[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 230 (Monday, December 1, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71134-71136]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-27324]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2012-0235]
Tribal Protocol Manual
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Revision to guidance; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for
public comment Revision 1 of the NRC's ``Tribal Protocol Manual:
Guidance for NRC Staff.'' The Tribal Protocol Manual provides internal
guidance to the NRC staff on protocols to facilitate the NRC staff's
engagement with Tribal governments.
DATES: Submit comments by June 1, 2015. Comments received after this
date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the Commission
is able to ensure consideration only for comments received before this
date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web Site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2012-0235. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-287-
3422; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of
this document.
Mail comments to: Cindy Bladey, Office of Administration,
Mail Stop: 3WFN-06-A44M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001.
For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patricia McGrady-Finneran, Office of
Nuclear Materials Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-2326; email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2012-0235 when contacting the NRC
about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain
publicly-available information related to this action by any of the
following methods:
Federal rulemaking Web Site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2012-0235.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-
[[Page 71135]]
available documents online in the ADAMS Public Documents collection 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]. For the convenience of the reader,
instructions about obtaining materials referenced in this document are
provided in the ``Availability of Documents'' section.
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-2012-0235 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 in comment submissions that you do not want to be publicly
disclosed in your comment submission. The NRC will post all comment
submissions at http://www.regulations.gov as well as enter the comment
submissions into ADAMS, and 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 into ADAMS.
II. Background
In January 2009, the Commission directed the NRC staff to develop
an internal protocol for interactions with Native American Tribal
governments that allows for custom approaches to address the interests
of both the NRC and the Tribal governments on a case-by-case basis
(SRM-M081211). On November 5, 2009, President Obama issued a
Presidential Memorandum, ``Tribal Consultation'' (74 FR 5881), that
reaffirmed Executive Order 13175, ``Consultation and Coordination with
Indian Tribal Governments'' (November 6, 2000; 65 FR 67249), and
emphasized the importance of strengthening government-to-government
relationships with Native American Tribes. In SECY-09-0180, ``U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Interaction with Native American
Tribes,'' dated December 11, 2009, the NRC staff reviewed its various
interactions with Native American Tribes, and noted that these
interactions were limited to a small number of activities under the NRC
regulatory authority. At that time, the NRC staff concluded that a
``case-by-case'' approach had proved effective in interactions with
Native American Tribes by allowing for custom-tailored approaches that
met Commission and tribal needs, and that no formal policy was needed.
The NRC staff also noted that internal guidance on protocol would
further enhance the NRC staff's engagement with Native American Tribes.
The internal NRC guidance, ``Tribal Protocol Manual: Guidance for NRC
Employees,'' was developed and issued in March 2010. It was revised in
October 2012.
III. Discussion
Section 161p. of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as Amended, permits
the NRC to make, promulgate, issue, rescind, and amend such rules and
regulations as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.
This can include the development of guidance documents for
implementation of the NRC's policies or provisions.
On October 12, 2012, the NRC published the ``Tribal Protocol
Manual'' for public comment and requested public comments providing
suggestions for a proposed tribal consultation policy statement (77 FR
62269) for a 180-day comment period. After reviewing the public
comments on the October 2012 version of the Tribal Protocol Manual, the
NRC revised the staff guidance. The NRC received six comment letters on
the Tribal Policy Statement and protocol. Commenters included two
Tribal governments, two mining associations, one inter-Tribal
organization, and a Tribal college. The comments were grouped within
the topics of: (1) NRC Tribal communication, (2) NRC Tribal
consultation, (3) NRC Tribal resources, (4) terminology, (5) NRC map of
Tribal reservations near nuclear reactors, (6) Federal-Tribal history,
and (7) contemporary Tribal conditions. The NRC is making available
``Tribal Protocol Manual: Guidance for NRC Staff--Comment Responses.''
The NRC revised the Tribal Protocol Manual to define consultation
for the NRC as ``meaningful and timely discussion with Tribal
governments on NRC regulatory actions that have substantial direct
effects on one or more Indian Tribes.'' The NRC revised the Tribal
Protocol Manual to better address the unique relationship between the
United States and Tribes and how the NRC exercises its trust
responsibility. The NRC also made changes to the historical account of
the Federal-Tribal relationship. The Tribal Protocol Manual now
includes a general discussion that addresses the contributions of
Treaties, policy, law, court decisions, and Executive Orders to Federal
Indian law.
On August 27, 2014, the Commission directed the NRC staff (``Staff
Requirements--SECY-14-0006--Tribal Consultation Policy Statement and
Protocol'') to publish a draft ``Tribal Policy Statement,'' which also
appears in today's Federal Register, and ``Tribal Protocol Manual:
Guidance for NRC Staff, Revision 1'' for comment. This notice requests
public comment on the ``Tribal Protocol Manual: Guidance for NRC Staff,
Revision 1.'' Public comments that were received on the October 2012
version of the Tribal Protocol Manual and the NRC responses to the
public comments can be found in ``Tribal Protocol Manual: Guidance for
NRC Staff--Comment Responses;'' the comments received on the October
2012 version of the Tribal Protocol Manual are available through any of
the methods described in Section I, ``Obtaining Information and
Submitting Comments,'' of this document (i.e., through the Federal
rulemaking site, NRC's ADAMS, or the NRC's PDR). The next scheduled
revision of the Tribal Protocol Manual will include changes needed to
conform to the final Tribal Policy Statement and will be informed by
public comments on the revised Tribal Protocol Manual.
IV. Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the following table are available to
interested persons through one or more of the following methods, as
indicated.
[[Page 71136]]
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ADAMS Accession No./Web link/
Document Federal Register citation
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Tribal Protocol Manual: Guidance ML14274A014
for NRC Staff, Revision 1..
Tribal Protocol Manual: Guidance ML14297A280
for NRC Staff -- Comment Responses.
Executive Order 13175, 65 FR 67249
``Consultation and Coordination
with Indian Tribal Governments,''
November 9, 2000.
Presidential Memorandum for the 74 FR 57881
Heads Executive Departments and
Agencies, ``Tribal Consultation,''
November 5, 2009.
SECY-09-0180, U.S. Nuclear ML092800263
Regulatory Commission Interaction
with Native American Tribes.
SRM-M081211, Staff Requirements-- ML090080206
Briefing on Uranium Recovery, 9:30
a.m. and 1:30 p.m., Thursday,
December 11, 2008, Commissioners'
Conference Room, One White Flint
North, Rockville, Maryland (Open
to Public Attendance).
STAFF REQUIREMENTS--SECY-14-0006-- ML14240A083
TRIBAL CONSULTATION POLICY
STATEMENT AND PROTOCOL.
Tribal Protocol Manual: Guidance ML12261A423
for NRC Staff (October 2012).
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Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of November 2014.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Laura A. Dudes,
Director, Division of Material Safety, States, Tribal, and Rulemaking,
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2014-27324 Filed 11-28-14; 8:45 am]
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