[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 52 (Wednesday, March 18, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14168-14172]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-06243]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[EA-2014-114; NRC-2015-0062]


 Honeywell International, Inc.

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Confirmatory order; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing a 
confirmatory order to Honeywell International, Inc. (Honeywell), 
confirming an agreement reached in an Alternative Dispute Resolution 
session held on December 9, 2014. As part of the agreement, Honeywell 
will conduct presentations and training to its employees regarding the 
policy for raising employee concerns, addressing safety issues, and 
management response to employee concerns; modify existing processes and 
develop new processes that provide for ongoing support for employee 
protection requirements; and review and update its Safety Conscious 
Work Environment policy and incorporate aspects of the NRC's Safety 
Culture Policy, as appropriate. The NRC will refrain from issuing a 
Notice of Violation or proposing a civil penalty.

DATES: The confirmatory order was effective on March 11, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2015-0062 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may obtain publicly-available information related to this action by the 
following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2015-0062. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: [email protected]. For questions about this Order, 
contact the individuals listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
section of this document.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-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]. The 
ADAMS accession number for each document referenced (if it available in 
ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is referenced.

[[Page 14169]]

     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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel Lenehan, telephone: 301-415-
3501, email: [email protected]; or Shahram Ghasemian, telephone: 
301-415-3591, email: Shahram [email protected]. Both are staff of the 
Office of Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, 
DC 20555-0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    The text of the Order is attached.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 11th day of March, 2015.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Patricia K. Holahan,
Director, Office of Enforcement.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

In the Matter of Honeywell International, Inc., Metropolis, Illinois

[Docket No. 04003392, License No. SUB-526, EA-14-114]

CONFIRMATORY ORDER MODIFYING LICENSE (EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY)
I.
    Honeywell International Inc. (Honeywell or Licensee) is the holder 
of Materials License No. SUB-526, issued by the U. S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) pursuant to Title 10 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 40 on May 11, 2007, and 
Materials License Nos. 12-15023-02E and 15-19986-01E, issued by the NRC 
pursuant to 10 CFR part 30 on September 7, 2012 and October 2, 2014, 
respectively. The licenses authorize the operation of Honeywell's 
Metropolis, Illinois, facility; and specific licenses for exempt 
distribution of byproduct material at Honeywell's St. Charles, 
Illinois; and Olathe, Kansas facilities in accordance with conditions 
specified therein.
    This confirmatory order (Order) is the result of an agreement 
reached during an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mediation 
session conducted on December 9, 2014.
II.
    On May 29, 2013, the NRC Office of Investigations (OI) initiated an 
investigation to determine whether a contractor at Honeywell's 
Metropolis, Illinois facility, Bluestone, LLC (Bluestone), terminated 
one of its employees for, in part, notifying both Honeywell and 
Bluestone of a safety concern. The investigation was completed on May 
15, 2014, and was documented in OI Report No. 2-2013-030. Based upon 
evidence developed during its investigation, the NRC identified an 
apparent violation of 10 CFR 40.7, ``Employee protection,'' involving a 
former Bluestone employee who was terminated for, in part, notifying 
both Honeywell and Bluestone that the employee smelled alcohol on the 
employee's immediate supervisor's breath onsite and during duty hours. 
By letter dated September 26, 2014, the NRC identified to Honeywell the 
apparent violation of 10 CFR 40.7, ``Employee protection,'' and offered 
Honeywell the opportunity to provide a response in writing, attend a 
pre-decisional enforcement conference, or to request alternative 
dispute resolution (ADR) in which a neutral mediator with no decision-
making authority would facilitate discussions between the NRC and 
Honeywell and, if possible, assist the NRC and Honeywell in reaching an 
agreement on resolving the matter.
    In response to the NRC's letter, Honeywell chose to participate in 
ADR. On December 9, 2014, the NRC and Honeywell met in an ADR session 
mediated by a professional mediator, arranged through Cornell 
University's Institute on Conflict Resolution. During that ADR session, 
a preliminary settlement agreement was reached, and this Order is 
issued pursuant to that agreement.
III.
    The NRC acknowledges that Bluestone no longer provides services as 
a contractor at Honeywell's Metropolis, Illinois facility.
    During the ADR mediation session, a preliminary settlement 
agreement was reached. The elements of the agreement, as signed by both 
parties, consisted of the following:
    1. Communication:
    Conducting presentations by senior Honeywell managers to inform 
Honeywell's employees and the employees of Honeywell's contractors of 
Honeywell's policy regarding raising employee concerns and management 
treatment of such concerns.
    2. Training:
    Presenting training regarding raising safety concerns, addressing 
safety issues, and management response to employee concerns.
    3. Work Process:
    Modifying existing processes and developing new processes that 
provide for ongoing management support for employee protection 
requirements.
    4. Policy Guidance:
    Reviewing and updating Honeywell's Safety Conscious Work 
Environment (SCWE) policy and incorporating applicable aspects of NRC's 
Safety Culture Policy, as appropriate.
    5. Enforcement Consideration:
    During the ADR process, Honeywell neither admitted nor denied that 
a violation occurred. This confirmatory order, therefore, should not be 
used as evidence that a violation in fact occurred or that Honeywell 
agrees that a violation occurred. The NRC will refrain from issuing a 
Notice of Violation or proposing a civil penalty for all matters 
discussed in the NRC's letter of September 26, 2014 (EA-14-114).
    On February 26, 2015, Honeywell consented to issuing this Order 
with the commitments described in Section V below. Honeywell further 
agreed that this Order is to be effective upon issuance and that it has 
waived its right to a hearing.
IV.
    Since Honeywell has agreed to take additional actions to address 
NRC concerns, as set forth below in Section V, the NRC has concluded 
that its concerns can be resolved through the effective implementation 
of Honeywell's commitments.
    I find that Honeywell's commitments as set forth in Section V 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 public health and safety require that 
Honeywell's commitments be confirmed by this Order. Based on the above 
and Honeywell's consent, this Confirmatory Order is immediately 
effective upon issuance.
V.
    Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 81, 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 parts 30 and 40, IT IS HEREBY 
ORDERED, EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, THAT LICENSE NOS. SUB-526, 12-15023-
02E, and 15-19986-01E ARE MODIFIED AS FOLLOWS:
    Note: Except as otherwise indicated, the terms in Section V apply 
only to Honeywell's facility in Metropolis, Illinois. Any reference to 
Honeywell employees and supervisors includes all Honeywell and 
contractor employees and supervisors working at Honeywell's facility in 
Metropolis, Illinois. Any reference to ``Supervisor'' shall mean: a) 
Honeywell salaried exempt employees,

[[Page 14170]]

and b) first line contractor supervisors and above.
    A. Communication.
    1. By no later than sixty (60) calendar days after the issuance of 
this confirmatory order (Order), one or more members of Honeywell's 
management, at a level at least equal to the Plant Manager at 
Honeywell's Metropolis, Illinois facility, will issue site-wide written 
communication to all employees at the Honeywell's Metropolis facility 
and to all personnel engaged in NRC-regulated activities at the Olathe 
Service Center (Olathe, Kansas) and System Sensor (St. Charles, 
Illinois) facilities, reinforcing Honeywell's commitment to maintaining 
a safety conscious work environment (SCWE) and reaffirming Honeywell's 
insistence upon the protection of employees' right and obligation to 
raise safety issues.
    2. By no later than ninety (90) calendar days after the issuance of 
this Order, Honeywell shall communicate its SCWE policy to Honeywell 
employees at Honeywell's Metropolis, Illinois facility in one or more 
all-hands meetings, providing employees with the opportunity to ask 
questions in a live forum.
    3. By no later than ninety (90) calendar days after the issuance of 
this Order, Honeywell shall place posters in strategic areas throughout 
Honeywell Metropolis, Illinois facility to promote SCWE and inform 
employees of avenues available to employees to raise concerns including 
the NRC.
    4. By no later than ninety (90) calendar days after the issuance of 
this Order, Honeywell shall develop and distribute pocket-sized cards 
that discuss avenues available to employees to raise concerns including 
the NRC. Honeywell shall distribute these cards to all employees at 
Honeywell's Metropolis, Illinois facility, and to all personnel engaged 
in NRC regulated activities at the Olathe Service Center (Olathe, 
Kansas) and System Sensor (St. Charles, Illinois) facilities.
    5. By no later than one (1) year after the issuance of this Order, 
a Honeywell representative shall provide a presentation at a public 
forum about Honeywell's SCWE policy and its compliance program relating 
to the NRC's Employee Protection Rule.
    B. Training.
    1. Honeywell shall review its existing general employee training to 
ensure coverage of NRC's Employee Protection Rule (10 CFR 40.7). The 
training will include insights from the underlying matter and SCWE, 
case studies, and behavioral observation. This review will be completed 
and documented within one hundred twenty (120) calendar days of the 
issuance of this Order. If this review reveals a need to revise the 
general employee training, Honeywell shall make the appropriate 
revisions within one hundred eighty (180) calendar days of the issuance 
of this Order.
    2. By no later than one hundred eighty (180) calendar days after 
the issuance of this Order, Honeywell shall develop initial SCWE 
training for all employees and behavioral observation supervisor 
training to include discussion of the NRC's Employee Protection Rule, 
case studies and table top role playing. This will be included in any 
return-to-work training for all employees and in all new supervisor 
training. Honeywell shall provide annual refresher training for 
Honeywell supervisors after the initial training. Honeywell shall use a 
training instructor (internal or external) with expertise in SCWE and 
NRC regulations to conduct such training.
    3. By no later than one hundred eighty (180) calendar days after 
the issuance of this Order, Honeywell shall modify its existing B-
council training to include behavioral observation and SCWE topics 
twice every twelve (12) months.
    4. By no later than two hundred seventy (270) calendar days after 
the issuance of this Order, Honeywell shall develop and provide 
biennial SCWE and behavioral observation training for employees to 
include case studies and the NRC's Employee Protection Rule (10 CFR 
40.7). Honeywell shall use a training instructor (internal or external) 
with expertise in SCWE and NRC regulations for such training. This 
training shall be included in the new employee training.
    5. By no later than two hundred seventy (270) calendar days after 
the issuance of this Order, Honeywell shall develop and provide initial 
SCWE training for all personnel engaged in NRC-regulated activities at 
the Metropolis, IL, Olathe Service Center (Olathe, Kansas) and System 
Sensor (St. Charles, Illinois) facilities to include the NRC's Employee 
Protection Rule (10 CFR 30.7). Honeywell shall provide annual refresher 
training after the initial training. Honeywell shall use a training 
instructor (internal or external) with expertise in SCWE and NRC 
regulations to conduct such training.
    C. Work Process.
    1. By no later than ninety (90) calendar days after the issuance of 
this Order, Honeywell shall modify the Incident Tracking and Corrective 
Action (ITCA) process to accept anonymous submissions from employees. 
Honeywell shall update the ITCA procedure on checking, processing and 
addressing any concerns. In case of non-anonymous submissions, 
employees may request a copy of the submission as entered into the 
ITCA.
    2. By no later than ninety (90) calendar days after the issuance of 
this Order, Honeywell shall establish a procedure to include guidance 
on monitoring and processing concerns and informing management of 
concerns received through the Honeywell SCWE hotline.
    3. By no later than one hundred twenty (120) calendar days after 
the issuance of this Order, Honeywell shall develop and include a 
provision in any new or renewed agreements with its contractors that 
expressly highlights the contractor's obligation to comply with the 
applicable NRC Employee Protection Rule (10 CFR 40.7).
    4. By no later than one hundred twenty (120) calendar days after 
the issuance of this Order, Honeywell shall ensure that new and renewed 
contracts entered into by Honeywell require contractors, when any 
formal adverse action is taken against a contractor employee at the 
Metropolis, Illinois facility (i.e., terminations, suspensions and 
written reprimands) to certify that the formal adverse action was not 
taken for reasons prohibited by the NRC's Employee Protection Rule (10 
CFR 40.7).
    5. By no later than one hundred twenty (120) calendar days after 
the issuance of this Order, Honeywell shall modify the Honeywell 
Designated Representative (HDR) procedure to require the HDR to 
periodically inquire about any concerns raised through a contractor's 
concerns resolutions program that have not been submitted to any of 
Honeywell's concerns resolution avenues. The HDR shall enter such 
concerns in Honeywell's ITCA system as appropriate.
    6. By no later than one hundred twenty (120) calendar days after 
the issuance of this Order, Honeywell shall develop and implement a 
procedure for behavioral observation activities.
    D. Policy Guidance.
    1. By no later than ninety (90) calendar days after the issuance of 
this Order, Honeywell shall review and update Honeywell's SCWE policy 
and incorporate into the SCWE policy the applicable aspects of the 
NRC's Safety Culture Policy statement as appropriate.
    In the event of the transfer of the operating license of an 
applicable Honeywell facility to another entity, the commitments for 
such facility shall survive any transfer of ownership.
    The Director, Office of Enforcement, may, in writing, relax or 
rescind any of

[[Page 14171]]

the above conditions upon demonstration by Honeywell of good cause.
    In consideration for the actions and/or initiatives that Honeywell 
agrees to undertake, as outlined above, the NRC agrees not to pursue 
any further enforcement action based on the notice of apparent 
violation of employee protection requirements (Case no. EA-14-114, 
Office of Investigations report No. 2-2013-030), dated May 15, 2014.
VI.
    Any person adversely affected by this Confirmatory Order, other 
than Honeywell International Inc., may request a hearing within 30 days 
of its publication in the Federal Register. Where good cause is shown, 
consideration will be given to extending the time to request a hearing. 
A request for extension of time must be made in writing to the 
Director, Office of Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555, 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, 10 CFR 2.301. 
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 
ten (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 the Electronic Information Exchange (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 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. 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 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, applicants and 
other participants (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., 
Eastern Time, 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

[[Page 14172]]

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 Honeywell requests a hearing, that person 
shall set forth with particularity the manner in which his interest is 
adversely affected by this Confirmatory 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 hearing. If a hearing is held, the issue to be considered 
at such hearing shall be whether this Confirmatory Order should be 
sustained.
    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 V above shall be final 20 days from the date this 
Confirmatory 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 V shall be final 
when the extension expires if a hearing request has not been received.
    A REQUEST FOR HEARING SHALL NOT STAY THE IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVENESS OF 
THIS ORDER.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 11th day of March, 2015.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Patricia K. Holahan,
Director, Office of Enforcement.

[FR Doc. 2015-06243 Filed 3-17-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P