
panelist in a breakout session at the 2014 Regulatory Information
Conference.
4. Hiring a third-party, independent consultant to assist CB&I to
develop and/or revise its employee protection, nuclear safety culture
and safety conscious work environment training for CB&I nuclear
employees.
5. Establishing a uniform Executive Review Board (ERB) process to
ensure independent management review of all proposed significant
adverse actions for all of its nuclear employees to ensure these
actions comport with applicable employee protection requirements and
nuclear safety culture traits, and to assess and mitigate the potential
for any chilling effect.
6. Developing a single Employee Concerns Program (ECP) for CB&I
nuclear employees.
7. Developing individual performance appraisal assessment criteria
for individual supervisor's appraisals to evaluate if these individuals
are meeting CB&I's expectations with regards to employee protection,
Nuclear Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work Environment.
8. Establishing, where applicable, an active CAP trending process
to include the ability to trend root and contributing causes related to
CB&I's nuclear safety culture and incorporate trending information in a
process similar to that in NEI 09-07.
9. Developing a process by which personnel engaged in work
associated with NRC-regulated activities departing the company are
given the opportunity to participate in an Employee Concerns Program
Exit Interview/Survey to facilitate identification of nuclear safety
issues, resulting trends and conclusions.
10. Establishing a nuclear safety culture oversight program,
including one or more committees advised by external consultants with
extensive nuclear experience.
11. Establishing a CB&I Nuclear Safety Officer function to address
company-wide nuclear safety culture and safety conscious work
environment activities.
12. Hiring a third-party, independent consultant to perform
tailored comprehensive nuclear safety culture assessments, including
site surveys, of all CB&I nuclear business entities not already
assessed by a licensee and perform assessments or surveys to ensure
effectiveness of the Nuclear Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work
Environment programs. Follow-up assessments or surveys shall be
conducted every two years for a total of 4 years.
13. Revising its Code of Corporate Conduct to include a provision
stating that all employees have the right to raise nuclear safety and
quality concerns to CB&I, the NRC, and Congress, or engage in any other
type of protective activity without being subject to disciplinary
action or retaliation.
On September 13, 2013, CB&I consented to the NRC issuing this
Confirmatory Order with the commitments, as described in Section IV
below. CB&I further agreed in its September 13, 2013, letter that this
Order is to be effective upon issuance and that it has waived its right
to a hearing. In view of the Confirmatory Order, consented by CB&I's
thereto as evidenced by their signed ``Consent and Hearing Waiver
Form'' and subject to the satisfactory completion of the conditions of
the Confirmatory Order by CB&I, the NRC is exercising its enforcement
discretion and
[[Page 59070]]
withdrawing the Notice of Violation and Proposed Imposition of Civil
Penalties.
The NRC has concluded that its concerns can be resolved through
effective implementation of CB&I's commitments. I find that CB&I's
commitments as set forth in Section IV are acceptable and necessary and
conclude that with these commitments the public health and safety are
reasonably assured. In view of the foregoing, I have determined that
the public health and safety require that CB&I's commitments be
confirmed by this Order. Based on the above and CB&I's consent, this
Order is immediately effective upon issuance.
IV.
Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 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 and 10 CFR Part 52, it is hereby ordered,
effective immediately, that:
Note: For purposes of this Confirmatory Order, the term
``employees'' shall mean persons employed by CB&I and its
contractors and subcontractors, excluding (a) short term (less than
ninety (90) days) contractors, and subcontractors, and (b)
suppliers, who are engaged in work associated with NRC-regulated
activities at or directly related to a CB&I site or project.
A. Communication
1. By no later than two (2) months after issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, the CB&I Chief Executive Officer shall:
(a) Communicate, in writing, to its current employees CB&I's
strategy to improve its nuclear safety culture recognizing that efforts
to date have not been fully effective. This communication shall include
a brief summary of the subject of this settlement agreement regarding
employee protection, the NRC's concerns expressed in its April 18,
2013, Chilling Effect Letter regarding CB&I's Lake Charles site, and
CB&I's experience, insights, lessons learned, and corrective actions
both taken and planned.
i. CB&I shall provide a copy of this communication to the NRC for
prior review.
(b) Require copies of the communication described above to be
posted for forty-five (45) days in prominent locations where employees
congregate.
(c) Require all CB&I business units associated with NRC-regulated
activities to hold all-hands meetings: (1) For management to discuss
the importance of the above written communication; and (2) to allow
employees to provide feedback and ask questions of management related
to the communication listed above.
2. By no later than three (3) months after issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, CB&I shall ensure that its nuclear safety culture
and safety conscious work environment policies, guidance (e.g.,
procedures), and related materials (e.g., brochures, posters) are in
place, updated, and consistent with: (1) The NRC's March 2011 Safety
Culture Policy Statement and associated traits; and (2) the NRC's May
1996 Safety Conscious Work Environment Policy Statement; and is
informed by: (1) The NRC's Regulatory Issue Summary 2005-18, ``Guidance
for Establishing and Maintaining a Safety Conscious Work Environment'';
and (2) the industry's common language initiative (i.e., INPO 12-012,
Revision 1, April 2013).
(a) Copies of these materials shall be provided to the NRC for
review at least two (2) weeks prior to issuance.
(b) CB&I shall maintain and implement the materials in Section A.2.
(c) CB&I will distribute copies of these updated policies and
brochures to employees, and inform employees where all related
materials can be located. These policies and brochures shall be
maintained and provided to all new employees during initial
orientation.
3. A senior CB&I manager shall share the company's experience and
insights with respect to improving nuclear safety culture, including
lessons learned and actions taken in a presentation:
(a) To other nuclear vendors in the industry at the next NRC vendor
workshop currently scheduled for June 2014. The presentation shall be
submitted to the NRC for review within one (1) month of the scheduled
workshop.
(b) If requested by the NRC, as a panelist in a breakout session at
the 2014 Regulatory Information Conference.
B. Training
1. By no later than three (3) months after the issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, CB&I shall hire a third-party, independent
consultant, unrelated to the proceedings at issue, who is experienced
with NRC employee protection regulations, Section 211 of the Energy
Reorganization Act, as amended, and nuclear safety culture and safety
conscious work environment policies, to assist CB&I to develop and/or
revise its employee protection, nuclear safety culture and safety
conscious work environment training for all CB&I employees.
(a) Training shall include case studies of discriminatory
practices.
(b) Training shall define key terms included in employee protection
regulations, nuclear safety culture and safety conscious work
environment policy statements, and be informed by the industry's common
language initiative (e.g., nuclear safety issue, protected activity,
adverse action, nuclear safety culture traits).
(c) Training shall include topics such as behavioral expectations
with regard to each nuclear safety culture trait. Training shall also
include expectations for demonstrating support for raising nuclear
safety and quality concerns, and all available avenues without fear of
retaliation.
(d) Training on CB&I's Corrective Action Program will also be
incorporated, and will emphasize the low threshold for reporting,
employee's rights, responsibilities and expectations for raising
nuclear safety and quality issues and initiating corrective action
documentation.
(e) The training material shall be available to the NRC upon
request.
2. Supervisory Training: Initial training, developed in paragraph
B.1 above, for supervisors shall be piloted at least in part by a team
consisting of the independent consultant and CB&I employees with
expertise in these areas. Once finalized, this training will be
conducted by the independent consultant at CB&I's Lake Charles site and
may be conducted by CB&I employees trained by the team who developed
and piloted the training at the other CB&I sites.
(a) The training shall commence within six (6) months after
issuance of the Confirmatory Order.
(b) All training must be completed within one (1) year of the
issuance of the Confirmatory Order.
(c) Refresher training:
i. Shall be primarily instructor led and be provided at least every
two years for a period of four (4) years. This training may be provided
by CB&I training staff.
ii. Thereafter, refresher training may be computer-based and shall
be provided annually.
(d) Training records shall be retained consistent with applicable
CB&I record retention policies and be made available to the NRC upon
request.
3. CB&I shall primarily conduct instructor led employee protection,
nuclear safety culture and safety conscious work environment training
twice per year for any new supervisors hired after the initial training
conducted as described in paragraphs 1 and 2 above.
[[Page 59071]]
4. Employee (Non-Supervisory) Training: Initial training, developed
in paragraph B.1, for employees shall be piloted at least in part by a
team consisting of the independent consultant and CB&I employees with
expertise in these areas. Once finalized, this training will be
conducted by the independent contractor at CB&I's Lake Charles site and
may be conducted by CB&I employees trained by the team who developed
and piloted the training at other CB&I sites.
(a) All employees training shall commence within six (6) months
following completion of their designated line managements' training.
(b) All training must be completed within eighteen (18) months of
the issuance of the Confirmatory Order.
(c) Refresher training may be computer-based and shall be provided
annually.
(d) Training will primarily be instructor led for new employees as
part of their orientation program/process.
(e) Training records shall be retained consistent with applicable
CB&I record retention policies and be made available to the NRC upon
request.
5. Short-term Employee Training: Employees employed by CB&I for
less than ninety (90) days will receive a ``one pager'' that captures
the key elements of the training developed in Section B.1 above.
C. Work Processes
1. By no later than six (6) months after issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, where not already required by the applicable
nuclear facility licensee, CB&I shall establish and maintain a uniform
Executive Review Board (ERB) process to ensure independent management
review of all proposed significant adverse actions (defined as three or
more days off without pay up to and including termination for cause,
but excluding reductions-in-force and other ordinary layoffs) for all
of its employees to ensure these actions comport with applicable
employee protection requirements and nuclear safety culture traits, and
to assess and mitigate the potential for any chilling effect. The ERB
shall review significant adverse actions prior to their execution.
(a) The ERB process and procedure(s) shall be informed by
benchmarking at least 2 organizations in the nuclear industry with
developed processes. The ERB process shall be included as a topic in
the training developed in Section B.1.
(b) Each ERB shall be comprised of management personnel, including
legal and/or human resources participation. The ERB shall be informed
of any known relevant protected activity engaged in by the subject
employee, including via the Employee Concerns Program (ECP), but ECP
personnel shall not be a participating member of the ERB.
(c) Upon request, CB&I shall make available copies of the ERB
process and procedure, including documentation of ERB decisions made
after the Confirmatory Order, to the NRC. CB&I shall maintain
documentation of each ERB decision for a minimum of five years.
2. By no later than six (6) months after issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, CB&I shall develop and maintain a single Employee
Concerns Program (ECP) for all CB&I employees.
(a) The ECP, including position descriptions, shall be informed by
benchmarking at least 2 organizations in the nuclear industry with
developed processes.
(b) The ECP Functional Manager will report to the Vice President,
Nuclear Safety for these activities, with day-to-day reporting and
oversight by the Director of Nuclear Compliance.
(c) ECP personnel shall receive appropriate training, including
investigative techniques.
3. CB&I shall develop and maintain individual performance appraisal
assessment criteria for individual supervisor's appraisals to evaluate
if these individuals are meeting CB&I's expectations with regards to
employee protection, Nuclear Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work
Environment. Implementation will begin in the performance appraisal
cycle in the year following completion of the supervisory training in
B.2 above.
4. CB&I shall enhance or establish, where applicable, an active CAP
trending process to include the ability to trend root and contributing
causes related to CB&I's nuclear safety culture and incorporate
trending information in an NEI 09-07 like process; implementation will
begin in concert with the implementation of the activities as described
in C.7.
5. By no later than six (6) months after issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, CB&I shall develop and implement a process by which
personnel engaged in work associated with NRC-regulated activities
departing the company are given the opportunity to participate in an
Employee Concerns Program Exit Interview/Survey to facilitate
identification of nuclear safety issues, resulting trends and
conclusions. These assessments and any actions resulting from the exit
interviews shall be made available to the NRC for review upon request.
6. CB&I shall maintain a toll-free anonymous reporting service
manned by an independent company for use by all its employees to raise
nuclear safety and quality concerns.
7. By no later than six (6) months after issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, CB&I shall establish and maintain a nuclear safety
culture oversight program, including one or more committees advised by
external consultants with extensive nuclear experience. This program
will provide input to CB&I facility and site management as described
below.
(a) The Program will assess at least twice a year the nuclear
safety culture trends in process inputs that could be early indications
of a nuclear safety culture weakness.
(b) The Program shall be informed by NEI's 09-07 guidance and by
benchmarking at least 2 organizations in the nuclear industry with
developed processes.
(c) The Program shall be directed by the Vice President Nuclear
Safety/Nuclear Safety Officer who shall oversee actions as appropriate.
D. Assess and Monitor Nuclear Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work
Environment
1. CB&I had previously established a CB&I Nuclear Safety Officer
function to address company-wide nuclear safety culture and safety
conscious work environment activities. The Vice President of Nuclear
Safety has been assigned the duties of the Nuclear Safety Officer.
2. By no later than six (6) months after issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, CB&I shall hire a third-party, independent
consultant to perform tailored comprehensive nuclear safety culture
assessments, including site surveys, of all CB&I nuclear business
entities not already assessed by a licensee and perform assessments or
surveys within twelve (12) months to ensure effectiveness of the
Nuclear Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work Environment programs.
(a) Follow-up assessments or surveys shall be conducted every two
years for a total of 4 years. These future nuclear safety culture
assessments or surveys shall be comparable to one another to allow for
effective evaluation of trends.
(b) CB&I shall make available to the NRC, upon request, the results
of the assessments or surveys, CB&I's analysis of the trends, results,
and proposed corrective actions, if any, CB&I will take to address the
results in order to verify that a healthy nuclear safety culture and
safety conscious work environment exists at CB&I nuclear business
entities.
[[Page 59072]]
(c) The results of each assessment or survey and CB&I's plan to
address the results shall be communicated to employees within three (3)
months of receiving the assessment/survey results.
3. As committed to in CB&I's May 17, 2013, response to the NRC's
April 18, 2013, Chilling Effect Letter, CB&I shall:
(a) By September 20, 2013, perform an independent focused
assessment to determine if effective programmatic controls are in place
at CB&I Lake Charles in the following five areas: control of special
processes; inspections; personnel training and qualification;
instructions, procedures, and drawings; and corrective action. The
assessment team will include, but will not be limited to,
representatives from Southern Nuclear Operating Company, South Carolina
Electric and Gas Company, and CB&I Power.
(b) Evaluate the results of the independent focused assessment and
take corrective actions as appropriate by October 31, 2013.
4. As committed to in CB&I's May 17, 2013, response to the NRC's
April 18, 2013, Chilling Effect Letter, CB&I reviewed the independent
contractor's 2012 nuclear safety culture assessment report and
initiated corrective actions, as necessary. The results of this report
were communicated to the Lake Charles workforce at an all hands meeting
on July 24, 2013.
E. Other
1. As committed to in CB&I's May 17, 2013, response to the NRC's
April 18, 2013, Chilling Effect Letter, CB&I Lake Charles has entered
the conditions associated with the Chilling Effect Letter into its
corrective action program, characterized it as a significant condition
adverse to quality, and completed a root cause analysis. By no later
than six (6) months after issuance of the Confirmatory Order, CB&I
shall evaluate the potential for similar issues at other CB&I nuclear
sites.
2. By no later than three (3) months of issuance of the
Confirmatory Order, CB&I will revise and maintain its Code of Corporate
Conduct to include a provision stating that all employees have the
right to raise nuclear safety and quality concerns to CB&I, the NRC,
and Congress, or engage in any other type of protected activity without
being subject to disciplinary action or retaliation and that no other
corporate policy may supersede, limit, or otherwise discourage an
employee's right to raise a nuclear safety or quality concern.
(a) The new section must be included and explained in the training
conducted in Section B above.
In consideration for the actions and/or initiatives that CB&I
agrees to undertake, as outlined above, the NRC agrees to the
following:
1. The NRC agrees to exercise enforcement discretion and withdraw
the Notice of Violation and Proposed Imposition of Civil Penalties
relating to employee protection and the Shaw Code of Conduct (EA-2012-
189).
2. The proposed settlement agreement does not affect other
potential escalated enforcement actions, including ongoing
investigations by the NRC's Office of Investigations. However, as part
of its deliberations and consistent with the philosophy of the
Enforcement Policy, Section 3.3, ``Violations Identified Because of
Previous Enforcement Action,'' the NRC will consider enforcement
discretion for violations with similar root causes (i.e., EA-2012-189)
that occur prior to or during implementation of the corrective actions
aimed at correcting that specific condition as specified in the
Confirmatory Order. However, in the event that CB&I does not
demonstrate that the work environment at its domestic sites and
projects has improved as a result of the agreed-to corrective actions,
the NRC may consider escalated enforcement action beyond the base civil
penalty as provided for in the NRC Enforcement Policy.
The Director, OE, may, in writing, relax or rescind any of the
above conditions upon demonstration by CB&I of good cause.
V
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202, CB&I must, and any other person
adversely affected by this Order may, submit an answer to this Order
within 20 days of its publication in the Federal Register. In addition,
any other person adversely affected by this Order may request a hearing
on this Order within 20 days of its publication in the Federal
Register. Where good cause is shown, consideration will be given to
extending the time to answer or request a hearing. A request for
extension of time must be directed to the Director, Office of
Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and include a
statement of good cause for the extension.
All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, including a
request for hearing, a petition for leave to intervene, any motion or
other document filed in the proceeding prior to the submission of a
request for hearing or petition to intervene, and documents filed by
interested governmental entities participating under 10 CFR 2.315(c),
must be filed in accordance with the NRC E-Filing rule (72 FR 49139,
August 28, 2007, as amended by 77 FR 46562, August 3, 2012), codified
in pertinent part at 10 CFR Part 2, Subpart C. The E-Filing process
requires participants to submit and serve all adjudicatory documents
over the internet, or in some cases to mail copies on electronic
storage media. Participants may not submit paper copies of their
filings unless they seek an exemption in accordance with the procedures
described below.
To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least 10
days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should contact the
Office of the Secretary by email at [email protected], or by
telephone at (301) 415-1677, to request (1) a digital ID certificate,
which allows the participant (or its counsel or representative) to
digitally sign documents and access the E-Submittal server for any
proceeding in which it is participating; and (2) advise the Secretary
that the participant will be submitting a request or petition for
hearing (even in instances in which the participant, or its counsel or
representative, already holds an NRC-issued digital ID certificate).
Based upon this information, the Secretary will establish an electronic
docket for the hearing in this proceeding if the Secretary has not
already established an electronic docket.
Information about applying for a digital ID certificate is
available on NRC's public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/apply-certificates.html. System requirements for accessing
the E-Submittal server are detailed in NRC's ``Guidance for Electronic
Submission,'' which is available on the agency's public Web site at
http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. Participants may
attempt to use other software not listed on the Web site, but should
note that the NRC's E-Filing system does not support unlisted software,
and the NRC Meta System Help Desk will not be able to offer assistance
in using unlisted software.
If a participant is electronically submitting a document to the NRC
in accordance with the E-Filing rule, the participant must file the
document using the NRC's online, web-based submission form. In order to
serve documents through EIE, users will be required to install a web
browser plug-in from the NRC Web site. Further information on the web-
based submission form, including the installation of the Web browser
plug-in, is available on the NRC's public Web
[[Page 59073]]
site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html.
Once a participant has obtained a digital ID certificate and a
docket has been created, the participant can then submit a request for
hearing or petition for leave to intervene through the EIE. Submissions
should be in Portable Document Format (PDF) in accordance with NRC
guidance available on the NRC public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. A filing is considered complete at the
time the documents are submitted through the NRC's E-Filing system. To
be timely, an electronic filing must be submitted to the E-Filing
system no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the due date. Upon
receipt of a transmission, the E-Filing system time-stamps the document
and sends the submitter an email notice confirming receipt of the
document. The E-Filing system also distributes an email notice that
provides access to the document to the NRC Office of the General
Counsel and any others who have advised the Office of the Secretary
that they wish to participate in the proceeding, so that the filer need
not serve the documents on those participants separately. Therefore,
any others who wish to participate in the proceeding (or their counsel
or representative) must apply for and receive a digital ID certificate
before a hearing request/petition to intervene is filed so that they
can obtain access to the document via the E-Filing system.
A person filing electronically using the agency's adjudicatory E-
Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC Meta System
Help Desk through the ``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC Web site
at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html, by email at
[email protected], or by a toll-free call at 866-672-7640. The NRC
Meta System Help Desk is available between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., ET,
Monday through Friday, excluding government holidays.
Participants who believe that they have a good cause for not
submitting documents electronically must file an exemption request, in
accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper filing
requesting authorization to continue to submit documents in paper
format. Such filings must be submitted by: (1) First class mail
addressed to the Office of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention:
Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff; or (2) courier, express mail, or
expedited delivery service to the Office of the Secretary, Sixteenth
Floor, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
Maryland, 20852, Attention: Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff.
Participants filing a document in this manner are responsible for
serving the document on all other participants. Filing is considered
complete by first-class mail as of the time of deposit in the mail, or
by courier, express mail, or expedited delivery service upon depositing
the document with the provider of the service. A presiding officer,
having granted an exemption request from using E-Filing, may require a
participant or party to use E-Filing if the presiding officer
subsequently determines that the reason for granting the exemption from
use of E-Filing no longer exists.
Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in
NRC's electronic hearing docket, which is available to the public at
http://ehd1.nrc.gov/ehd/, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the
Commission or the presiding officer. Participants are requested not to
include personal privacy information, such as social security numbers,
home addresses, or home phone numbers in their filings, unless an NRC
regulation or other law requires submission of such information. With
respect to copyrighted works, except for limited excerpts that serve
the purpose of the adjudicatory filings and would constitute a Fair Use
application, participants are requested not to include copyrighted
materials in their submission.
If a person other than CB&I requests a hearing, that person shall
set forth with particularity the manner in which his interest is
adversely affected by this Order and shall address the criteria set
forth in 10 CFR 2.309(d) and (f).
If a hearing is requested by a person whose interest is adversely
affected, the Commission will issue an Order designating the time and
place of any hearings. 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), CB&I or any other person adversely
affected by this Order, 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 final 20 days from the date this
Order is published in the Federal Register 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 at Rockville, Maryland, this 16th day of September 2013.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Roy P. Zimmerman,
Director, Office of Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2013-23318 Filed 9-24-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P