[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 250 (Thursday, December 29, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 96050-96051]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-31603]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2015-0153]
Acceptance of Commercial-Grade Design and Analysis Computer
Programs for Nuclear Power Plants
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Regulatory Guide; issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing
Revision 0 to Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.231, ``Acceptance of Commercial-
Grade Design and Analysis Computer Programs for Nuclear Power Plants.''
This RG describes methods that the NRC considers acceptable in meeting
regulatory requirements for acceptance and dedication of commercial-
grade design and analysis computer programs used in safety-related
applications for nuclear power plants.
DATES: Revision 0 to RG 1.231 is available on December 29, 2016.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2015-0153 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may obtain publically-available information related to this document,
using the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2016-0153. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, 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 Document 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 in this notice (if
that document is available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a
document is referenced. Revision 0 to Regulatory Guide 1.231, and the
regulatory analysis may be found in ADAMS under Accession Nos.
ML16126A183 and ML16126A181 respectively.
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 the NRC's approval is
not required to reproduce them.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Greg Galletti, Office of New Reactors,
telephone: 301-415-1831; email: [email protected]; and Stephen
Burton, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, telephone: 301-415-7000;
email: [email protected]. Both are staff of the U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC is issuing a new guide in the NRC's ``Regulatory Guide''
series. This series was developed to describe and make available to the
public information regarding methods that are acceptable to the NRC for
implementing specific parts of the agency's regulations, techniques
that the NRC uses in evaluating specific issues or postulated events,
and data that the NRC needs in its review of applications for permits
and licenses.
Revision 0 of RG 1.231 was issued with a temporary identification
of Draft Regulatory Guide, DG-1305. This RG is being issued to endorse
Revision 1 of EPRI Technical Report 1025243, ``Plant Engineering:
Guideline for the Acceptance of Commercial-Grade Design and Analysis
Computer Programs Used in Nuclear Safety-Related Applications,'' with
respect to acceptance of commercial-grade design and analysis computer
programs associated with basic components for nuclear power plants.
II. Additional Information
The NRC published a notice of the availability of DG-1305 in the
Federal Register on July 1, 2015, (80 FR 37666) for a 60-day public
comment period. The public comment period closed on August 31, 2015.
Public comments on DG-1305 and the NRC's responses to the public
comments are available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML16126A179.
III. Congressional Review Act
This regulatory guide is a rule as defined in the Congressional
Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801-808). However, the Office of Management and
Budget has not found it to be a major rule as defined in the
Congressional Review Act.
IV. Backfitting and Issue Finality
This regulatory guide describes acceptable methods for meeting the
dedication requirements in part 21 of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR) and Sec. 50.55(e) with respect to design and
analysis computer programs for nuclear power plants. The regulatory
guide, does not constitute backfitting as defined in 10 CFR 50.109 (the
Backfit Rule) and is not otherwise inconsistent with the issue finality
provisions in 10 CFR part 52, ``Licenses, Certifications and Approvals
for Nuclear Power Plants.'' This regulatory guide, if finalized,
represents the first NRC guidance on this subject. Issuance of new
guidance, by itself, does not represent backfitting unless the NRC
intends to impose the guidance on existing licensees and currently-
approved design certification rules issued under 10 CFR part 52. The
NRC does not have such an intention.
Existing licensees and applicants of final design certification
rules will not be required to comply with the positions set forth in
this regulatory guide, unless the licensee or design certification rule
applicant seeks a voluntary change to its licensing basis with respect
to safety-related power operated valve actuators, and where the NRC
determines that the safety review must include consideration of the
qualification of the valve actuators. Further information on the NRC's
use of the regulatory guide, is contained in the regulatory guide under
Section D. Implementation.
Applicants and potential applicants are not, with certain
exceptions, protected by either the Backfit Rule or any issue finality
provisions under 10 CFR part 52. Neither the Backfit Rule nor the issue
finality provisions under 10 CFR part 52--with certain exclusions
[[Page 96051]]
discussed below--were intended to every NRC action which substantially
changes the expectations of current and future applicants. Therefore,
the positions in any final regulatory guide, if imposed on applicants,
would not represent backfitting (except as discussed below).
The exceptions to the general principle are applicable whenever a
combined license applicant references a 10 CFR part 52 license (i.e.,
an early site permit or a manufacturing license) and/or 10 CFR part 52
regulatory approval (i.e., a design certification rule or design
approval). The NRC does not, at this time, intend to impose the
positions represented in the regulatory guide in a manner that is
inconsistent with any issue finality provisions in the 10 CFR part 52
licenses and regulatory approvals. If, in the future, the NRC seeks to
impose a position in this regulatory guide in a manner which does not
provide issue finality as described in the applicable issue finality
provision, then the NRC must address the criteria for avoiding issue
finality as described in the applicable issue finality provision.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of December 2016.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Edward O'Donnell,
Acting Chief, Regulatory Guidance and Generic Issues Branch, Division
of Engineering, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.
[FR Doc. 2016-31603 Filed 12-28-16; 8:45 am]
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