[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 74 (Friday, April 17, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20712-20716]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-07528]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 999-02137; NRC-2026-1684]
In the Matter of Blue Energy, Inc.
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Order; issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing this
Order, immediately effective on March 26, 2026, to impose additional
requirements necessary for the adequate protection of Safeguards
Information in the possession of Blue Energy, Inc.
DATES: The Order was issued on March 26, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2026-1684 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-2026-1684. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Bridget Curran;
telephone: 301-415-1003; email: [email protected]. For technical
questions, contact the individual(s) 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 ADAMS Public 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]. The Order is available in ADAMS under ADAMS
Accession No. ML26015A065.
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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Yip, Office of Nuclear Security
and Incident Response, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-3154; email: [email protected].
[[Page 20713]]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the Order is attached.
(Authority: 42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq)
Dated: April 15, 2026.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Kevin Williams,
Acting Director, Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response.
ATTACHED--Order
UNITED STATES
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
In the Matter of: BLUE ENERGY, INC., Docket No. 99902137, EAF-NSIR-
2026-0007
Order Imposing Safeguards Information Protection Requirements for
Access to Safeguards Information (Effective Immediately)
I
Blue Energy Global, Inc. (Blue Energy) submitted a letter of
intent to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in 2025 for a
future construction permit application.
On June 2009, the Commission published a rulemaking in the
Federal Register (FR) (74 FR 28112) requiring applicants for a
variety of licensing activities, including nuclear power plant
designers to perform a design-specific assessment of the effects of
the impact of a large commercial aircraft and to incorporate design
features and functional capabilities into the nuclear power plant
design to provide additional inherent protection with reduced use of
operator actions. To assist designers in completing this assessment,
the Commission has decided to provide the detailed aircraft impact
characteristics that should be used as reasonable inputs for reactor
vendors and architect/engineers who have the need to know and who
meet the NRC's requirements for the disclosure of such information
to use in the required aircraft impact assessments.
The NRC derived the characteristics from agency analyses
performed on operating reactors to support, in part, the development
of a broadly effective set of mitigation strategies to combat fires
and explosions from a spectrum of hypothetical aircraft impacts.
Although the detailed characteristics were not selected as a basis
for designing new reactors, the staff is suggesting them as a
starting point for aircraft impact assessments. The detailed
aircraft characteristics that are the subject of this Order are
hereby designated as Safeguards Information (SGI) \1\ in accordance
with Section 147 of the AEA.
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\1\ SGI is a form of sensitive, unclassified, security-related
information that the Commission has the authority to designate and
protect under Section 147 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as
amended (AEA).
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On October 24, 2008, the NRC revised Title 10 of the Code of
Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 73.21, ``Protection of Safeguards
Information: Performance Requirements,'' to include applicants in
the list of entities required to protect SGI (73 FR 63546). The NRC
is issuing this order to Blue Energy to impose requirements for the
protection of SGI in addition to the requirements set forth in 10
CFR 73.21. These additional requirements include nomination of a
reviewing official, restrictions on storage of SGI, and access to
SGI by certain individuals.
To implement this Order, Blue Energy must nominate an individual
who will review the results of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI) criminal history records check to make SGI access
determinations. This individual, called the reviewing official, must
be someone who seeks access to SGI. Based on the results of the FBI
criminal history records check, the NRC staff will determine if this
individual may have access to SGI. If the NRC determines that the
individual may not be granted access to SGI, the enclosed order
prohibits that individual from obtaining access to any SGI. Once the
NRC approves a reviewing official, this reviewing official--and only
this reviewing official--can make SGI access determinations for
other individuals who Blue Energy identifies as having a need for
SGI, who have been fingerprinted, and who have had criminal history
records and background check in accordance with this Order. The
reviewing official can only make SGI access determinations for other
individuals but cannot approve other individuals to act as reviewing
officials. Only the NRC can approve a reviewing official. Therefore,
if Blue Energy wishes to have a new or additional reviewing
official, the NRC must approve this individual before he or she can
act in that capacity.
II
The Commission has broad statutory authority to protect and
prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of SGI. Section 147 of the AEA
grants the Commission explicit authority to issue such orders, as
necessary, to prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of SGI. To
provide assurance that Blue Energy continues to implement
appropriate measures to ensure a consistent level of protection to
prohibit unauthorized disclosure of SGI, as well as to comply with
the fingerprinting, criminal history records check, and background
check requirements for access to SGI, Blue Energy shall implement
the requirements for the protection of SGI as set forth in 10 CFR
73.21, 10 CFR 73.22, ``Protection of Safeguards Information:
Specific Requirements,'' and this Order.
By rule, certain categories of individuals are exempted from the
fingerprinting requirements under 10 CFR 73.59, ``Relief from
Fingerprinting, Identification and Criminal History Records Checks
and Other Elements of Background Checks for Designated Categories of
Individuals.'' Those individuals include Federal, State, and local
law enforcement personnel in the U.S.; Agreement State inspectors
who conduct security inspections on behalf of the NRC; members of
the U.S. Congress; certain employees of members of Congress or
congressional committees who have undergone fingerprinting for a
previous U.S. Government criminal history check; and representatives
of the International Atomic Energy Agency or certain foreign
government organizations. In addition, individuals who have had a
favorably decided U.S. Government criminal history check within the
last 5 years, or individuals who have active U.S. Federal security
clearances (provided in either case that they provide the
appropriate documentation), have already been subjected to
fingerprinting and criminal history checks and, thus, have satisfied
the fingerprinting requirement.
In addition, under 10 CFR 2.202, ``Orders,'' the NRC finds that,
in light of the matters identified above which warrant the issuance
of this Order, the public health, safety, and interest require that
this Order be effective immediately.
III
Accordingly, under sections 147, 149, 161b, 161i, 161o, 182, and
186 of the AEA, and the Commission's regulations in 10 CFR 2.202 and
10 CFR part 73, ``Physical Protection of Plants and Materials,'' it
is hereby ordered, effective immediately, that blue energy and all
other persons who seek or obtain access to sgi as described herein
shall comply with the requirements set forth in 10 CFR 73.21, 10 CFR
73.22, and this order.
A.
(1) No person shall have access to any SGI if the NRC, when
making an SGI access determination for a nominated reviewing
official, has determined, based on fingerprinting and an FBI
identification and criminal history records check, that the person
nominated may not have access to SGI.
(2) Blue Energy shall store SGI designated by this Order only in
the facility or facilities specifically approved in writing by the
NRC for storage of SGI designated by this Order. Blue Energy may
request, in writing, NRC approval of additional facilities for the
storage of the SGI designated by this Order that the NRC will
consider on a case-by-case basis.
(3) Blue Energy may provide SGI designated by this Order to
individuals (such as foreign/non-U.S. nationals, U.S. citizens
living in foreign countries, or individuals under the age of 18) for
whom fingerprinting and an FBI criminal history records check are
not reasonably expected to yield sufficient criminal history
information to form the basis of an informed decision on granting
access to SGI, provided that the individual satisfies the
requirements of this Order, and that Blue Energy has implemented
measures, in addition to those set forth in this Order, to ensure
that the individual is suitable to have access to the SGI designated
by this Order. Such additional measures must include, but are not
limited to, equivalent criminal history records checks conducted by
a U.S. local, U.S. State, or foreign governmental agency and
enhanced background checks, including employment and credit history.
The NRC must review these additional measures and approve them in
writing.
B. No person may provide SGI to another person, except in
accordance with section III.A. above. Before a person provides SGI
to any person, a copy of this Order shall be provided to that
person.
C. Blue Energy shall comply with the following requirements:
[[Page 20714]]
(1) Blue Energy shall, within 20 days of the date of this Order,
submit the fingerprints of one individual whom (a) it nominates as
the reviewing official for determining access to SGI by other
individuals, and (b) has an established need to know the
information. The NRC will determine if this individual (or any
subsequent reviewing official) may have access to SGI and,
therefore, will be permitted to serve as Blue Energy's reviewing
official.\2\ Blue Energy may, at the same time or later, submit the
fingerprints of other individuals to whom it seeks to grant access
to SGI. Fingerprints shall be submitted and reviewed in accordance
with the procedures described in the attachment to this Order.
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\2\ The NRC's determination of this individual's access to SGI
in accordance with the process described in Enclosure 3 to the
transmittal letter of this Order is an administrative determination
that is outside the scope of this Order.
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(2) Blue Energy shall, in writing, within 20 days of the date of
this Order, notify the Commission (1) if it is unable to comply with
any of the requirements described in the Order, including the
attachment, or (2) if compliance with any of the requirements is
unnecessary in its specific circumstances.
The notification shall provide Blue Energy's justification for
seeking relief from, or variation of, any specific requirement.
Blue Energy shall submit responses to C.(1) and C.(2) above to
the Director, Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555. In addition,
Blue Energy shall mark its responses as ``Security-Related
Information-Withhold Under 10 CFR 2.390.''
Except for the requirements for fingerprinting, the Director,
Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response, may, in writing,
relax or rescind any of the above conditions upon demonstration of
good cause by Blue Energy.
IV
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202, Blue Energy must, and any other
person adversely affected by this Order may, submit a written answer
to this Order under oath or affirmation within 20 days of its
publication in the Federal Register. Blue Energy's answer may
consent to the Order and be submitted to the NRC in accordance with
10 CFR 50.4. In addition, Blue Energy and any other person adversely
affected by this Order may request a hearing on this Order within 20
days of its publication in the Federal Register. Where good cause is
shown, consideration will be given to extending the time to answer
or request a hearing. A request for such an extension of time must
be made in writing to the Director, Office of Nuclear Security and
Incident Response, 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
documents filed by an interested State, local governmental body,
Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or designated agency thereof that
requests to participate under 10 CFR 2.315, ``Participation by a
person not a party,'' paragraph (c) must be filed in accordance with
10 CFR 2.302, ``Filing of documents.'' 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, unless an exemption permitting an alternative filing method,
as further discussed, is granted. Detailed guidance on electronic
submissions is located in the ``Guidance for Electronic Submissions
to the NRC'' (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS) Accession No. ML13031A056), and on the NRC's public website
at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html.
To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least
10 days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should contact
the NRC 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 proceeding if the Secretary has not
already established an electronic docket.
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. After a digital ID
certificate is obtained and a docket created, the participant must
submit adjudicatory documents in portable document format (pdf).
Guidance on 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 (ET) on the due date. Upon receipt of a transmission, the E-
Filing system timestamps the document and sends the submitter an
email confirming receipt of the document. The E-Filing system also
distributes an email 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, participants (or their counsel
or representative) must apply for and receive a digital ID
certificate before adjudicatory documents are filed to 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., ET, Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays.
Participants who believe that they have 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 in accordance with 10 CFR
2.302(b)-(d). Participants filing adjudicatory documents in this
manner are responsible for serving their documents on all other
participants. Participants granted an exemption under 10 CFR
2.302(g)(2) must still meet the electronic formatting requirement in
10 CFR 2.302(g)(1), unless the participant also seeks and is granted
an exemption from 10 CFR 2.302(g)(1).
Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in
the NRC's electronic hearing docket, which is publicly available at
https://adams.nrc.gov/ehd, unless excluded pursuant to an order of
the presiding officer. If you do not have an NRC-issued digital ID
certificate as previously described, click ``cancel'' when the link
requests certificates and you will be automatically directed to the
NRC's electronic hearing docket 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. 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 should not include copyrighted materials
in their submission.
If a person other than Blue Energy requests a hearing, that
person shall set forth with particularity the manner in which their
interest is adversely affected by this Order and shall address the
criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.309(d) and (f).
If a hearing is requested by Blue Energy or 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 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 III shall be
final 20 days from the date this 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 III shall be final when the extension expires
if a hearing request has not been received.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this day March 26, 2026.
[[Page 20715]]
For the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Kevin Williams,
Acting Director, Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response.
Guidance for Evaluation of Access to Safeguards Information With the
Inclusion of Criminal History Records (Fingerprint) Checks
When a licensee or other person \3\ submits fingerprints to the
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) under an NRC Order, they
will receive a summary of criminal history information, provided in
U.S. Federal records, covering the time period since the
individual's 18th birthday. Individuals retain the right to correct
and complete information and to initiate challenge procedures
described in Enclosure 3. The licensee will receive the information
from the criminal history records check for those individuals
requiring access to Safeguards Information (SGI), and the reviewing
official will evaluate that information using the guidance below.
Furthermore, the requirements for all Orders, which apply to the
information and material to which access is being granted, must be
met.
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\3\ As used herein, licensee means any
licensee or other person who is required to conduct fingerprinting.
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The licensee's reviewing official is required to evaluate all
pertinent and available information in making a determination
regarding an individual's access to SGI, including the criminal
history information about the individual as required by the NRC
Order. The criminal history records check is used when determining
if an individual has a record of criminal activity that indicates
that the individual should not have access to SGI. Each
determination of access to SGI, which includes a review of criminal
history information, must be documented to include the basis for the
decision that is made and must meet the following requirements:
(1) If negative information is discovered that the individual
did not provide, or which is different in any material respect from
the information that the individual provided, this information
should be considered, and decisions made based on these findings
must be documented.
(2) Any record containing a pattern of behaviors that indicates
that the behaviors could recur or continue, or recent behaviors that
cast doubt on whether an individual should have access to SGI should
be carefully evaluated before any authorization of access to SGI.
If either of the following occurs, the licensee must resubmit
fingerprints:
(1) The FBI determines that the fingerprints cannot be
classified because of poor quality in the mechanics of taking the
initial impressions.
(2) The initial submission is lost.
If the FBI determines that a set of fingerprints is
unclassifiable because they are unreadable, they will provide a
response similar to the following:
``The quality of the characteristics is too low to be used.
Candidate(s) were found. Please resubmit a new set of fingerprints
for comparison.''
If the licensee receives two such responses, indicating that the
fingerprints for a given individual are unclassifiable, then the
licensee may request an exemption--based on the results of a name-
based criminal history records check--through the NRC's Criminal
History Program Specialist or Access Authorization Program Security
Specialist. (The Criminal History Program Specialist can be reached
by email at [email protected].) The NRC will thereafter
provide an electronic response back to the licensee communicating
the approval or denial of the exemption. If approved, the licensee
will then submit the required form for a name-based check.
Process To Challenge NRC Denials or Revocations of Access to Safeguards
Information
1. Policy
This policy establishes a process for an individual, whom the
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensee \4\ has nominated
to serve as a reviewing official, to challenge and appeal NRC
denials or revocations of access to Safeguards Information (SGI).
Any individual nominated as a licensee reviewing official whom the
NRC has determined may not have access to SGI shall, to the extent
provided below, be afforded an opportunity to challenge and appeal
the NRC's determination. This policy shall not be construed to
require the disclosure of SGI to any person; neither shall it be
construed to create a liberty or property interest of any kind in
the access of any individual to SGI.
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\4\ As used herein, licensee means any
licensee or other person who is required to conduct fingerprinting.
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2. Applicability
This policy applies solely to those employees of licensees who
are nominated to serve as reviewing officials, and who have thus
been considered by the NRC for initial or continued access to SGI in
that position.\5\
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\5\ The licensee should have an approved SGI program or an SGI
program under NRC review.
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3. SGI Access Determination Criteria
The NRC will determine whether access to SGI will be granted to
an individual nominated to be a reviewing official. Access to SGI
shall be denied or revoked whenever it is determined that an
individual does not meet the applicable standards. Any doubt about
an individual's eligibility for initial or continued access to SGI
shall be resolved in favor of national security interests, and
access will be denied or revoked.
4. Procedure To Challenge the Contents of Records Obtained From the
FBI
Before a determination, by the responsible NRC branch chief,
that an individual's nomination to serve as a reviewing official is
denied or that the individual's access to SGI is revoked, the
individual shall--
(i) be given the contents of records obtained from the FBI for
the purpose of assuring correct and complete information. If, after
reviewing the record, an individual believes that it is incorrect or
incomplete in any respect and wishes to change, correct, or update
the alleged deficiency, or to explain any matter in the record, the
individual may initiate challenge procedures, including either
direct application by the individual challenging the record to the
agency (i.e., law enforcement agency) that contributed the
questioned information or direct challenge as to the accuracy or
completeness of any entry on the criminal history record to the
Federal Bureau of Investigation, as set forth in Title 28 of the
Code of Federal Regulations sections 16.30 through 16.34. In the
latter case, the FBI will forward the challenge to the submitting
agency and request that agency to verify or correct the challenged
entry. Upon receipt of an official communication directly from the
agency that contributed the original information, the FBI
Identification Division makes any necessary changes in accordance
with the information supplied by that agency.
(ii) be afforded 10 days to initiate an action challenging the
results of an FBI criminal history records check (described in (i),
above) after the record is made available to the individual for his
or her review. If the individual initiates such a challenge, the
responsible NRC branch chief will make a determination based upon
the criminal history record only upon receipt of the FBI's ultimate
confirmation or correction of the record.
5. Procedure To Provide Additional Information
Before a determination, by the responsible NRC branch chief,
that an individual's nomination to serve as a reviewing official is
denied or that the individual's access to SGI is revoked, the
individual shall be afforded an opportunity to submit information
relevant to the individual's trustworthiness and reliability. The
NRC shall, in writing, notify the individual of this opportunity and
any deadlines for submitting this information. The responsible NRC
branch chief may make a determination of access to SGI only upon
receipt of the additional information that the individual submits
or, if no such information is submitted, when the deadline to submit
such information has passed.
6. Procedure To Notify an Individual of the NRC's Determination To
Deny or Revoke Access to SGI
Upon a determination, by the responsible NRC branch chief, that
an individual nominated as a reviewing official is denied or has his
or her access to SGI revoked, the individual shall be given a
written explanation of the basis for this determination.
7. Procedure To Appeal an NRC Determination To Deny or Revoke
Access to SGI
Upon a determination, by the responsible NRC branch chief, that
an individual's nomination to serve as a reviewing official is
denied or that the individual's access to SGI is revoked, the
individual shall be given an opportunity to appeal this
determination to the responsible division director. The
[[Page 20716]]
determination must be appealed within 20 days of receipt of the
written notice of the determination by the branch chief, and the
appeal may be submitted in writing or presented in person. Any
appeal made in person shall take place at the NRC's headquarters and
shall be at the individual's own expense. The determination by the
responsible division director shall be rendered within 60 days after
receipt of the appeal.
8. Procedure To Notify an Individual of the Determination by the
Responsible Division Director, Upon an Appeal
A determination by the responsible division director shall be
provided to the individual in writing and include an explanation of
the basis for this determination. A decision by the responsible
division director to affirm the responsible branch chief's
determination to deny or revoke an individual's access to SGI is
final and not subject to further administrative appeals.
General Requirements
Licensees and other persons who are required to conduct
fingerprinting shall comply with the requirements of this
enclosure.\6\
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\6\ As used herein, licensee means any
licensee or other person who is required to conduct fingerprinting
in accordance with these requirements.
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The licensee shall notify the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC), in writing, of any desired change in reviewing officials, in
compliance with C.1 of the subject Order. The NRC will determine if
the individual nominated as the new reviewing official may have
access to Safeguards Information (SGI) based on a previously
obtained or new criminal history check and, therefore, will be
permitted to serve as the licensee's NRC-approved reviewing
official.
Procedures for Processing Fingerprint Checks (10 CFR 73.57(d))
For the purpose of complying with this Order, licensees shall,
using an appropriate method listed in Title 10 of the Code of
Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 73, ``Physical Protection of
Plants and Materials,'' section 4, ``Communications,'' submit one
completed legible standard fingerprint card (Form FD-258,
ORIMDNRCOOOZ); \7\ or, where practicable, other fingerprint records
\8\ for each individual seeking access to SGI; to the NRC, marked
for the attention of the Criminal History Program.
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\7\ Copies of these forms may be obtained by writing the Office
of the Chief Information Officer, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, by calling 301-415-5877, or
by email to [email protected].
\8\ Guidance on what alternative formats might be practicable is
referenced in 10 CFR 73.4.
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The licensee shall establish procedures to ensure that the
quality of the fingerprints taken results in minimizing the
rejection rate of fingerprint cards due to illegible or incomplete
cards. The NRC will review submitted fingerprint cards for
completeness. Any Form FD-258 fingerprint record containing
omissions or evident errors will be returned to the licensee for
corrections.
Under 10 CFR 73.57(d)(2), the fee for processing fingerprint
checks includes one free resubmission if the initial submission is
returned by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) because the
fingerprint impressions cannot be classified. The one free
resubmission must have the FBI Transaction Control Number reflected
on the resubmission. If additional submissions are necessary, they
will be treated as an initial submittal and require a second payment
of the processing fee. The payment of a new processing fee entitles
the submitter to an additional free resubmittal, if necessary.
Previously rejected submissions may not be included with the third
submission, because the submittal will be rejected automatically.
Fees for the processing of fingerprint checks are due upon
application. Licensees shall submit payment with the application for
the processing of fingerprints, and payment must be made payable to
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The payments are to be made
in U.S. funds using the electronic payment methods accepted at
www.pay.gov. Combined payment for multiple applications is
acceptable.
The application fee is the sum of the user fee charged by the
FBI for each fingerprint card or other fingerprint record submitted
by the NRC on behalf of a licensee, and an administrative processing
fee assessed by the NRC. The NRC processing fee covers
administrative costs associated with NRC handling of licensee
fingerprint submissions. The Commission publishes the amount of the
fingerprint records check application fee on the NRC's public
website. The Commission will directly notify licensees who are
subject to this regulation of any fee changes.
Additional information regarding fees and payments for criminal
history records checks can be found on the NRC's public website at
https://www.nrc.gov/security/chp.
Right To Correct and Complete Information (10 CFR 73.57(e))
Before any final adverse determination, the licensee shall make
available to the individual the contents of any criminal records
obtained from the FBI for the purpose of assuring correct and
complete information. Written confirmation by the individual of
receipt of this notification must be maintained by the licensee for
1 year from the date of the notification. If, after reviewing the
record, an individual believes that it is incorrect or incomplete in
any respect and wishes to change, correct, update the alleged
deficiency, or explain any matter in the record, the individual may
initiate challenge procedures. These procedures include either
direct application by the individual challenging the record to the
agency (i.e., law enforcement agency) that contributed the
questioned information or direct challenge to the accuracy or
completeness of any entry on the criminal history record to the FBI
as set forth in 28 CFR 16.30 through 16.34. In the latter case, the
FBI forwards the challenge to the agency that submitted the data and
requests that agency to verify or correct the challenged data. Upon
receipt of an official communication directly from the agency that
contributed the original information, the FBI Identification
Division makes any changes necessary in accordance with the
information that agency supplies. The licensee must give at least 10
days for an individual to initiate an action challenging the results
of an FBI criminal history records check after the record is made
available to that individual for his or her review. The licensee may
make a final SGI access determination based on the criminal history
record only upon receipt of the FBI's ultimate confirmation or
correction of the record. Upon a final adverse determination on
access to SGI, the licensee shall give the individual its documented
basis for denial. Access to SGI shall not be granted to an
individual during the review process.
Protection of Information (10 CFR 73.57(f))
(1) Each licensee who obtains a criminal history record on an
individual under this Order shall establish and maintain a system of
files and procedures for protecting the record and the personal
information from unauthorized disclosure.
(2) The licensee may not disclose the record or personal
information collected and maintained to persons other than the
subject individual, his or her representative, or to those who have
a need to access the information in performing assigned duties in
the process of determining access to SGI. No individual authorized
to have access to the information may re-disseminate the information
to any other individual who does not have a need-to-know claim.
(3) The personal information obtained on an individual from a
criminal history record check may be transferred to another licensee
if the licensee holding the criminal history record check receives
the individual's written request to re-disseminate the information
contained in his or her file, and the current licensee verifies
information such as the individual's name, date of birth, social
security number, sex, and other applicable physical characteristics
for identification purposes.
(4) The licensee shall make criminal history records, obtained
under this section, available for examination by an authorized
representative of the NRC to determine compliance with the
regulations and laws.
(5) The licensee shall retain all fingerprint and criminal
history records received from the FBI, or a copy if the individual's
file has been transferred, for 3 years after termination of
employment or determination of access to SGI (whether access was
approved or denied). After the required 3 years, these documents
shall be destroyed by a method that will prevent reconstruction of
the information in whole or in part.
References
10 CFR 73.21; 73.22; 73.23; 73.57; 73.59. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-10/chapter-I/part-73.
Regulatory Guide 5.79, ``Protection of Safeguards
Information,'' Revision 0, dated April 2011. https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1032/ML103270219.pdf.
73 FR 63546, Oct. 24, 2008, ``Protection of Safeguards
Information,'' Final Rule.
[FR Doc. 2026-07528 Filed 4-16-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P