ML13106A105

LTR-13-0320 - E-mail/letter from Richard Ayres, Counsel for Friends of the Earth, Requests Transparency in Communications Between Commissioners and Licensees During the Pendency of Adjudicatory Matters

ML13106A105
Person / Time
Site:	San Onofre
Issue date:	04/11/2013
From:	Ayres R Ayres Law Group
To:	Macfarlane A NRC/Chairman
Shared Package
ML13106A106	List: ML13106A105 ML13120A436
References
CORR-13-0049, LTR-13-0320
Download: ML13106A105 (3)

Text

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY Tue, Apr 16, 2013 10:28 Page No: 1 CORRESPONDENCE CONTROL TICKET PAPER NUMBER: LTR-13-0320 LOGGING DATE: 04/11/2013 ACTION OFFICE: OGC /CHRM/COMRS AUTHOR: Ayres R AFFILIATION: Ayres Law Group ADDRESSEE: Macfarlane A M LTR-13-0320 - E-mail/letter from Richard Ayres, Counsel for Friends of the Earth, requests transparency in

SUBJECT:

communications between Commissioners and licensees during the pendency of adjudicatory matters ACTION: Signature of Chairman DISTRIBUTION: RF, OCAA, SECY to Ack.

LETTER DATE: 04/11/2013 ACKNOWLEDGED: Yes SPECIAL HANDLING: OGC (Lead)/Chrm/Comrs. Lead Office to Publicly Release 24 hours2.777778e-4 days <br />0.00667 hours <br />3.968254e-5 weeks <br />9.132e-6 months <br /> after Secy's assignment.

NOTES:

FILE LOCATION: ADAMS DUE DATE: 05/02/2013 DATE SIGNED:

April 11, 2013 Alison Macfarlane, Chair United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission One White Flint North 11555 Rockville Pike Rockville, MD 20852 Chairman@nrc.gov Re: Transparency of NRC Process

Dear Ms. Macfarlane:

As you are aware, Friends of the Earth (FoE) is involved in litigation before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Atomic Safety and Licensing Board regarding the San Onofre nuclear power plant in southern California. In connection with that litigation, the licensee, Southern California Edison (SCE), may have been meeting with individual Commissioners to discuss matters related to the restart of the San Onofre nuclear power plant, which is the subject of the litigation.

Under NRC regulations, the Commission is responsible for appellate review of the decisions of the ASLB. Should there be an appeal from the current ASLB proceeding in which FoE is involved, it would come before the Commission. Given the Commissions appellate role, informal meetings between the licensee and the Commissioners while the matter is pending before the ASLB would violate the prohibition on ex parte communications relevant to the merits of an ongoing proceeding provided in 10 CFR 2.347(b). They would also contradict the NRCs stated commitment to public transparency.

Friends of the Earth has searched the website of the NRC seeking to learn more about the occurrence of such meetings and the subjects discussed. FoE has found, 1707 L Street, N.W., Suite 850, Washington D.C. 20036 Fax (202) 4160155 Phone: (202) 4529200 Web: www.AyresLawGroup.com

however, that the Commissioners do not post their schedules on the NRC website, nor any information about whom they have met with, nor the subject of such meetings. Because FoE was unable to locate such information on the NRC website, it has recently submitted a FOIA request to obtain this material. But it should not take legal process for the public to know with whom senior public officials are meeting.

In your appearances before Congress, you have made it clear that you wish to make the NRC a model of transparency within the government. We respectfully request that you implement that objective by requiring henceforth (1) that the Commissioners daily schedules be posted on the NRC website; (2) that the schedules list the party or parties the Commissioner is meeting with and the subject(s) of the meeting; (3) that any materials provided to the Commissioner be posted promptly after the meeting on the NRC website and made available to the public.

In order to assure the public that no improper ex parte communications between Commissioners and SCE have occurred during the pendency of the Friends of the Earth matter before the ASLB, it is absolutely necessary that the same material be posted on the Commissions website for the period November 8th, 2012, when the Commission first referred the San Onofre matter to the ASLB, to the present.

FoE will look forward to your response to this request.

Sincerely yours,

/s/ Richard E. Ayres Richard E. Ayres Counsel to FoECc:

Cc: Honorable Kristine L. Svinicki CMRSVINICKI@nrc.gov Honorable George Apostolakis CMRAPOSTOLAKIS@nrc.go Honorable William D. Magwood CMRMAGWOOD@nrc.gov Honorable William C. Ostendorff CMROSTENDORFF@nrc.gov 1707 L Street, N.W., Suite 850, Washington D.C. 20036 Fax (202) 4160155 Phone: (202) 4529200 Web: www.AyresLawGroup.com