ML20215L187

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Responds to Appeal Re Denial of FOIA Request for Three Categories of Records Concerning Equipment Qualification at Facility.Forwards Documents 14-16 Listed on App.Documents 1- 13,17 & 20-22 Withheld (Ref FOIA Exemption 5)
ML20215L187
Person / Time
Site: Three Mile Island  Constellation icon.png
Issue date: 10/09/1986
From: Stello V
NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO)
To: Heilman R, Weiss E
UNION OF CONCERNED SCIENTISTS
Shared Package
ML20215L189 List:
References
FOIA-86-293, FOIA-86-A-138 NUDOCS 8610280521
Download: ML20215L187 (4)
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Text

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OCT 9 1986 Ellyn R. Weiss, Esquire Miss Rene Heilman W 1b D nL' Union of Concerned Scientists IN RESPONSE REFER 1616 P Street, NW, Suite 310 TO F01A-86-A-138 Washington, DC 20036 (F01A-86-293)

Dear Mmes. Weiss and Heilman:

This is in response to your letter dated August 4,1986, in which you appealed Mr. Donnie H. Grimsley's letter dated July 16, 1986, which denied 23 documents subject to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for three categories of records related to equipment qualification at Three Mile Island (TMI) and the subjects discussed at a meeting held April 18, 1986, at the TMI site.

Acting on your appeal, I have carefully reviewed the record in this case and have determined that some additional information will be provided to you.

Therefore, your appeal is partially granted and partially denied.

Documents 14, 15 and 16 listed on the enclosed appendix are now being made publicly available and are enclosed. The remaining documents will continue to be withheld from public disclosure pursuant to Exemption (5) of the F0IA (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(5)) and 10 CFR 9.5(a)(5) of the Commission's regulations.

While reviewing the records subject to this appeal, it was noted that document 17 consists of an underlying draft record and a two page cover which is a routing form and typing cover page. The forms could be separated from the underlying draft, but they will not materially respond to your request.

Accordingly, we have identified these forms on the appendix but will continue to treat the draft, and forms as one record. Further, more detailed descriptions, where possible, of the records have been included on the enclosed appendix.

Documents 1 through 13, 17, and 20 through 22 are draft documents which are clearly predecisional because they were prepared prior to and in the course of reaching final agency decisions. These documents describe preliminary staff thinking and, therefore, contain preliminary advice, opinions, and recommen-dations which were subsequently changed during the preparations of the final agency decisions. As such, these drafts do not reflect final agency positions.

Exemption (5) was intended to permit the agency's withholding of such documents to preserve the free and candid internal dialogue necessary for the careful formulation of agency decisions. (See Jordan v. Department of Justice, 591 F.2d 753, 774 (D.C. Cir. 1978) and Coastal States Gas Corp. v_._ Department of Energy, 617 F.2d 854, 866 (D.C. Cir. 1980)). Consequently, I have determined that the release of these documents would adversely affect the agency's deliberative process.

86L0280521 861009 fSS A-130 PDR

Mmes. Weiss & Heilman Documents 18 and 19 contain the preliminary advice, opinions, and recommendations of consultants who assisted in the preparation of the inspection report. These consultants were working as an integral part of the NRC staff and their input was part of the NRC staff's deliberative process. Document 23 is an internal document which contains the advice and opinions which were predecisional to the issuing of the enforcement action. Exemption (5) shields from mandatory disclosure records generated in the deliberative process that precedes most decisions of government agencies. (See Jordan v. Department of Justice, 591 F.2d 753 (D.C. Cir. 1978)). Thus, the exemption protects not only communi-cations which are themselves deliberative in nature, but all communications which, if revealed, would expose to public view the deliberative process of an agency. (See Montrose Chemical Corp. of California v. Train, 491 F.2d 63 (D.C. Cir. 1974)). In Jordan, Judge Wilkey articulates the policies behind the Exemption (5) protection of the deliberative process.

He states:

"There are essentially three policy bases for this privilege. First, it protects creative debate and candid consideration of alternatives within an agency, and thereby improves the quality of agency policy decisions.

Second, it protects the public from the confusion that would result from premature exposure to discussions occurring before the policies affecting it had actually been settled upon. And third, it protects the integrity of the decision-making process itself by confirming that ' officials should be judged by what they decided [,] not for matters they considered before making up their minds.'" (591 F.2d at 772-3 (footnote omitted)).

Consequently, I have determined that the release of these documents would adversely affect the agency's deliberative process.

For your information, the final inspection report which contains the substance of the input of documents 17 through 22 was issued on August 8, 1986, and is available in the NRC Public Document Room,1717 H Street, NW, Washington, DC, in the inspection report section of Docket 50-219. The report number is 50-219/86-08, and the accession number is 8608120260A.

This is a final agency action. As set forth in the F0IA (5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(B)),

judicial review of this decision is available in a district court of the United States in the district in which you reside, have your principal place of business, or in the District of Columbia.

Sincerely, V

b or Stello.idr. '

b Executive Director for Operations

Enclosure:

As stated

Re: F01A-86-A-138 (F01A-86-293)

Appendix

1. Undated Draft inspection notes, III. Detailed Inspection Findings, A. Design Changes and Modifications (typewritten) (24 pages)
2. Undated Draft inspection notes (13 pages)
3. Undated Draft inspection notes (1 page)
4. Undated Draft inspection notes, B. Maintenance (12 pages)
5. Undated Draft inspection notes (1 page)
6. Undated Draft inspection notes, C. Operations (3 pages)
7. Undated Draft inspection notes (1 page)
8. Undated Draft inspection notes, D. Surveillance and Testing (2 pages)
9. Undated Draft inspection notes (2 pages)
10. Undated Draft inspection notes (2 pages)
11. Undated Draft inspection notes (7 pages)
12. Undated Draft inspection notes, III. Detailed Inspection Findin A. Design Changes and Modifications (computer printed) gs,(24 pages)
13. Undated Draft inspection notes (computer printed) (4 pages)
14. 3/14/86 Performance Appraisal Observation (4 pages)
15. Undated Observation of TMI Shift (3 pages)
16. 2/28/86 General Description (8 pages)
17. Undated Inspection report route sheet form (1 page) and typing cover (1 page) w/ draft letter to licensee and appendix (5 pages) and draft inspection report (25 pages) i 18. 3/31/86 Sandia Technical Consultant's report input to the USNRC for the

! inspection of GPU, Oyster Creek in Parsippany, NJ, March 24 to 27, 1986. (38 pages)

19. Undated Idaho National Engineering Laboratories input (Draft) to USNRC Inspection Report 50-219/86-08, Review of Equipment Qualification Records and Documentation - GPU, Oyster Creek. (8 pages) 20, 4/8/86 USNRC IE Reviewers input (Draft) to USNRC Inspection Report 50-219/86-08, GPU, Oyster Creek (handwritten) (7 pages) 1 i

Re: F01A-86-A-138 (F0!A-86-293)

. Appendix

(cont'd) 1
21. 4/9/86 Region I input (Draft) to USNRC Inspection Report 50-219/86-08,
Reviewers Summaries, GPU, Oyster Creek (handwritten) (17 pages)
22. 4/9/86 RegionIinput(Draft)toUSNRCInspectionReport 50-219/86-08, GPU, Oyster Creek (22 pages)-
23. 2/6/86 Note to J. Axelrad from S. Burns re: EA-86-7: GPU Nuclear (0yster Creek) (1 page) d t

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