[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 227 (Tuesday, November 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75051-75057]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25981]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 05000170; NRC-2020-0258]


In the Matter of Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Confirmatory order; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an 
Order confirming commitments agreed upon during an Alternate Dispute 
Resolution mediation session with the Armed Forces Radiobiology 
Research Institute (AFRRI). The NRC determined that an apparent 
violation of NRC regulations, occurred as identified during an 
investigation completed on February 27, 2020, by the NRC's Office of 
Investigations. The Order is effective on the date of issuance.

DATES: The Confirmatory Order became effective on November 19, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2020-0258 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may obtain publicly available information related to this document 
using any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2020-0258. Address 
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov 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.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly available documents online in the 
ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://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]. Order EA-20-056, issued to AFRRI on 
November 19, 2020, is available in ADAMS under Accession No. 
ML20303A211.
     Attention: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies 
of public documents is currently closed. You may submit your request to 
the PDR via email at [email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 
between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (EST), Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nicole Coleman, Office of Enforcement, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; 
telephone: 301-287-9007, email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the Order is attached.

    Dated: November 19, 2020.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
George A. Wilson,
Director, Office of Enforcement.

Attached--Confirmatory Order

United States of America

Nuclear Regulatory Commission

In the Matter of Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, 
Bethesda, Maryland

Docket No.: 05000170; License No.: R-84; EA-20-056

Confirmatory Order Modifying License Effective Upon Issuance

I

    Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI or Licensee) is 
the holder of License No. R-84, issued by the U. S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission (NRC or Commission) pursuant to Part 50 of Title 10 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR). The license authorizes the 
operation of AFRRI Research Reactor (facility) in accordance with 
conditions specified therein. The facility is located on the Licensee's 
site in Bethesda, Maryland.
    This Confirmatory Order (CO) is the result of an agreement reached 
during an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mediation session 
conducted on September 18, 2020, to address an apparent violation.

II

    On February 27, 2020, the NRC's Office of Investigations (OI), 
issued a report (1-2019-003) related to AFRRI. Based on the evidence 
developed during its investigation, the NRC identified an apparent 
violation of 10 CFR 50.7, ``Employee protection.'' The NRC determined 
that AFRRI placed an AFRRI employee on a 2-day suspension without pay 
on May 14, 2018, in part, for engaging in protected activity. By letter 
dated June 8, 2020, the NRC notified AFRRI of the results of the 
investigation with an opportunity to (1) attend a pre-decisional 
enforcement conference or (2) to participate in an ADR mediation 
session in an effort to resolve this concern.
    In response to the NRC's offer, AFRRI requested the use of the 
NRC's ADR process to attempt to resolve this issue with the NRC. On 
September 18, 2020, the NRC and AFRRI conducted an ADR session mediated 
by a professional mediator, arranged through Cornell University's 
Scheinman Institute on Conflict Resolution. The ADR process is one in 
which a neutral mediator, with no decision-making authority, assists 
the parties in reaching an agreement to resolve any differences 
regarding the

[[Page 75052]]

dispute. This CO is issued pursuant to the agreement reached during the 
September 18, 2020, ADR session.

III

    During the ADR session, AFRRI and the NRC reached a preliminary 
settlement agreement. The elements of the agreement included (1) 
corrective actions that AFRRI has already completed to improve the 
nuclear safety culture and safety conscious work environment (SCWE) at 
the facility (provided to the NRC during the September 18, 2020, ADR 
session), (2) agreed upon future actions, and (3) general provisions.

Previously Completed Corrective Actions

    1. Conducted industry-led AFRRI leadership SCWE training.
    2. Conducted three industry-led AFRRI employee SCWE training 
sessions.
    3. Established a SCWE Working Group to ensure employee involvement 
and capture employee insights during the development of the AFRRI SCWE 
program.
    4. Appointed a Safety Culture Program Officer.
    5. Issued an email communication from the AFRRI Director to all 
AFRRI staff encouraging participation in the SCWE training and the 
command climate survey by the Uniformed Services University (USU) 
Brigade leadership.
    6. Issued a message from the newly appointed Safety Culture Program 
Officer to all AFRRI staff emphasizing leadership's focus on safety and 
mechanisms for reporting concerns.
    7. Participated in monthly National Organization of Test, Research, 
and Training Reactors (TRTR) calls, and registered several AFRRI staff 
for the upcoming annual conference.
    8. Solicited feedback from AFRRI staff regarding the ongoing 
command climate survey to serve as a baseline for future safety 
improvement metrics.

Agreed Upon Future Actions

A. Communication

    1. Within 60 calendar days of issuance of the CO, the Uniformed 
Services University (USU) President shall issue a written statement, 
communicating the specific strategy to improve AFRRI's nuclear safety 
culture.
    a. The communication is to include (1) a brief summary regarding 
the employee protection regulations, (2) the NRC's concerns expressed 
in its March 2020 chilling effect letter, (3) specific lessons learned 
from previously applied corrective actions, and (4) corrective actions 
both taken and planned.
    b. USU shall provide a copy of this communication to the NRC for 
prior review.
    c. NRC shall provide comments within 1 week of receipt of the draft 
communication.
    2. Within 90 calendar days of the USU President's statement, AFRRI 
shall hold an all-hands meeting for management to discuss the 
importance of the above communication with AFRRI employees.
    a. AFRRI shall conduct the all-hands meeting on multiple levels of 
management (i.e., Director level, Department head) with current 
employees. AFRRI employees must attend at least one of the all-hands 
meetings.
    b. AFRRI shall require participants to sign in, confirming their 
attendance. Employees unable to attend an in-person/virtual meeting 
shall complete a ``Read and Sign'' training.
    c. Future employees shall complete a ``Read and Sign'' training.

B. Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work Environment

    1. Within 150 calendar days of issuance of the CO, AFRRI shall 
ensure its nuclear safety culture policy, guidance and related 
materials are in place and updated.
    a. Ensure a distinct and comprehensive safety culture policy is 
updated, maintained and consistent with the NRC's March 2011 Safety 
Culture Policy Statement and associated traits.
    b. The safety culture policy shall include specific definitions for 
key safety culture terms, including examples of what constitutes a 
protected activity and safety/security concern(s).
    c. The policy shall incorporate guidance from NUREG 2165, ``Safety 
Culture Common Language,'' and the industry's common language 
initiative (i.e., INPO 12-012, Revision 1, April 2013).
    d. Copies of policy statement revisions, guidance and related 
materials shall be provided to the NRC for review at least 60 calendar 
days prior to issuance.
    e. NRC will provide comments to AFRRI within 2 weeks.
    f. Within 45 days of receiving communication that the NRC review is 
complete, AFRRI will either incorporate NRC comments or provide 
acknowledgement of NRC comments and why comments were not incorporated.
    g. AFRRI will distribute copies of these documents and materials to 
employees and inform employees where all related materials can be 
located. These materials shall be maintained and provided to all new 
employees during initial orientation.
    h. AFRRI shall require employees to confirm their receipt of the 
materials by completing a ``Read and Sign''.
    2. Within 180 calendar days of issuance of the CO, AFRRI shall 
establish a nuclear SCWE program.
    a. AFRRI shall ensure that the SCWE program is consistent with the 
NRC Safety Conscious Work Environment Policy Statements and associated 
guidance (i.e., the NRC's May 1996 Safety Conscious Work Environment 
Policy Statement, and the NRC's Regulatory Issue Summary 2005-18, 
``Guidance for Establishing and Maintaining a Safety Conscious Work 
Environment'').
    b. Initial SCWE Program documents (guidance and related materials) 
shall be provided to the NRC review at least 60 calendar days prior to 
issuance.
    c. Within 2 weeks of receiving the documents, NRC will provide 
comments to AFRRI.
    d. Within 45 days of receiving communication that the NRC review is 
complete, AFRRI will either incorporate NRC comments or provide 
acknowledgement of NRC comments and why comments were not incorporated.
    e. AFRRI shall make NRC aware of any revisions to SCWE program 
documents and make the revisions available for NRC review, upon 
request. This requirement is limited to the initial 2 years of program 
establishment.
    f. AFRRI will distribute copies of these documents and materials to 
employees and inform employees where all related materials can be 
located. These materials shall be maintained and provided to all new 
employees during initial orientation.
    g. AFRRI shall require employees to confirm their receipt of the 
materials by completing a ``Read and Sign.''
    h. Within this program, AFRRI shall document the requirements 
related to the Nuclear Safety Culture Program Officer to include the 
following:
    i. The Safety Culture Program Officer (Program Officer) function 
will report directly to the AFRRI Director.
    ii. The Program Officer shall complete specific training, 
addressing topics such as intake of allegations/safety concerns and 
trending of concerns (e.g., Employee Concerns Program (ECP) basics 
course NAECP's ECP basics course, or similar training). This training 
shall be completed within 180 days of designation as the Program 
Officer.

[[Page 75053]]

    iii. The Program Officer shall assist the AFRRI Director in the 
management and execution of the SCWE program to include the intake and 
processing of reported safety concerns.
    iv. The Program Officer shall review AFRRI communications related 
to safety culture messaging and provide feedback to the AFRRI Director.
    v. The Program Officer shall encourage better communication between 
nuclear materials safety and security committees associated with AFRRI.

C. Training

    1. By no later than 180 calendar days after the issuance of the CO, 
AFRRI shall develop and/or revise its employee protection, nuclear 
safety culture and safety conscious work environment training for all 
AFRRI employees.
    a. Training shall include the following areas:
    i. Case studies of discriminatory practices;
    ii. Definitions of key industry terms/common language;
    iii. Behavioral expectations with regard to each nuclear safety 
culture traits;
    iv. Expectations for demonstrating support for raising nuclear 
safety concerns and all available avenues without fear of retaliation; 
and
    v. A statement that all employees have the right to raise nuclear 
safety concerns to USU/AFRRI, the NRC and Congress, or engage in any 
other type of protected activity without fear of being subject to 
disciplinary action or retaliation, as well as, provide a list of 
available reporting avenues.
    2. Supervisory Training: In addition to the content areas described 
within paragraph C.1 above, supervisory training shall also include 
expectations specific to the role of management and include specific 
discussion on how to (1) effectively manage safety concerns and (2) 
ensure employees feel comfortable raising concerns.
    a. If AFRRI conducts the initial training, the training will be 
performed by AFFRI employees trained by the team who developed the 
training at AFRRI or the organization who developed the program.
    b. The supervisory training shall be completed within 180 calendar 
days after the issuance of the CO.
    c. Refresher training:
    i. Shall be primarily instructor led and be provided at least every 
2 years for a period of 4 years. This training may be provided by AFRRI 
staff.
    ii. Thereafter, refresher training may be computer-based and shall 
be provided annually.
    d. AFRRI shall conduct instructor-led training for any new 
supervisors hired after the initial training conducted as described in 
paragraphs 1 and 2 above, as part of the supervisor's initial training.
    e. Training records shall be retained for 4 years after the 
completion of applicable training and made available to the NRC upon 
request.
    f. All training material shall be available to the NRC upon 
request.
    3. Employee (Non-Supervisory) Training: Initial training, developed 
in paragraph C.1 above, shall be conducted by AFRRI employees trained 
by the team who developed the training at AFRRI.
    a. All employee training shall commence within 180 calendar days 
after the issuance of the CO.
    b. All training must be completed within 330 calendar days of the 
issuance of the CO.
    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 for 4 years after the 
completion of applicable training and made available to the NRC upon 
request.
    f. All training material shall be available to the NRC upon 
request.
    4. This training is applicable to all AFRRI employees and 
management who are engaged in work associated with NRC-regulated 
activities.
    5. AFRRI shall provide all training materials to the NRC for review 
at least 60 calendar days prior to conducting training.
    a. NRC will provide comments to AFRRI within 2 weeks of receipt.
    b. Within 45 days of receiving communication that the NRC review is 
complete, AFRRI will either incorporate NRC comments or provide 
acknowledgement of NRC comments and why comments were not incorporated.

D. Assess and Monitor Nuclear Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work 
Environment

    1. By no later than 18 months after the issuance of the CO, AFRRI 
shall hire a third-party independent organization and complete a 
tailored comprehensive nuclear safety culture assessment to ensure the 
effectiveness of the nuclear safety culture and SCWE programs.
    a. The assessment will evaluate all program components, including 
insights from employee surveys, anonymous reports, interviews and the 
conduct of focus groups to assess effectiveness of the programs.
    b. AFRRI shall conduct the initial assessment within 1 year of the 
establishment of the SCWE program.
    c. AFRRI must address and implement corrective actions as a result 
of the assessment report.
    2. A follow-up assessment shall be conducted within 2 years after 
the initial assessment. The follow-up assessment shall be comparable to 
the initial assessment to allow for effective evaluation of trends. 
This assessment does not require the use of a third-party organization.
    3. AFRRI shall make available to the NRC, upon request, the results 
of the assessments, surveys, AFRRI's analysis of the trends, results 
and proposed corrective actions (if any) AFRRI will take to address the 
results in order to verify that a healthy nuclear safety culture and 
SCWE exists at AFRRI.

E. Independent Third-Party Organization

    1. Within 120 calendar days of the issuance of the CO, AFRRI will 
hire a third-party, independent organization to assist AFRRI with 
updates to its nuclear safety culture policy and the establishment of 
its safety conscious work environment program and associated tasks, as 
described within the CO. AFRRI may utilize the same organization as 
described in paragraph D above.
    a. The third-party organization shall be unrelated to the 
proceedings at issue and experienced within NRC employee protection 
regulations, Section 211 of the Energy Reorganization Act, as amended, 
and nuclear safety culture and SCWE policies/programs.
    b. AFRRI shall ensure they receive assistance from the third-party 
organization for the following tasks:
    i. Initial revisions/updates to AFRRI's nuclear safety culture 
policy, as AFRRI ensures consistency with NRC and industry guidance;
    ii. Establishment of AFRRI's SCWE program; and
    iii. Development and conduct of AFRRI's initial Nuclear Safety 
Culture and SCWE program assessment.
    c. AFRRI will ensure the organization is provided with all 
materials to comprehensively assist AFRRI, including NRC inspection 
reports associated with AFRRI's SCWE and the March 2020 CEL.

F. Work Process

    1. Within 270 calendar days of the issuance of the CO, AFRRI will 
develop a program for AFRRI employees to raise concerns.
    a. The program shall include the following:

[[Page 75054]]

    i. An electronic, telephonic, or physical reporting mechanism for 
AFRRI employees to submit safety concerns. This mechanism shall allow 
for both standard and anonymous submission capability.
    ii. A means to evaluate information collected through the reporting 
mechanisms available, in order to analyze the data over time, related 
to AFRRI's nuclear safety culture.
    iii. A means to ensure AFRRI's nuclear safety culture and SCWE 
policies, and associated guidance/materials, are readily accessible for 
employee viewing.
    iv. The opportunity for departing AFRRI employees to participate in 
an exit interview/survey to facilitate identification of nuclear safety 
issues, resulting trends and conclusions.
General Provisions
    1. 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 of the NRC Employee Protection Rules that 
occurred prior to or during implementation of the corrective actions 
aimed at correcting that specific condition as specified in the CO.
    2. The NRC will not cite a violation or issue a civil penalty in 
connection with the NRC's June 8, 2020, letter to AFRRI.
    3. This CO will not count as escalated enforcement in the civil 
penalty assessment process for future cases, as long as the future 
action is not related to the NRC Employee Protection Rule.
    4. The Director, Office of Enforcement, may, in writing, relax or 
rescind any of the above conditions upon demonstration by AFRRI of good 
cause.
    5. The NRC agrees not to pursue any further enforcement action in 
connection with the NRC's June 8, 2020, letter to AFRRI.
    6. In the event of the transfer of the operating license of AFRRI 
to another entity, the terms and conditions set forth hereunder shall 
continue to apply to AFRRI and accordingly survive any transfer of 
ownership or license.
    On November 10, 2020, AFRRI consented to issuing this CO with the 
commitments, as described in Section V below. AFRRI further agreed that 
this CO is to be effective upon issuance, that the agreement 
memorialized in this CO settles the matter between the parties, and 
that it has waived its right to a hearing.

IV

    I find that AFRRI's completed actions, as described in Section III 
above, combined with the 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 
AFRRI's commitments be confirmed by this CO. Based on the above and 
AFRRI's consent, this CO is effective upon issuance.

V

    Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 104c, 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 50, it is hereby ordered, 
effective upon issuance, that License No. R-84 is modified as follows:

A. Communication

    1. Within 60 calendar days of issuance of the Confirmatory Order 
(CO), the Uniformed Services University (USU) President shall issue a 
written statement communicating the specific strategy to improve 
AFRRI's nuclear safety culture.
    a. The communication is to include (1) a brief summary regarding 
the employee protection regulations, (2) the NRC's concerns expressed 
in its March 18, 2020, chilling effect letter, (3) specific lessons 
learned from previously applied corrective actions, and (4) corrective 
actions both taken and planned.
    b. USU shall provide a copy of this communication to the NRC for 
prior review.
    c. NRC shall provide comments within 1 week of receipt of the draft 
communication.
    2. Within 90 calendar days of the USU President's statement, AFRRI 
shall hold all-hands meetings for management to discuss the importance 
of the communication, described within Section A.1 above, with AFRRI 
employees.
    a. AFRRI shall conduct the all-hands meetings on multiple levels of 
management (i.e., AFRRI Director, Department Heads), with current 
employees. AFRRI employees must attend at least one of the all-hands 
meetings.
    b. AFRRI shall require participants to sign-in, confirming their 
attendance. Employees unable to attend an in-person/virtual meeting, 
shall confirm their receipt of the communication by completing a ``Read 
and Sign.''
    c. Future AFRRI employees shall complete this requirement via a 
``Read and Sign.''

B. Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work Environment

    1. Within 150 calendar days of issuance of the CO, AFRRI shall 
ensure its nuclear safety culture policy (NSC Policy), guidance, and 
related materials are in place and updated.
    a. Ensure a distinct and comprehensive NSC Policy is updated, 
maintained, and consistent with the NRC's June 14, 2011, Safety Culture 
Policy Statement and associated traits.
    b. The NSC Policy shall include specific definitions for key safety 
culture terms, including examples of what constitutes a protected 
activity and safety/security concern(s).
    c. The NSC Policy shall incorporate guidance from NUREG-2165, 
``Safety Culture Common Language'' and the industry's common language 
initiative (i.e., INPO 12-012, Revision 1, April 2013).
    d. Copies of NSC Policy, guidance, and related materials shall be 
provided to the NRC for review at least 60 calendar days prior to 
issuance.
    e. NRC will provide comments to AFRRI within 2 weeks of receipt of 
the document(s)/material(s).
    f. Within 45 days of receiving communication that NRC's review is 
complete, AFRRI will either incorporate NRC's comments or provide 
acknowledgement of NRC's comments and state why NRC's comments were not 
incorporated.
    g. AFRRI will distribute copies of the NSC Policy, guidance, and 
related materials to AFRRI employees and inform AFRRI employees how to 
access the documents and materials. These materials shall be maintained 
and provided to all new AFRRI employees during initial employee 
orientation.
    h. AFRRI shall require both current and new AFRRI employees to 
confirm their receipt of the NSC Policy, guidance, and related 
materials by completing a ``Read and Sign.''
    2. Within 180 calendar days of issuance of the CO, AFRRI shall 
establish a nuclear safety conscious work environment (SCWE) program.
    a. AFRRI shall ensure that the SCWE program is consistent with the 
NRC Safety Conscious Work Environment Policy Statement and associated 
guidance (i.e., NRC's May 14, 1996, policy statement ``Freedom of 
Employees in the Nuclear Industry to Raise Safety Concerns Without Fear 
of Retaliation,'' and the NRC's Regulatory Issue Summary 2005-18, 
``Guidance for

[[Page 75055]]

Establishing and Maintaining a Safety Conscious Work Environment'').
    b. Initial SCWE program documents (guidance and related materials) 
shall be provided to the NRC review at 60 calendar days prior to 
issuance.
    c. NRC will provide comments to AFRRI, within 2 weeks of receipt of 
the documents.
    d. Within 45 days of receiving communication that NRC's review is 
complete, AFRRI will either incorporate NRC's comments or provide 
acknowledgement of NRC's comments and state why NRC's comments were not 
incorporated.
    e. For a period of 2 years following the establishment of the SCWE 
program, AFRRI shall inform NRC of any pending major revisions to 
AFRRI's SCWE program documents and make the revisions available for NRC 
review upon request. Major revisions, for the purpose of this CO 
condition, are considered to be, but not limited to, removal/addition 
of any program element (i.e., avenues to report safety concerns, 
program trending and analysis standards, etc.).
    f. AFRRI will distribute copies of the SCWE program documents and 
materials to AFRRI employees and inform AFRRI employees how to access 
the documents and materials. These materials shall be maintained and 
provided to all new AFRRI employees during initial employee 
orientation.
    g. AFRRI shall require both current and future AFRRI employees to 
confirm their receipt of the materials by completing a ``Read and 
Sign.''
    h. Within the SCWE program, AFRRI shall document the requirements 
related to the Safety Culture Program Officer (Program Officer) to 
include the following:
    i. The Program Officer function will report directly to the AFRRI 
Director.
    ii. The Program Officer shall complete specific training addressing 
topics such as intake of allegations/safety concerns and trending of 
concerns (e.g., National Association of Employee Concerns 
Professionals' (NAECP's) Employee Concerns Program basics course, or 
similar training). This training shall be completed within 180 days of 
designation as the Program Officer.
    iii. The Program Officer shall assist the AFRRI Director in 
management and execution of the SCWE program to include the intake and 
processing of reported safety concerns.
    iv. The Program Officer shall review AFRRI communications related 
to safety culture messaging and provide feedback.
    v. The Program Officer shall encourage better communication between 
nuclear materials safety and security committees associated with AFRRI.

C. Training

    1. Within 210 calendar days of issuance of the CO, AFRRI shall 
develop and/or revise its employee protection, nuclear safety culture 
and safety conscious work environment training for all AFRRI employees 
and supervisors.
    a. Training shall include the following:
    i. Case studies of discriminatory practices;
    ii. Definitions of key industry terms/common language;
    iii. Behavioral expectations with regard to each nuclear safety 
culture trait as defined in NRC's June 14, 2011, Safety Culture Policy 
Statement;
    iv. Expectations for demonstrating support for raising nuclear 
safety concerns without fear of retaliation; and
    v. A statement that all employees have the right to raise nuclear 
safety concerns to USU/AFRRI, the NRC and Congress, or engage in any 
other type of protected activity without being subject to disciplinary 
action or retaliation, as well as, providing a list of available 
reporting avenues.
    2. Supervisory Training: In addition to the content areas described 
within paragraph C.1.a above, supervisory training shall also include 
expectations specific to the role of management and include discussion 
on (1) effectively managing safety concerns and (2) ensuring employees 
feel comfortable raising concerns.
    a. The supervisory training shall be conducted by either the 
independent third-party organization hired to assist AFRRI, as 
described in paragraph E below, or AFFRI employees trained by the 
independent third-party organization.
    b. The initial supervisory training shall be completed within 210 
calendar days after the issuance of the CO.
    c. Refresher supervisory training:
    i. Initial refresher training sessions shall be primarily 
instructor-led and shall be provided to all supervisors at least every 
2 years for a period of 4 years from the issuance of the CO. This 
training may be provided by AFRRI staff.
    ii. Thereafter, refresher training may be computer-based and shall 
be provided to all supervisors annually.
    d. AFRRI shall conduct instructor-led training for any new 
supervisors hired after the initial training, described in paragraphs 
C.1 and C.2.b, as part of the supervisor's initial training.
    e. Training records shall be retained for 4 years after the 
completion of applicable training and made available to the NRC upon 
request.
    f. All training material shall be made available to the NRC upon 
request.
    3. Employee (Non-Supervisory) Training: The initial AFRRI employee 
training described in paragraph C.1 above shall be conducted by AFRRI 
employees trained by the team who developed the training.
    a. The initial AFRRI employee training shall be primarily 
instructor-led and all AFRRI employee training shall commence within 
180 calendar days after the issuance of the CO.
    b. All initial AFRRI employee training must be completed within 330 
calendar days of the issuance of the CO.
    c. Refresher employee training may be computer-based and shall be 
provided to all AFRRI employees annually.
    d. AFRRI shall conduct instructor-led training for any new AFRRI 
employee hired after the initial training, described in paragraphs C.1 
and C.3.a, as part of the employee's orientation program/process.
    e. Training records shall be retained for 4 years after the 
completion of applicable training and made available to the NRC upon 
request.
    f. All training material shall be made available to the NRC upon 
request.
    4. The training described in paragraphs C.1, C.2 and C.3 is 
applicable to all AFRRI employees and management who are engaged in 
work associated with NRC-regulated activities.
    5. AFRRI shall provide all initial training materials to the NRC 
for review at least 60 calendar days prior to conducting training.
    6. NRC will provide comments to AFRRI within 2 weeks of receipt of 
the documents.
    7. Within 45 days of receiving communication that NRC's review is 
complete, AFRRI will either incorporate NRC's comments or provide 
acknowledgement of NRC's comments and state why NRC's comments were not 
incorporated.

D. Assess and Monitor Nuclear Safety Culture and Safety Conscious Work 
Environment

    1. By no later than 18 months after the issuance of the CO, AFRRI 
shall hire an independent third-party organization and complete a 
tailored, comprehensive nuclear safety culture assessment.
    a. The assessment will evaluate all program components, including 
insights from employee surveys, anonymous reports, interviews and the 
conduct of focus groups to assess effectiveness of the program.
    b. AFRRI shall conduct the initial assessment within 1 year of the

[[Page 75056]]

establishment of the SCWE program and the assessment must result in a 
comprehensive report.
    c. AFRRI must address and implement corrective actions as a result 
of the assessment report.
    2. A follow-up assessment shall be conducted within 2 years after 
the initial assessment. The follow-up assessment shall be comparable to 
the initial assessment, described in paragraph D.1, to allow for 
effective evaluation of trends. This follow-up assessment does not 
require the use of an independent third-party organization.
    3. AFRRI shall make available to the NRC, upon request, the results 
of the initial and follow-up assessments (including surveys and AFRRI's 
analysis of trends) and the proposed corrective actions (if any) AFRRI 
will take to address the results, in order for the NRC to verify that a 
healthy nuclear safety culture and SCWE exist at AFRRI.

E. Independent Third-Party Organization

    1. Within 120 calendar days of the issuance of the CO, AFRRI will 
hire an independent third-party organization to assist AFRRI with 
updates to its NSC Policy and the establishment of its SCWE program and 
associated tasks, as described within the CO. AFRRI may utilize the 
same organization as described in paragraph D above.
    a. The independent third-party organization shall be unrelated to 
the proceedings at issue and experienced within NRC employee protection 
regulations, Section 211 of the Energy Reorganization Act, as amended, 
and nuclear safety culture and SCWE policies/programs.
    b. AFRRI shall receive assistance from the independent third-party 
organization for the following tasks:
    i. Initial revisions/updates to AFRRI's NSC Policy, as AFRRI 
ensures consistency with NRC and industry guidance, as described in 
paragraph B.1;
    ii. Establishment of AFRRI's SCWE program, as described in 
paragraph B.2; and
    iii. Development and implementation of AFRRI's initial Nuclear 
Safety Culture and SCWE program assessment, as described in paragraph 
D.1.
    c. AFRRI will ensure that the independent third-party organization 
is provided all materials to comprehensively assist AFRRI, including 
NRC inspection reports associated with AFRRI's SCWE and the March 18, 
2020, Chilling Effect Letter.

F. Work Process

    1. Within 270 calendar days of the issuance of the CO, AFRRI will 
develop a program for AFRRI employees to raise nuclear safety and 
security concerns.
    a. The program shall include the following:
    i. An electronic, telephonic or physical reporting mechanism for 
AFRRI employees to submit nuclear safety or security concerns. This 
mechanism shall allow for both standard and anonymous submission 
capability.
    ii. A means to evaluate information collected through the available 
reporting mechanisms in order to analyze the data related to AFRRI's 
nuclear safety culture over time.
    iii. A means to ensure AFRRI's NSC Policy, SCWE program, and 
associated guidance/materials are readily accessible for employee 
viewing.
    iv. The opportunity for departing AFRRI employees to participate in 
an exit interview/survey to facilitate identification of nuclear safety 
issues, resulting trends and conclusions.
    In consideration for the actions and/or initiatives that AFRRI 
agrees to undertake, as outlined above, the NRC agrees to the 
following:
    1. 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., associated 
with the NRC Employee Protection Rules) that occur prior to or during 
implementation of the corrective actions aimed at correcting that 
specific condition as specified in the CO.
    2. The NRC will not cite a violation or issue a civil penalty in 
connection with the NRC's June 8, 2020, letter to AFRRI.
    3. This CO will not count as escalated enforcement in the civil 
penalty assessment process for future cases as long as the future 
action is not related to the NRC Employee Protection Rules.
    4. The NRC agrees not to pursue any further enforcement action in 
connection with the NRC's June 8, 2020, letter to AFRRI.
    In the event of the transfer of the operating license of AFRRI to 
another entity, the terms and conditions set forth hereunder shall 
continue to apply to AFRRI and accordingly survive any transfer of 
ownership or license.
    The Director, Office of Enforcement may, in writing, relax or 
rescind any of the above conditions upon demonstration by AFRRI of good 
cause.

VI

    In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202 and 10 CFR 2.309, any person 
adversely affected by this Confirmatory Order, other than AFRRI, may 
request a hearing within 30 calendar days of the date of issuance of 
this Confirmatory Order. 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 and petition for leave to intervene (petition), 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 that request to 
participate under 10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in accordance with the 
NRC's E-Filing rule (72 FR 49139; August 28, 2007, as amended at 77 FR 
46562; August 3, 2012). 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. Detailed 
guidance on making electronic submissions may be found in the Guidance 
for Electronic Submissions to the NRC and on the NRC website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. 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 (1) request a digital identification (ID) 
certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or 
representative) to digitally sign submissions and access the E-Filing 
system for any proceeding in which it is participating; and (2) advise 
the Secretary that the participant will be submitting a petition or 
other adjudicatory document (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.

[[Page 75057]]

    Information about applying for a digital ID certificate is 
available on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/getting-started.html. Once a participant has obtained a 
digital ID certificate and a docket has been created, the participant 
can then submit adjudicatory documents. Submissions must be in Portable 
Document Format (PDF). Additional guidance on PDF submissions is 
available on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/electronic-sub-ref-mat.html. A filing is considered complete at the 
time the document is 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's 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 
document on those participants separately. Therefore, applicants and 
other participants (or their counsel or representative) must apply for 
and receive a digital ID certificate before adjudicatory documents are 
filed so that they can obtain access to the documents via the E-Filing 
system.
    A person filing electronically using the NRC's adjudicatory E-
Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC's Electronic 
Filing Help Desk through the ``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC's 
public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html, by 
email to [email protected], or by a toll-free call at 1-866-672-
7640. The NRC Electronic Filing Help Desk is available between 9 a.m. 
and 6 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 
stating why there is good cause for not filing electronically and 
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, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, Attention: Rulemaking and 
Adjudications Staff. Participants filing adjudicatory documents 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 the 
NRC's electronic hearing docket which is available to the public at 
https://adams.nrc.gov/ehd, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the 
Commission or the presiding officer. If you do not have an NRC-issued 
digital ID certificate as described above, click ``cancel'' when the 
link requests certificates and you will be automatically directed to 
the NRC's electronic hearing dockets where you will be able to access 
any publicly available documents in a particular hearing docket. 
Participants are requested not to include personal privacy information, 
such as social security numbers, home addresses, or personal phone 
numbers in their filings, unless an NRC regulation or other law 
requires submission of such information. For example, in some 
instances, individuals provide home addresses in order to demonstrate 
proximity to a facility or site. 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.
    The Commission will issue a notice or order granting or denying a 
hearing request or intervention petition, designating the issues for 
any hearing that will be held and designating the Presiding Officer. A 
notice granting a hearing will be published in the Federal Register and 
served on the parties to the hearing.
    If a person (other than AFRRI) 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 hearings. 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 30 days from the date of 
this Confirmatory Order 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.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

    Dated this 19th day of November 2020.
George A. Wilson,
Director, Office of Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2020-25981 Filed 11-23-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P