ML19253C726
| ML19253C726 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 11/20/1979 |
| From: | Gossick L NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO) |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML19253C722 | List: |
| References | |
| RULE-PRM-150-1, TASK-OS, TASK-TP-808-3 NUDOCS 7912120028 | |
| Download: ML19253C726 (6) | |
Text
-
~
[7590-01]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[ Docket No. PRM-150-1]
Chem-Nuclear Systems, Inc.; Denial of Petition for Rulemaking AGENCY:
U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ACTION:
Denial of Petition for Rule Making By letter dated December 9,1977, Mr. John L. West, on behalf of Chem-Nuclear Systems, Inc., filed with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission a petition for rule making (PRM 150-1).
THE PETITION Under the NRC's regulation, " Exemptions and Continued Regulatory Authority in Agreement States Under Section 274," 10 CFR Part 150, any person who holds a specific license from an Agreement State where the licensee maintains an office for directing a license and at which radia-tion safety records are normally maintained, is granted a general license to conduct the same activity in non-Agreement States (10 CFR 150.20(a)).
Among the conditions imposed on the general license, 10 CFR 150.20(b)(3) states that any person who engages in activities in non-Agreement States under the general license shall not possess or use radioactive materials, or engage in authorized activities for more than 180 days in any calendar year.
In the letter of December 9, 1977, the petitioner requested that the Commission amend 10 CFR Part 150 by removing 10 CFR 150.20(b)(3).
1534 323 1
7912120 gy
[7590-01]
BASIS FOR THE REQUEST As the basis for the request, the petitioner stated that the 180 days per calendar year limitation creates additional paperwork and expense for Chem-Nuclear Systems and may in the future limit the performance of its services to public utilities.
The petitioner noted that if licensed activities are appropriate and in the public interest for 180 days of the year, they would remain so for the balance of the year as well, and as a matter of public policy, all of the reasons why such activities are considered proper for a sub-stantial portion of the year tend to argue against the limit of 180 days on such activities.
REQUEST FOR COMMENTS ON PETITION A notice of filing of petition for rule making was published in the FEDERAL REGISTER on February 8, 1978 (43 FR 5442).
The comment period expired April 10, 1978.
No letters of comment were received in response
~
to the notice.
PREVIOUS ACTIONS Under section 274b. of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, the Commission is authorized to enter into an agreement with the Governor of any State providing for discontinuance of the regulatory authority of the Commission under Chapters 6, 7, and 8, and section 161 of the Act with respect to byproduct materials, source materials, and special nuclear materials (in quantities not sufficient to form a critical mass).
534 724 2
[7590-01]
The agreement entered into provides, among other things, that the Commission and the Agreement State will use their best efforts to oevelop rules, regulations, and procedures by which reciprocal recognition of licenses covering agreement materials will be accorded.
The Commission first implemented the reciprocal recognition provi-sion when it established on February 14, 1962 (27 FR 1351), new 10 CFR 150.20, " Recognition of State licenses," granting a general license to any person (holding a valid specific license from an Agreement State) to conduct the licensed activity in non-Agreement States.
One condition of that general license was that the general licensee must not, in any non-
' Agreement State, possess or use radioactive material or engage in activ-ities authorized under the general license for more than 20 days in any period of 12 consecutive nonths.
In the first 6 years of experience with the reciprocity general license, just over 100 notifications were filed by Agreement State specific licensees for co'nducting activities in non-Agreement States.
Following a review of this experience, the Commission proposed on December 20, 1969 (34 FR 19996) to am:nd 10 CFR 150.20 to increase the time from 20 days in any period of 12 consecutive months to 180 days in any calendar year.
In the preamble to the proposed rule, the Commission addressed the issue of administrative and financial burdens:
The limitation of 20 days in 12 consecutive months has discouraged
+
use of the general license by Agreement State specific licensees who are engaged in transient field operations of uncertain duration, and results in the issuance by the Commission and Agreement. States 1534 325 3
[7590-01]
of multiple specific licenses for the same activity.
Thus persons conducting transient operations throughout the United States may obtain specific licenses covering the same activity from the AEC and each of the 21 Agreement States.
Under such circumstances multiple specific licenses impose an administrative and financial burden upon licensees and the license-issuing agencies without
' significant improvement of the health and safety aspects of the transient operations.
The Commission, however, did not intend to eliminate entirely the administrative and financial burdens but rather to reduce them as much as possible consistent with protecting the public health and safety.
Accordingly, it proposed to increase the time for engaging in activities in non-Agreement States under 10 CFR 150.20:
To facilitate use of the general license in $150.20 and to reduce the number of specific licenses which need to be issued by the Commission and Agreement States for the same activity, the Commis-sion has under consideration amendments of the general license in
$150.20 to permit Agreement State specific licensees to engage in activities in non-Agreement States up to 180 days in any calendar year.
The Commission provided additional discussion of the increase in time on May 20, 1970 (35 FR 7725), in the preamble to the final rule to amend 10 CFR 150.20:
This increase in time will encourage the use of the general license by Agreement States specific licensees who ar. engaged in transient field operations.
a a
a a
The Commission expects that the amendments of the general license in S150.20 will permit a greater number of Agreement State specific licensees to use the general license, reduce the need for multiple specific licenses, and reduce the number of reports required of persons proposing to engage in activities under the general license.
The amendments will simplify licensing of radioactive materials with-out compromising health and safety.
4 Recently, about 130 Agreement State specific licensees per year (compared to 100 total in the first 6 years) have been conduction in 1534 326
[7590-01]
non-Agreement States transient field operations such as industrial radiography, decontamination services, pickup and transportation of pre-packaged radioactive wastes, well logging, tracer studies, and similar services.
Not all of the increased use of the reciprocity general license can be attributed to the increase in time to 180 days in any calendar year because the number of Agreement State specific licensees has increased significantly in the last 9 years.
In view of the Commission's statements when it adopted amended 10 CFR 150.20(b)(3) to increase the time to 180 days in any calendar year for the conduct of activities in non-Agreement States, the Commission selected a balance point between a restrictive time limitation (20 days in 12 con-secutive months) that discouraged use of the reciprocity general license and no time limitation (the effect if the petitioner's request were granted) that would have eliminated the need for multiple specific licenses.
Long-term field operations of this type should be controlled through
~
specific licensing either by NRC or the Agreement States.
Conversely, it is appropriate and reasonable to give weight to Ag'reement State licenses by general licensing of operations which are clearly of a short term and transitory nature.
The regulatory burden of processing every short-term operation to a specific license would be prohibitive, and would not lead to any significant improvement in public health and safety.
The problem is to find the proper balance, that is, the proper breakpoint at which an operation ceases to be short term and begins to take on a more permanent character.
Regulatory experience with the 180-day breakpoint previously
+
adopted by the Commission would indicate that it is a reasonable break-point even though somewhat arbitrarily arrived at.
Petitioner has not 1534 327 5
[7590-01]
made a case to change this breakpoint nor does our reexamination of licensing experience lead to the conclusion that it should be changed.
GROUNDS FOR DENIAL
~ The Commission has given careful consideration to this petition for rule making (PRM 150-1) and has decided to deny the petition on the grounds that the limit of 180 days in any calendar year should not be removed from 10 CFR 150.20 because it is still appropriate to have a breakpoint between NRC's recognition of Agreement State licenses for transient field operations in non-Agreement States and issuance of NRC licenses for longer-term activities and transient operations throughout the United States.
Copies of the petition for rule making, the Commission's letter of denial, and the value/ impact analysis prepared in connection with the denial are available for public inspection at the Commission's Public Document Room at 1717 H Street NW., Washington, D.C.
Siicle copies of the value/ impact analysis'may be obtained from J. J. Henry, S') Task Leader, Office of Standards Development, U.S. Nucl~ ear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C.
20555.
Dated at Bethesda, Maryland this 20th day of November
, 1979.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
<~
U-Mohs uf Lee V. Gossick Executive Director for Operations 6
-