Nuclear

New Bill Introduced to Check NRC’s Powers

Republicans in the House and the Senate introduced a new bill on Wednesday that would place new restrictions on the power of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission Reorganization Plan Codification and Complements Act (NRC Reorganization Act) would guide the NRC’s policy and rulemaking actions and “clarify” the role and scope of power of each of the federal body’s five commissioners to increase accountability. The bill was sponsored by Sen. David Vitter (R-La.), the top Republican on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.), who chairs the House’s Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade Subcommittee.

The measure stems from allegations from critics in Congress that former NRC Chair Gregory Jaczko abused his power at the NRC. A June 2011 report from the NRC’s inspector general faulted Jaczko for selectively providing information to colleagues to keep plans for the controversial Yucca Mountain permanent waste repository from advancing, and it also questions his management style, noting that the former chair “sometimes loses his temper.”  Jaczko announced his resignation in May 2012 as head of the agency and was replaced by Allison Macfarlane, a nuclear waste expert.

The new bill codifies the Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1980, which had not been voted on in Congress. It also disperses power from the NRC chair to all five commissioners “to avoid future abuses of power and mismanagement.” The bill states that NRC members will have equal access to all information within the agency, as well as the power to fill vacancies.

“No matter where you stand with regards to nuclear power, we should all agree that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission needs to function well,” said Rep. Terry “Trust at the Commission has been broken before, and it shouldn’t happen again.”

“The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has a supremely important role within our government, and it cannot effectively operate without commonsense legislation supporting it. We want to support the function of the Commission, but put some simple checks and balances in place,” said Vitter. “Our bill will allow the Commission to run itself efficiently, and to preempt abuse of power.”

Sources: POWER, NRC, Sen. Vitter, Rep. Terry

 

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