ML20195H321
| ML20195H321 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 04/12/1999 |
| From: | Diaz N NRC COMMISSION (OCM) |
| To: | Vietticook A NRC OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY (SECY) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20195H255 | List: |
| References | |
| REF-10CFR9.7 SECY-99-087-C, SECY-99-87-C, NUDOCS 9906160326 | |
| Download: ML20195H321 (3) | |
Text
,
NOTATION VOTE l
I RESPONSE SHEET l
TO:
Annette Vietti-Cook, Secretary i
l FROM:
. COMMISSIONER DIAZ l
l 1
SUBJECT:
SECY-99-087 - PROPOSED STRATEGY TO REVISE THE i
ENFORCEMENT POLICY TO ADDRESS THE PROCESS FOR ASSESSING SIGNIFICANCE AND ASSIGNING SEVERITY LEVELS OF NONCOMPLIANCES (INCLUDING REGULATORY SIGNIFICANCE AND RISK)
Approved x in pa approved X in pa hgtgjn Not Participating 4
COMMENTS:
See attached comments.
l l
fa f
J1 SIGNATURE O
)
4/1 1 /99
'DATE Entered on "AS Yes x
No SO'*IoS$I 7508" CORRESPONDENCE PDR
COMMISSIONER DIAZ's COMMENTS O'N SECY-99-087: PROPOSED STRATEGY
~
TO REVISE THE ENFORCEMENT POLICY TO ADDRESS THE PROCESS FOR ASSESSING SIGNIFICANCE AND ASSIGNING SEVERITY LEVELS OF NONCOMPLIANCES (INCLUDING REGULATORY SIGNIFICANCE AND RISK)
I i
l approve in part, and disapprove in part, the proposal presented in this paper.
J l approve the overall direction proposed by the staff; it is an interim step that must be taken as part of the evolution of the agency's means of regulating nuclear power plants.
In particular, I applaud the staff's recommendation to discontinue the use of the term
" regulatory significance" (item 2) and to modify the Commission's statement on Safety and Compliance to delete references to this term (item 5). I also believe it is a step forward to make an explicit policy statement that risk can be used to either increase or i
decrease the severity level of violations (item 1).
Conceming the determination of the significance of violations, I approve item 3, with the exception of aggregating violations, as discussed below. In addition, to ensure that only credible scenarios are considered in assessing the potential safety consequences of as-found conditions (item 3(b)), the staff should develop criteria for assessing the credibility of postulated scenarios for management's use in monitoring the implementation of the revised enforcement policy for agency-wide consistency.-
I approve amending the Enforcement Policy (item 4), except as modified below:
The staff states in this paper that the issue of aggregating several less significant violations will become moot for power reactors with the implementation of the new reactor oversight process. I agree with the staff. Furthermore, although the program for oversight of materials licensees is less well developed, the principles behind not aggregating violations for reactors also apply to material licensees, especially in light of the staff's discussion regarding the evaluation of the potential safety consequences of as-found conditions. Therefore, I disapprove i
amending Section IV.A (Aggregation of Violations) of the Enforcement Policy (item 4), and revising Example C.7 of Supplement 1, and similar examples in the other Supplements (item 6). Rather, the references to aggrgation in the Enforcement Policy, including its Supplements, should be deleted.
Nevertheless, the staff should keep in mind that, should it find an extraordinary situation in which a pattem of violations constitutes, in aggregate, a significant risk to public health and safety, it can, and should approach the Commission with a recommendation for an equa!!y extraordinary regulatory response.
it is not clear what the staff recommends regarding repetitive violations in item 4.
However, given that the use of " regulatory significance" will be discontinued, repetitiveness seems redundant to the " potential" and "wi:!ful" categories, and therefore should be dropped.
l
+.
i Finally, I agree with the staff that it is prud'eilt'to focus its efforts on developing the new enforcement process to replace the need for reliance on the Supplements for violations '
{
covered by the new reactor oversight process Therefore, I approve the staffs j
recommendation (item 7) to forgo risk informing the Supplements to the Enforcement -
i Policy for power reactors, as previously planned in the PRA implementation Plan.
However, once the new oversight process has been implemented, the staff should retum to the Commission in the Summer of 2000 with an evaluation of experiences 1
gained and any recommendations for possibly revising the supplements on the basis of
- these experiences.
1 l
To assist SECY in recording the votes, please note the table below:
j ltem 1 approved item 2 approved item 3 -
approved with comment item 4 approved with comment.
'l item 5-
- approved i
item 6 disapp:oved item 7 approved with comment f
.)
1 I
2 1