[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 176 (Tuesday, September 11, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45995-45996]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-19685]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2018-0196]


Proposed Revisions to Standard Review Plan Section 13.4, 
Operational Programs

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Standard review plan-draft section revision; request for 
comment.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is soliciting 
public comment on draft NUREG-0800, ``Standard Review Plan for the 
Review of Safety Analysis Reports for Nuclear Power Plants: LWR 
Edition,'' Section 13.4, ``Operational Programs.'' The NRC seeks 
comments on the proposed draft section revision of the Standard Review 
Plan (SRP) concerning guidance for the review and implementation of 
operational programs required by the NRC's regulations for combined 
operating license applications.

DATES: Comments must be filed no later than November 13, 2018. 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 on or before this date.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2018-0196. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Jennifer Borges; telephone: 301-287-
9127; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact 
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this document.
     Mail comments to: May Ma, Office of Administration, Mail 
Stop: TWFN-7-A60M, 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: Mark D. Notich, Office of New 
Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001; telephone: 301-415-3053, email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2018-0196 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 Website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2018-0196.
     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 ``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 draft revision and current 
revision to NUREG-0800, Section13.4, ``Operational Programs'' is 
available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML18131A304 and ML070470463. The 
redline-strikeout version comparing the draft revision 4 and the 
current version of revision 3 is available under Accession No. 
ML18143B713.
     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-2018-0196 in your comment submission.
    The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact 
information 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. 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. Further Information

    The NRC seeks public comment on the proposed SRP-draft section 
revision of Section 13.4, ``Operational Programs.'' The changes made in 
this revision to this section reflect the latest NRC guidance 
concerning operational programs.
    Following NRC staff evaluation of public comments, the NRC intends 
to finalize SRP Section 13.4, ``Operational Program,'' Revision 4 in 
ADAMS and post it on the NRC's public website at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr0800/. The SRP is guidance 
for the NRC staff. The SRP is not a substitute for the NRC regulations, 
and compliance with the SRP is not required.

III. Backfitting and Issue Finality

    Issuance of this draft SRP, if finalized, would not constitute 
backfitting as defined in section 50.109 of title 10 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations (10 CFR) (the Backfit Rule) or otherwise be 
inconsistent with the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR part 52. The 
NRC's position is based upon the following considerations:
    1. The draft SRP positions do not constitute backfitting, inasmuch 
as the SRP is guidance directed to the NRC staff with respect to its 
regulatory responsibilities.
    The SRP provides internal guidance to the NRC staff on how to 
review an application for NRC regulatory approval in the form of 
licensing. Changes in guidance intended for use by only the staff are 
not matters that constitute backfitting as that term is defined in 10 
CFR 50.109(a)(1) or involve the issue finality provisions of 10 CFR 
part 52.
    2. Backfitting and issue finality--with certain exceptions 
discussed below--do not apply to current or future applicants.
    Applicants and potential applicants are not, with certain 
exceptions, the subject of either the Backfit Rule or any issue 
finality provisions under 10 CFR part 52. This is because neither the 
Backfit Rule nor the issue finality provisions under 10 CFR part 52 
were intended to apply to every NRC action that substantially changes 
the expectations of current and future applicants.
    The exceptions to the general principle are applicable whenever a 
10 CFR part 50 operating license applicant

[[Page 45996]]

references a construction permit or a 10 CFR part 52 combined license 
applicant references a license (e.g., an early site permit) and/or NRC 
regulatory approval (e.g., a design certification rule) for which 
specified issue finality provisions apply.
    The NRC staff does not, at this time, intend to impose the 
positions represented in this draft SRP section in a manner that 
constitutes backfitting or is inconsistent with any issue finality 
provision of 10 CFR part 52. If, in the future, the staff seeks to 
impose a position in this draft SRP section in a manner that would 
constitute backfitting or be inconsistent with these issue finality 
provisions, the NRC staff must make the showing as set forth in the 
Backfit rule or address the regulatory criteria set forth in the 
applicable issue finality provision, as applicable, that would allow 
the staff to impose the position.
    3. The NRC staff has no intention to impose the SRP positions on 
existing nuclear power plant licensees either now or in the future 
(absent a voluntary request for a change from the licensee, holder of a 
regulatory approval or a design certification applicant).
    The NRC staff does not intend to impose or apply the positions 
described in the draft SRP to existing (already issued) licenses (e.g., 
operating licenses and combined licenses) and regulatory approvals. 
Hence, the issuance of this SRP guidance--even if considered guidance 
subject to the Backfit Rule or the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR 
part 52--would not need to be evaluated as if it were a backfit or as 
being inconsistent with these issue finality provisions. If, in the 
future, the NRC staff seeks to impose a position in the SRP on holders 
of already issued licenses in a manner that would constitute 
backfitting or does not provide issue finality as described in the 
applicable issue finality provision, then the staff must make a showing 
as set forth in the Backfit Rule or address the criteria set forth in 
the applicable issue finality provision, as applicable, that would 
allow the staff to impose the position.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 6th day of September 2018.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jennivine K. Rankin,
Acting Chief, Licensing Branch 3, Division of Licensing, Siting, and 
Environmental Analysis, Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2018-19685 Filed 9-10-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P