[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 142 (Monday, July 28, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35558-35559]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-14174]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2023-0034]
Draft NUREG: Operator Licensing Examiner Standards for Research
and Test Reactors
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Draft report; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for
public comment a draft NUREG, NUREG-1478, Revision 3, ``Operator
Licensing Examiner Standards for Research and Test Reactors.'' This
draft NUREG establishes the policies, procedures, and practices for the
development, administration, and grading of written examinations and
operating tests used for examining licensees and applicants for reactor
operator and senior reactor operator licenses at research and test
reactor facilities. It also provides procedures and guidance for
maintaining operators' licenses and for the NRC to conduct
requalification examinations when necessary. Draft NUREG-1478, Revision
3, introduces electronic systems and technology, includes current
research and test reactor regulations, adjusts grading criteria for
accuracy, and streamlines the examination standards by organizing them
in topic-based sections for ease of use.
DATES: Submit comments by September 26, 2025. 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;
however, the NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the
Federal rulemaking website:
Federal rulemaking website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2023-0034. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Bridget Curran;
telephone: 301-415-1003; email: [email protected]. For technical
questions, contact the individual listed in the For Further Information
Contact section of this document.
Mail comments to: Office of Administration, Mail Stop:
TWFN-7-A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, ATTN: Program Management, Announcements and Editing Staff.
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: Michele DeSouza, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-0747; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2023-0034 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 https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2023-0034.
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, at 301-415-4737,
or by email to [email protected]. Draft NUREG-1478, Revision 3, is
available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML25199A236.
NRC's PDR: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies
of publicly available documents, is open by appointment. To make an
appointment to visit the PDR, please send an email to
[email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, between 8
a.m. and 4 p.m. eastern time (ET), Monday through Friday, except
Federal holidays.
[[Page 35559]]
B. Submitting Comments
The NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the
Federal rulemaking website (https://www.regulations.gov). Please
include Docket ID NRC-2023-0034 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
https://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. Discussion
Draft NUREG-1478, Revision 3, improves research and test reactors
operator licensing current processes and clarifies guidance as needed.
Draft NUREG-1478, Revision 3 provides policies, procedures, and
practices for the development, administration, and grading of
examinations used for licensing operators at research and test reactors
under the NRC's regulations in part 55 of title 10 of the Code of
Federal Regulations, ``Operators' Licenses.'' This draft NUREG also
provides guidance for maintaining operators' licenses and for the NRC
to conduct requalification examinations when necessary. The NRC is
issuing the draft NUREG to (1) incorporate the use of electronic
systems and technology for application submittals and supporting
facility documentation, (2) include current regulatory requirements
pertaining to operator licensing at research and test reactors, (3)
adjust grading criteria for the written examination to provide
consistent and accurate grading, and (4) reorganize the examination
standards to provide a streamlined topic-based approach.
III. Executive Order (E.O.) 12866
The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs determined that
this draft NUREG is not a significant regulatory action under E.O.
12866.
Dated: July 24, 2025.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Michael Brown,
Chief, Non-Power Production and Utilization Facility Oversight Branch,
Division of Advanced Reactors and Non-Power Production and Utilization
Facilities, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2025-14174 Filed 7-25-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P