ML20202B914
| ML20202B914 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 05/20/1994 |
| From: | Selin I NRC COMMISSION (OCM) |
| To: | Hyde H HOUSE OF REP. |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20202B843 | List: |
| References | |
| FOIA-99-69 NUDOCS 9901290225 | |
| Download: ML20202B914 (2) | |
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May 20, 1994 ewAinnsaw Honorable Henry J. Hyde United States House of Representatives d
Washington, D.C.
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Dear Congressman Hyde:
Shortly before the Congress recessed last November, the Senate passed H.R. 3355, the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act'of 1993.
Of particular interest to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission'(NRC) is title XLV of the bill, the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act, which would restrict the manufacture, transfer,.and possession of semiautomatic assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding devices.
On May 5, 1994, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 4296, which is similar in substance to title XLV of H.R. 3355.
These bills will soon be before a Conference Committee on which I understand you will. serve as a Conferee.
As currently written, H.R. 4296 and title XLV of H.R. 3355 could affect adversely the security of NRC-licensed commercial nuclear power plants and facilities possessing a formula quantity'of strategic special nuclear material (SSNM).
Both types of facilities employ security personnel armed with weapons such as those that would be subject to the restrictions relating to semiautomatic assault weapons to safeguard the facility.
They
.also.use large capacity ammunition feeding devices.
Sections 4505 and 4507 of H.R. 3355 and sections 2 and 4 of H.R.
4296 would exempt departments and agencies of the United States from the restrictions described above.
However, as drafted, these sections would cover quards only at Government-owned facilities, such as facilit:.es that are owned by the Department of_ Energy.
We believe the same exemption should apply to NRC-licensed facilities.1 Therefore, if bans of assault weapons and large capacity feeding devices are included in the final legislation, we recommend that 2The exemptions for law enforcement officers authorized by U 8. departments or agencies to purchase firearms or large capacity ammunition feeding devices for official use, contained in H.R. 4296, will not alleviate the problem.
Most NRC-licensed sites do not have guards who are deputized as law enforcement
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2 the conference committee amend the exemptions for departments and agencies of the United States, now contained in sections 4505 and
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4507 of HR. 2355 and sections 2 and 4 of H.R. 4296, by inserting the following before the semicolon at the end'of the exemption :
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, or to any person (including employees or 1
contractors of such person) who is l
(i) required, by Federal regulation to establish and maintain an onsite physical i
protection system and security organization, 1
and (ii) licensed pursuant to title I of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 or subject to regulation under title II of that Act I would be happy to provide further information regarding this matter-, should you so desire.
Sincerely, Ivan Selin The provisions that would be amended are currently identified in H.R. 3355 as paragraph (4)(A) of section 922(s) and paragraph (2)(A) of section 922(u) of title 18, United States code, and in H.R. 4296 as paragraph (4)(A) of section 922(v) and paragraph (3)(A) of section 922(2) of title 18.
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