ML22123A291
| ML22123A291 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 06/22/2022 |
| From: | Clay Johnson NRC/OCFO |
| To: | |
| CYL2 | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML22137A280 | List: |
| References | |
| NRC-2020-0031, RIN 3150-AK44 | |
| Download: ML22123A291 (73) | |
Text
[7590-01-P]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
10 CFR Parts 170 and 171
[NRC-2020-0031]
RIN 3150-AK44
Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for Fiscal Year 2022
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Final rule.
SUMMARY
- The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending the
licensing, inspection, special project, and annual fees charged to its applicants and
licensees. These amendments are necessary to implement the Nuc lear Energy
Innovation and Modernization Act, which requires the NRC to rec over, to the maximum
extent practicable, approximately 100 percent of its annual bud get less certain amounts
excluded from this fee-recovery requirement.
DATES: This final rule is effective on August 22, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2020-0031 when contacting the NRC
about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain publicly-available
information related to this action by any of the following meth ods:
- Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and
search for Docket ID NRC-2020-0031.
- NRCs Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly available documents online in the ADA MS Public
Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the
search, select Begin Web-based ADAMS Search. For problems wi th ADAMS, please
contact the NRCs Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209 or
301-415-4737, or by email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. For the convenience of the reader, the ADAMS accession numbers are provided in the Availability o f Documents section
of this document.
- NRCs PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public documents,
by appointment, at the NRCs PDR, Room P1 B35, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. To make an appointm ent to visit the PDR,
please send an email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737,
between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. (ET), Monday through Friday, except F ederal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anthony Rossi, Office of the Chief
Financial Officer, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washingt on, DC 20555-0001,
telephone: 301-415-7341; email: Anthony.Rossi@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents:
I. Background; Statutory Authority II. Discussion III. Public Comment Analysis IV. Public Comments and NRC Responses V. Regulatory Flexibility Certification VI. Regulatory Analysis VII. Backfitting and Issue Finality VIII. Plain Writing IX. National Environmental Policy Act X. Paperwork Reduction Act Public Protection Notification XI. Congressional Review Act XII. Voluntary Consensus Standards XIII. Availability of Guidance XIV. Availability of Documents
I. Background; Statutory Authority
The NRCs fee regulations are primarily governed by two laws: 1) the
Independent Offices Appropriation Act, 1952 (IOAA) (31 U.S.C. 9 701), and 2) the
Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (NEIMA) (42 U.S.C. 2215). The IOAA
authorizes and encourages Federal agencies to recover, to the f ullest extent possible,
costs attributable to services provided to identifiable recipie nts. Under NEIMA, the NRC must recover, to the maximum extent practicable, approximately 100 percent of its
annual budget, less the budget authority for excluded activitie s. Under Section
102(b)(1)(B) of NEIMA, excluded activities include any fee-re lief activity as identified by
the Commission, generic homeland security activities, waste inc idental to reprocessing
activities, Nuclear Waste Fund activities, advanced reactor reg ulatory infrastructure
activities, Inspector General services for the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board,
research and development at universities in areas relevant to t he NRCs mission, and a
nuclear science and engineering grant program.
In fiscal year (FY) 2022, the fee-relief activities identified by the Commission are
consistent with prior fee rules and include Agreement State ove rsight, regulatory support
to Agreement States, medical isotope production infrastructure, fee exemptions for non-
profit educational institutions, costs not recovered from small entities under
§ 171.16(c) of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), generic
decommissioning/reclamation activities, the NRCs uranium recov ery program and
unregistered general licenses, potential U.S. Department of Def ense Program
Memorandum of Understanding activities (Military Radium-226), a nd non-military radium
sites. In addition, the resources for import and export licens ing are identified as a fee-
relief activity to be excluded from the fee-recovery requiremen t.
Under NEIMA, the NRC must use its IOAA authority first to colle ct service fees
for NRC work that provides specific benefits to identifiable re cipients (such as licensing
work, inspections, and special projects). The NRCs regulation s in 10 CFR part 170,
Fees for Facilities, Materials, Import and Export Licenses, an d Other Regulatory
Services Under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as Amended, explain how the agency
collects service fees from specific beneficiaries. Because the NRCs fee recovery under
the IOAA (10 CFR part 170) will not equal 100 percent of the ag encys total budget
authority for the fiscal year (less the budget authority for ex cluded activities), the NRC
also assesses annual fees under 10 CFR part 171, Annual Fees for Reactor Licenses
and Fuel Cycle Licenses and Materials Licenses, Including Holde rs of Certificates of Compliance, Registrations, and Quality Assurance Program Approv als and Government
Agencies Licensed by the NRC, to recover the remaining amount necessary to comply
with NEIMA.
II. Discussion
FY 2022 Fee CollectionOverview
The NRC is issuing this FY 2022 final fee rule based on the Con solidated
Appropriations Act, 2022 (the enacted budget). The final fee r ule reflects a total budget
authority in the amount of $887.7 million, an increase of $43.3 million from FY 2021. As
explained previously, certain portions of the NRCs total budget authority for the fiscal
year are excluded from NEIMAs fee-recovery requirement under S ection 102(b)(1)(B) of
NEIMA. Based on the FY 2022 enacted budget, these exclusions t otal $131.0 million,
an increase of $8.0 million fr om FY 2021. These excluded activ ities consist of
$91.5 million for fee-relief activities, $23.0 million for adva nced reactor regulatory
infrastructure activities, $14.3 million for generic homeland s ecurity activities, $1.0 million
for waste incidental to reprocessing activities, and $1.2 milli on for Inspector General
services for the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. Tabl e I summarizes the
excluded activities for the FY 2022 final fee rule. The FY 202 1 amounts are provided for
comparison purposes.
TABLE IEXCLUDED ACTIVITIES
[Dollars in millions]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Final Final Rule Rule Fee-Relief Activities:
International activities 24.7 25.5 Agreement State oversight 10.4 11.1 Medical isotope production infrastructure 7.0 3.7 Fee exemption for nonprofit educational institutions 9.3 11.6 Costs not recovered from small entities under 10 CFR 171.16(c) 7.8 7.4 Regulatory support to Agreement States 12.3 12.1 Generic decommissioning/reclamation activities (not related to the operating power reactors and spent fuel storage fee classes ) 14.9 15.9 Uranium recovery program and unregistered general licensees 3.7 3.0 Potential Department of Defense remediation program Memorandum of Understanding activities 1.0 0.9 Non-military radium sites 0.2 0.3 Subtotal Fee-Relief Activities 91.2 91.5 Activities under Section 102(b)(1)(B)(ii) of NEIMA (Generic Homeland Security activities, Waste Incidental to Reprocessing activities, and the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board) 14.1 16.5 Advanced reactor regulatory infrastructure activities 17.7 23.0 Total Excluded Activities 123.0 131.0
After accounting for the exclusions from the fee-recovery requi rement and net
billing adjustments (i.e., for FY 2022 invoices that the NRC es timates will not be paid
during the fiscal year, less payments received in FY 2022 for p rior year invoices), the
NRC must recover approximately $752.7 million in fees in FY 202 2. Of this amount, the
NRC estimates that $198.8 million will be recovered through 10 CFR part 170 service
fees and approximately $553.9 million will be recovered through 10 CFR part 171 annual
fees. Table II summarizes the fee-recovery amounts for the FY 2022 final fee rule using
the FY 2022 enacted budget and takes into account the budget au thority for excluded
activities and net billing adjustments. For all information pr esented in the following
tables, individual values may not sum to totals due to rounding. Please see the work
papers, available as indicated in the Availability of Document s section of this
document, for actual amounts.
In FY 2022, the explanatory statement associated with the Conso lidated
Appropriations Act, 2022 also included direction for the NRC to use $16.0 million in prior-
year unobligated carryover funds to fully fund the University N uclear Leadership
Program (UNLP). Consistent with the requirements of NEIMA, the NRC does not
assess fees in the current fiscal year for any carryover funds because fees are
calculated based on the budget authority enacted for the curren t fiscal year. Fees were
already assessed in the fiscal y ear in which the carryover funds were appropriated. The
FY 2021 amounts are provided for comparison purposes.
TABLE IIBUDGET AND F EE RECOVERY AMOUNTS
[Dollars in millions]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Final Final Rule Rule Total Budget Authority $844.4 $887.7 Less Budget Authority for Excluded Activities: -123.0 -131.0 Balance 721.4 756.7 Fee Recovery Percent 100 100 Total Amount to be Recovered: 721.4 756.7 Less Estimated Amount to be Recovered through 10 CFR Part 170 Fees -190.6 -198.8 Estimated Amount to be Recovered through 10 CFR Part 171 Fees 530.8 557.9 10 CFR Part 171 Billing Adjustments:
Unpaid Current Year Invoices (estimated) 2.1 2.0 Less Current Year Collections from a Terminated Reactor -
Indian Point Nuclear Generating, Unit 2 in FY 2020 and Indian Point Nuclear Generating, Unit 3 in FY 2021 -2.7 N/A Less Payments Received in Current Year for Previous Year Invoices (estimated) -12.8 -6.0 Adjusted Amount to be Recovered through 10 CFR Parts 170 and 171 Fees 708.0 752.7 Adjusted 10 CFR Part 171 Annual Fee Collections Required $517.4 $553.9
FY 2022 Fee CollectionProfessional Hourly Rate
The NRC uses a professional hourly rate to assess fees under 10 CFR part 170
for specific services it provides. The professional hourly rat e also helps determine flat
fees (which are used for the review of certain types of license applications). This rate is
applicable to all activities for which fees are assessed under §§ 170.21 and 170.31.
The NRCs professional hourly rat e is derived by adding budgeted resources for
- 1) mission-direct program salaries and benefits, 2) mission-ind irect program support,
and 3) agency support (corporate support and the Inspector Gene ral). The NRC then
subtracts certain offsetting receipts and divides this total by the mission-direct full-time
equivalent (FTE) converted to hours (the mission-direct FTE con verted to hours is the
product of the mission-direct FTE multiplied by the estimated a nnual mission-direct FTE
productive hours). The only budgeted resources excluded from t he professional hourly
rate are those for mission-direct contract resources, which are generally billed to
licensees separately. The following shows the professional hou rly rate calculation:
Professional = Budgeted Resources = $743.3 million = $290 Hourly Rate Mission-Direct FTE Converted to 1,696.1 x 1,510 Hours
For FY 2022, the NRC is increasing the professional hourly rate from $288 to
$290. The increase in the professional hourly rate is primaril y due to the increase in
budgetary resources of approximately $11.0 million. The increa se in budgetary
resources is, in turn, primarily due to an increase in salaries and benefits to support
Federal pay raises for NRC employees. The anticipated increase in the number of
mission-direct FTE compared to FY 2021 is an offset to the incr ease in the professional
hourly rate. The number of mission-direct FTE is expected to increase by 12, primarily
to support new reactor licensing activities, including the revi ew of design certifications,
pre-application activities, and the review of combined license (COL) applications.
The FY 2022 estimate for annual mission-direct FTE productive h ours is 1,510
hours, which is unchanged from FY 2021. This estimate, also re ferred to as the
"Productive Hours Assumption, reflects the average number of h ours that a mission-
direct employee spends on mission-direct work in a given year. This estimate, therefore,
excludes hours charged to annual leave, sick leave, holidays, t raining, and general
administrative tasks. Table III shows the professional hourly rate calculation
methodology. The FY 2021 amounts are provided for comparison p urposes.
TABLE IIIPROFESSIONAL HOURLY RATE CALCULATION
[Dollars in millions, except as noted]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Final Final Rule Rule Mission-Direct Program Salaries & Benefits $335.3 $349.3 Mission-Indirect Program Support $113.2 $115.1 Agency Support (Corporate Support and the IG) $283.7 $278.9 Subtotal $732.2 $743.3 Less Offsetting Receipts1 $0.0 $0.0
1 The fees collected by the NRC for Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) services and indemnity fees
Total Budgeted Resources Included in Professional Hourly Rate $732.2 $743.3 Mission-Direct FTE 1,684 1,696.1 Annual Mission-Direct FTE Productive Hours (Whole numbers) 1,51 0 1,510 Mission-Direct FTE Converted to Hours (Mission-Direct FTE multiplied by Annual Mission-Direct FTE Productive Hours) 2,542,840 2,561,111 Professional Hourly Rate (Total Budgeted Resources Included in Professional Hourly Rate Divided by Mission-Direct FTE Converted to Hours) (Whole Numbers) $288 $290
FY 2022 Fee CollectionFlat Application Fee Changes
The NRC is amending the flat applic ation fees it charges in its schedule of fees in
§§ 170.21 and 170.31 to reflect the revised professional hourly rate of $290. The NRC
charges these fees to applicants for materials licenses and oth er regulatory services, as
well as to holders of materials licenses. The NRC calculates t hese flat fees by
multiplying the average professional staff hours needed to proc ess the licensing actions
by the professional hourly rate for FY 2022. As part of its ca lculations, the NRC
analyzes the actual hours spent performing licensing actions an d estimates the five-year
average professional staff hours needed to process licensing ac tions as part of its
biennial review of fees. These actions are required by Section 205(a) of the Chief
Financial Officers Act of 1990 (31 U.S.C. 902(a)(8)). The NRC performed this review in
FY 2021 and will perform this review again in FY 2023. The hig her professional hourly
rate of $290 is the primary reason for the increase in flat app lication fees (see the work
papers).
In order to simplify billing, the NRC rounds these flat fees to a minimal degree.
Specifically, the NRC rounds these flat fees (up or down) in su ch a way that ensures
both convenience for its stakeholders and minimal effects due t o rounding. Accordingly,
fees under $1,000 are rounded to the nearest $10, fees between $1,000 and $100,000
(financial protection required of all licensees for public liability claims at 10 CFR part 140) are subtracted from the budgeted resources amount when calculating the 10 CFR part 170 professional hourly rate, per the guidance in the Office of Management and Budget Circular A-25, User Charges. The budgeted resources for FOIA activities are allocated under the product for Information Services within the Corporate Support business line. The budgeted resources for indemnity activities are allocated under the Licensing Actions and Research and Test Reactors products within the Operating Reactors business line.
are rounded to the nearest $100, and fees greater than $100,000 are rounded to the
nearest $1,000.
The flat fees are applicable for certain materials licensing ac tions (see fee
categories 1.C. through 1.D., 2.B. through 2.F., 3.A. through 3.S., 4.B. through 5.A., 6.A.
through 9.D., 10.B., 15.A. through 15.L., 15.R., and 16 of § 17 0.31). Applications filed
on or after the effective date of the FY 2022 final fee rule wi ll be subject to the revised
fees in the final rule.
In accordance with NEIMA, in FY 2022, the NRC identified intern ational activities,
including the resources for import and export licensing activit ies, as a fee-relief activity to
be excluded from the fee-recoverable budget. The FY 2021 final fee rule, published in
the Federal Register (86 FR 32146; June 16, 2021), provided for fees to be charged f or
import and export licensing actions, consistent with the FY 202 1 budget request as
further described in the NRCs FY 2021 Congressional Budget Jus tification (CBJ)
(NUREG-1100, Volume 36). However, charging fees under 10 CFR p art 170 for import
and export licensing actions during the effective dates of the FY 2021 final fee rule would
be inconsistent with the Commissions substantive fee policy de cision in the FY 2022
CBJ (NUREG-1100, Volume 37) and would result in the NRC imposin g fees for import
and export licensing actions only once between FY 2018 and FY 2 022. This would not
be fair and equitable and could also lead to confusion for the affected import and export
license applicants/licensees. Therefore, in light of the parti cular facts and unique history
associated with this matter, on August 20, 2021, the Chief Fina ncial Officer concluded
that it would be in the public interest to grant an exemption f rom the provisions in the
FY 2021 final fee rule (in §§ 170.21 and 170.31) that would req uire fees for import and
export licensing actions in accordance with § 170.11(b). In ac cordance with the
Commissions substantive fee policy decision for FY 2022, fees will not be assessed for
import and exporting licensing activities (see fee categories K.1. through K.5. of § 170.21
and fee categories 15.A. through 15.R. of § 170.31) under this final rule.
FY 2022 Fee CollectionLow-Level Waste Surcharge
As in prior years, the NRC is assessing a generic low-level was te (LLW)
surcharge of $4.250 million. Disposal of LLW occurs at commerc ially-operated LLW
disposal facilities that are licensed by either the NRC or an Agreement State. Four
existing LLW disposal facilities in the United States accept va rious types of LLW. All are
located in Agreement States and, therefore, are regulated by an Agreement State, rather
than the NRC. The NRC is allocating this surcharge to its lice nsees based on data
available in the U.S. Department of Energys (DOE) Manifest Inf ormation Management
System. This database contains information on total LLW volume s disposed of by four
generator classes: academic, industrial, medical, and utility. The ratio of waste volumes
disposed of by these generator classes to total LLW volumes dis posed over a period of
time is used to estimate the portion of this surcharge that wil l be allocated to the power
reactors, fuel facilities, and the materials users fee classes. The materials users fee
class portion is adjusted to account for the large percentage o f materials licensees that
are licensed by the Agreement States rather than the NRC.
Table IV shows the allocation of the LLW surcharge and its allo cation across the
various fee classes.
TABLE IVALLOCATION OF LLW SURCHARGE FY 2022
[Dollars in millions]
Fee Classes LLW Surcharge Percent $
Operating Power Reactors 88.4 3.757 Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning 0.0 0.0 Non-Power Production or Utilization Facilities 0.0 0.0 Fuel Facilities 9.2 0.391 Materials Users 2.4 0.102 Transportation 0.0 0.0 Rare Earth Facilities 0.0 0.0 Uranium Recovery 0.0 0.0 Total 100.0 4.250
FY 2022 Fee CollectionRevised Annual Fees
In accordance with SECY-05-0164, Annual Fee Calculation Method, the NRC
rebaselines its annual fees every year. Rebaselining entails a nalyzing the budget in
detail and then allocating the FY 2022 budgeted resources to va rious classes or
subclasses of licensees. It also includes updating the number of NRC licensees in its
fee calculation methodology.
The NRC is revising its annual fees in §§ 171.15 and 171.16 to recover
approximately 100 percent of the NRCs FY 2022 enacted budget ( less the budget
authority for excluded activities and the estimated amount to b e recovered through
10 CFR part 170 fees). Table V shows the rebaselined fees for FY 2022 for a sample of
licensee categories. The FY 2021 amounts are provided for comp arison purposes.
TABLE VREBASELINED ANNUAL FEES
[Actual dollars]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Class/Category of Licenses Final Final Annual Fee Annual Fee Operating Power Reactors $4,749,000 $5,165,000
+ Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning 237,000 $227,000
Total, Combined Fee $4,986,000 $5,392,000 Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning $237,000 $227,000 Non-Power Production or Utilization Facilities $80,000 $90,100 High Enriched Uranium Fuel Facility (Category 1.A.(1)(a)) $4,643,000 $4,334,000 Low Enriched Uranium Fuel Facility (Category 1.A.(1)(b)) $1,573,000 $1,469,000 Uranium Enrichment (Category 1.E) $2,023,000 $1,888,000 UF6 Conversion and Deconversion Facility (Category 2.A.(1) $467,000 $436,000 Basic In Situ Recovery Facilities (Category 2.A.(2)(b)) $47,200 $42,000 Typical Users:
Radiographers (Category 3O) $29,100 $29,600 All Other Specific Byproduct Material Licensees (Category 3P) $9,900 $9,900 Medical Other (Category 7C) $16,800 $17,000 Device/Product Safety Evaluation - Broad (Category 9A) $17,900 $18,100
The work papers that support this final rule show in detail how the NRC allocates
the budgeted resources for each class of licensees and calculat es the fees.
Paragraphs a. through h. of this section describe the budgeted resources
allocated to each class of licensees and the calculations of th e rebaselined fees. For
more information about detailed fee calculations for each class, please consult the
accompanying work papers for this final rule.
- a. Operating Power Reactors
The NRC will collect $480.3 million in annual fees from the ope rating power
reactors fee class in FY 2022, as shown in Table VI. The FY 20 21 operating power
reactors fees are shown for comparison purposes.
TABLE VIANNUAL FEE
SUMMARY
CALCULATIONS FOR OPERATING POWER REACTORS
[Dollars in millions]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Summary Fee Calculations Final Final Rule Rule Total budgeted resources $611.8 $645.4 Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts -161.6 -165.8 Net 10 CFR part 171 resources 450.2 479.6 Allocated generic transportation 0.3 0.4 Allocated LLW surcharge 2.9 3.8 Billing adjustment -9.1 -3.4 Adjustment: Estimated current year collections from a terminated reactor (Indian Point Generating, Unit 3 in FY 2021) -2.7 N/A Total required annual fee recovery 441.7 480.3 Total operating reactors 93 93 Annual fee per operating reactor $4.749 $5.165
In comparison to FY 2021, the FY 2022 annual fee for the operat ing power
reactors fee class is increasing primarily due to the following : 1) an increase in
budgeted resources; 2) a reduction of the 10 CFR part 171 billi ng adjustment; and 3) the
absence of the collection adjustment that was provided in FY 20 21 due to the shutdown of Indian Point Generating, Unit 3. The increase in the annual fee for the operating
power reactors fee class is partially offset due to the increas e in the 10 CFR part 170
estimated billings. These components are discussed in the foll owing paragraphs.
The budgeted resources for the operating power reactors fee cla ss increased
primarily due to the following: 1) an increase in contract fun ding in the information
technology program to support the Mission Analytics Portal (a t ool to enhance the
agencys ability to leverage data to support mission activities), to develop infrastructure
to increase analytics capabilities using artificial intelligenc e, and to develop mobile
applications for resident inspectors; 2) event response activit ies to support the NRCs
continuity of operations program and emergency plan guidance de velopment; 3) an
increase in certain contract costs in the areas of research, ev ent response, and licensing
due to the absence of authorized prior year unobligated carryov er funding compared to
FY 2021; 4) new reactor licensing activities for the review of the Westinghouse eVinci
micro reactor design certification, the review of the NuScale P ower, LLC standard design
approval application, and pre-application activities; and 5) pr e-application activities for
the Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems application. The n ew reactor resources
are offset by a decrease in oversight resulting from the antici pated transition of Vogtle
Electric Generating Plant, Units 3 and 4 (Vogtle Units 3 and 4), from construction into
operation.
The annual fee is also increasing due to the following contribu ting factors: 1) a
lower 10 CFR part 171 billing adjustment credit than was includ ed in the operating power
reactors fee class calculation in FY 2021 from the deferral of annual fees and service
fees due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic; 2) the absence of the one-
time current year collection adjustment that resulted in a cred it of $2,700,000 due to the
shutdown of Indian Point Nuclear Generating, Unit 3, in FY 2021 ; and 3) the increase in
the LLW surcharge due to additional resources required to suppo rt the greater-than-
Class C rulemaking for LLW case-by-case reviews (10 CFR part 61 ).
The increase in the annual fee for the operating power reactors fee class is offset
due to an increase in the 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings as a result of the following:
- 1) an anticipated rise in in-person inspections and travel as C OVID-19 impacts become
less prominent; 2) an increase in operating reactor license ren ewal applications; and
- 3) construction inspection and licensing for Vogtle Units 3 and 4. The increase in
10 CFR part 170 estimated billings is partially offset by a dec rease in work due to the
following: 1) the NRCs denial of the Oklo Power, LLC COL appl ication to build and
operate the Aurora compact fast reactor; 2) delayed submittals for new reactor design
and licensing applications; and 3) fewer than anticipated hours associated with operating
reactor licensing activities.
The number of operating power reactors has changed since public ation of the
proposed rule. In the proposed rule, the NRC assumed that ther e would be an increase
in the total number of operating power reactors from 93 to 94 d ue to the proposed
assessment of annual fees for Vogtle Unit 3. As stated in the FY 2023 CBJ (NUREG-
1100, Volume 38), Southern Nuclear Operating Company has extend ed its construction
milestones in its semi-annual filing to state regulators. At t hat time, the utility updated
the target for Vogtle Unit 3s transition to operations to Apri l 2022, acknowledging a
possible extension to July 2022. Since the licensee has not no tified the NRC of
successful completion of power ascension testing for Vogtle Uni t 3 pursuant to § 171.15,
this final rule has been updated to reflect 93, rather than 94, licensed operating power
reactors, resulting in an annual fee of $5,165,000 per reactor. Additionally, each
licensed operating power reactor will be assessed the FY 2022 s pent fuel
storage/reactor decommissioning annual fee of $227,000 (see Tab le VII and the
discussion that follows). The combined FY 2022 annual fee for each operating power
reactor is $5,392,000.
Section 102(b)(3)(B)(i) of NEIMA established a new cap for the annual fees
charged to operating reactor licensees; under this provision, t he annual fee for an
operating reactor licensee, to the maximum extent practicable, shall not exceed the annual fee amount per operating reactor licensee established in the FY 2015 final fee
rule (80 FR 37432; June 30, 2015), adjusted for inflation. The NRC included an estimate
of the operating power reactors annual fee in Appendix C, Esti mated Operating Power
Reactors Annual Fee, in the FY 2022 CBJ, with the intent to in crease transparency with
stakeholders. The NRC developed this estimate based on the sta ffs allocation of the
FY 2022 CBJ to fee classes under 10 CFR part 170, and allocatio ns within the operating
power reactors fee class under 10 CFR part 171. In addition, t he estimated annual fee
assumed 94 operating power reactors to account for Vogtle Unit 3 in FY 2022 and
applied various data assumptions from the FY 2021 final fee rul e (86 FR 32146;
June 16, 2021). Based on these allocations and assumptions, th e operating power
reactor annual fee included in the FY 2022 CBJ was estimated to be $4.8 million,
approximately $0.6 million below the FY 2015 operating power re actors annual fee
amount adjusted for inflation of $5.5 million. Although the FY 2022 CBJ included the
estimated operating power reactors annual fee, the assumptions made between budget
formulation and the development of the FY 2022 final rule have changed, including the
change in the number of operating power reactors from 94 to 93. However, the FY 2022
annual fee of $5,165,000 remains below the FY 2015 operating po wer reactors annual
fee amount adjusted for inflation.
In FY 2016, the NRC amended its licensing, inspection, and annu al fee
regulations to establish a variable annual fee structure for li ght-water SMRs
(81 FR 32617). Under the variable annual fee structure, an SMR annual fee would be
assessed as a function of its bundled licensed thermal power ra ting. Currently, there are
no operating SMRs; therefore, the NRC will not assess an annual fee in FY 2022 for this
type of licensee.
- b. Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning
The NRC will collect $27.7 million in annual fees from 10 CFR p art 50 power
reactor licensees, and from 10 CFR part 72 licensees that do no t hold a 10 CFR part 50
license, to recover the budgeted resources for the spent fuel s torage/reactor
decommissioning fee class in FY 2022, as shown in Table VII. T he FY 2021 spent fuel
storage/reactor decommissioning fees are shown for comparison p urposes.
TABLE VIIANNUAL FEE
SUMMARY
CALCULATIONS FOR SPENT FUEL STORAGE/REACTOR DECOMMISSIONING
[Dollars in millions]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Summary Fee Calculations Final Final Rule Rule Total budgeted resources $42.2 $40.4 Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts -13.8 -13.8 Net 10 CFR part 171 resources 28.4 26.6 Allocated generic transportation costs 1.1 1.3 Billing adjustments -0.6 -0.2 Total required annual fee recovery 28.9 27.7 Total spent fuel storage facilities 122 122 Annual fee per facility $0.237 $0.227
In comparison to FY 2021, the FY 2022 annual fee for the spent fuel
storage/reactor decommissioning fee class is decreasing primari ly due to a decrease in
budgeted resources. The decrease in the annual fee is partiall y offset due to 1) a
reduction of the 10 CFR part 171 billing adjustment and 2) an i ncrease in the generic
transportation resources compared to FY 2021. Furthermore, the net result of changes
in 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings resulted in no change com pared to FY 2021.
These components are discussed in the following paragraphs.
The decrease in the annual fee for the spent fuel storage/react or
decommissioning fee class is primarily due to a decline in the budgeted resources with
changes in workload from the completion of the license applicat ion reviews for the
consolidated interim storage facilities and renewals for indepe ndent spent fuel storage
installation (ISFSI) licenses. The decrease in the budgeted re sources is offset by an increase in contract costs due to the absence of prior year uno bligated carryover funding
compared to FY 2021.
The decrease in the annual fee is offset by the following: 1) a lower
10 CFR part 171 billing adjustment credit than was included in the spent fuel
storage/reactor decommissioning fee class calculation in FY 202 1 from the deferral of
annual fees and service fees due to the COVID-19 pandemic; and 2) an increase in
generic transportation resources allocated to the fee class due to an increase in the
number of certificates of compliance (CoCs).
Furthermore, the net result of changes in 10 CFR part 170 estim ated billings
resulted in no change compared to FY 2021. Compared to FY 2021, the
10 CFR part 170 estimates increased primarily due to the follow ing: 1) the staffs
activities within the reactor decommissioning program to suppor t Indian Point Generating
Unit 2s transition to decommissioning, the staffs review of a license transfer application
for Kewaunee Power Station, and the review of decommissioning l icense amendment
requests, exemption requests, license termination plans, confir matory surveys, and
inspection activities at multiple sites; 2) inspection activiti es, exemption requests, and
financial assurance reviews for ISFSI licenses and dry cask sto rage CoCs; and 3) the
staffs review of a new fuel storage system. The 10 CFR part 1 70 estimates decreased
primarily due to the following: 1) a reduction in hours and co ntract support associated
with the staffs review of applications for renewals and amendm ents for ISFSI licenses
and dry cask storage CoCs; 2) the completion of the review of t he Interim Storage
Partners consolidated interim storage facility application and issuance of the license; and
- 3) the near completion of the staffs review of the Holtec HI-S TORE consolidated interim
storage facility application.
The required annual fee recovery amount is divided equally amon g 122
licensees, resulting in a FY 2022 annual fee of $227,000 per li censee.
- c. Fuel Facilities The NRC will collect $16.4 million in annual fees from the fuel facilities fee class
in FY 2022, as shown in Table VIII. The FY 2021 fuel facilitie s fees are shown for
comparison purposes.
TABLE VIIIANNUAL FEE
SUMMARY
CALCULATIONS FOR FUEL FACILITIES
[Dollars in millions]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Summary Fee Calculations Final Final Rule Rule Total budgeted resources $23.3 $22.4 Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts -7.3 -8.0 Net 10 CFR part 171 resources 16.0 14.4 Allocated generic transportation 1.5 1.7 Allocated LLW surcharge 0.3 0.4 Billing adjustments -0.4 -0.1 Total remaining required annual fee recovery $17.5 $16.4
In comparison to FY 2021, the FY 2022 annual fee for the fuel f acilities fee class
is decreasing primarily due to the decrease in budgeted resourc es and the increase in
10 CFR part 170 estimated billings as discussed in the followin g paragraphs.
The budgeted resources for the fuel facilities fee class decrea sed primarily due to
the following: 1) efficiencies gained as a result of implement ed enhancements to the
licensing program and 2) enhancements made to the fuel facility oversight program
through the implementation of the smarter inspection program.
The 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings increased primarily to s upport the
following: 1) the staffs review of a new fuel facility licens e application for TRISO-X and
- 2) the staffs continued review of the Westinghouse Electric Co mpany, LLC license
renewal application.
The NRC will continue allocating annual fees to individual fuel facility licensees
based on the effort/fee determination matrix developed in the F Y 1999 final fee rule
(64 FR 31447; June 10, 1999). To briefly recap, the matrix gro ups licensees within this fee class into various fee categories. The matrix lists proces ses that are conducted at
licensed sites and assigns effort factors for the safety and sa feguards activities
associated with each process (these effort factors are reflecte d in Table IX). The annual
fees are then distributed across the fee class based on the reg ulatory effort assigned by
the matrix. The effort factors in the matrix represent regulat ory effort that is not
recovered through 10 CFR part 170 fees (e.g., rulemaking, guida nce). Regulatory effort
for activities that are subject to 10 CFR part 170 fees, such a s the number of
inspections, is not applicable to the effort factor.
TABLE IXEFFORT FACTORS FOR FUEL FACILITIES, FY 2022 Number Effort Factors Facility Type (fee category) of Safety Safeguards Facilities High-Enriched Uranium Fuel (1.A.(1)(a)) 2 88 91 Low-Enriched Uranium Fuel (1.A.(1)(b)) 3 70 21 Limited Operations (1.A.(2)(a)) 1 3 17 Gas Centrifuge Enrichment Demonstration (1.A.(2)(b)) 0 0 0 Hot Cell (and others) (1.A.(2)(c)) 0 0 0 Uranium Enrichment (1.E.) 1 16 23 UF6 Conversion and Deconversion (2.A.(1)) 1 7 2
In FY 2022, the total remaining amount of annual fees to be rec overed,
$16.4 million, is attributable to safety activities, safeguards activities, and the LLW
surcharge. For FY 2022, the total budgeted resources to be rec overed as annual fees
for safety activities are $8.7 million. To calculate the annua l fee, the NRC allocates this
amount to each fee category based on its percentage of the tota l regulatory effort for
safety activities. Similarly, the NRC allocates the budgeted resources to be recovered
as annual fees for safeguards activities, $7.3 million, to each fee category based on its
percentage of the total regulatory effort for safeguards activi ties. Finally, the fuel
facilities fee class portion of the LLW surcharge$0.4 million is allocated to each fee
category based on its percentage of the total regulatory effort for both safety and
safeguards activities. The annual fee per licensee is then cal culated by dividing the total allocated budgeted resources for the fee category by the number of licensees in that fee
category. The annual fee for each facility is summarized in Ta ble X.
TABLE XANNUAL FEES FOR FUEL FACILITIES
[Actual dollars]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Facility Type (fee category) Final Final Annual Fee Annual Fee High-Enriched Uranium Fuel (1.A.(1)(a)) $4,643,000 $4,334,000 Low-Enriched Uranium Fuel (1.A.(1)(b)) $1,573,000 $1,469,000 Facilities with limited operations (1.A.(2)(a)) $1,037,000 $968,000 Gas Centrifuge Enrichment Demonstration (1.A.(2)(b)) N/A N/A Hot Cell (and others) (1.A.(2)(c)) N/A N/A Uranium Enrichment (1.E.) $2,023,000 $1,888,000 UF6 Conversion and Deconversion (2.A.(1)) $467,000 $436,000
- d. Uranium Recovery Facilities
The NRC will collect $0.3 million in annual fees from the urani um recovery
facilities fee class in FY 2022, as shown in Table XI. The FY 2021 uranium recovery
facilities fees are shown for comparison purposes.
TABLE XIANNUAL FEE
SUMMARY
CALCULATIONS FOR URANIUM RECOVERY FACILITIES
[Dollars in millions]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Summary fee calculations Final Final Rule Rule Total budgeted resources $0.5 $0.9 Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts -0.3 -0.6 Net 10 CFR part 171 resources 0.2 0.3 Allocated generic transportation N/A N/A Billing adjustments 0.0 0.0 Total required annual fee recovery $0.2 $0.3
In comparison to FY 2021, the FY 2022 annual fee for the non-DO E licensee in
the uranium recovery facilities fee class is decreasing due to an increase in
10 CFR part 170 estimated billings to support an increase in ca sework for Crow Butte
Resources, Inc. (CBR) related to the Atomic Safety and Licensin g Board decision on the
NRC staffs National Environmental Review Act and National Hist oric Preservation Act
reviews for CBRs 2014 license renewal.
The NRC regulates DOEs Title I and Title II activities under t he Uranium Mill
Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA). 2 The annual fee assessed to DOE includes
the resources specifically budgeted for the NRCs UMTRCA Title I and Title II activities,
as well as 10 percent of the remaining budgeted resources for t his fee class. The NRC
described the overall methodology for determining fees for UMTR CA in the FY 2002 fee
rule (67 FR 42625; June 24, 2002), and the NRC continues to use this methodology.
The DOEs UMTRCA annual fee is increasing compared to FY 2021 primarily
due to an increase in budgetary resources attributed to generic work that staff will be
performing to resolve issues associated with the transfer of NR C and Agreement State
uranium mill tailings sites to the DOE for long-term surveillan ce and maintenance. The
increase in the annual fee is offset by an increase in the 10 C FR part 170 estimated
billings for the anticipated workload increases at various DOE UMTRCA sites. The NRC
assesses the remaining 90 percent of its budgeted resources to the remaining licensee
in this fee class, as described in the work papers, which is re flected in Table XII.
TABLE XIICOSTS RECOVERED THROUGH ANNUAL FEES; URANIUM RECOVERY FACILITIES FEE CLASS
[Actual dollars]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Summary of Costs: Final Final Annual Fee Annual Fee
2 Congress established the two programs, Title I and Title II, under UMTRCA to protect the public and the environment from hazards associated with uranium milling. The UMTRCA Title I program is for remedial action at abandoned mill tailings sites where tailings resulted largely from production of uranium for weapons programs. The NRC also regulates DOEs UMTRCA Title II program, which is directed toward uranium mill sites licensed by the NRC or Agreement States in or after 1978.
DOE Annual Fee Amount (UMTRCA Title I and Title II)
General Licenses:
UMTRCA Title I and Title II budgeted resources less 10 CFR part 170 receipts $111,536 $206,441 10 percent of generic/other uranium recovery budgeted resources 5,241 4,665 10 percent of uranium recovery fee-relief adjustment N/A N/A Total Annual Fee Amount for DOE (rounded) $117,000 $211,000 Annual Fee Amount for Other Uranium Recovery Licenses:
90 percent of generic/other uranium recovery budgeted $47,166 $41,986 resources less the amounts specifically budgeted for UMTRCA Title I and Title II activities 90 percent of uranium recovery fee-relief adjustment N/A N/A Total Annual Fee Amount for Other Uranium Recovery Licenses $47,166 $41,986
Further, for any non-DOE licensees, the NRC will continue usin g a matrix to
determine the effort levels associated with conducting generic regulatory actions for the
different licensees in the uranium recovery facilities fee clas s; this is similar to the NRCs
approach for fuel facilities, described previously. The matrix methodology for uranium
recovery licensees first identifies the licensee categories inc luded within this fee class
(excluding DOE). These categories are: conventional uranium mi lls and heap leach
facilities, uranium in situ recovery (ISR) and resin ISR facilities, and mill tailings dis posal
facilities. The matrix identifies the types of operating activ ities that support and benefit
these licensees, along with each activitys relative weight (se e the work papers).
Currently, there is only one remaining non-DOE licensee, which is a basic in situ
recovery facility. Table XIII displays the benefit factors for the non-DOE licensee in that
fee category.
TABLE XIIIBENEFIT FACTORS FOR URANIUM RECOVERY LICENSES Number Benefit Benefit Fee Category of Factor Total Factor Licensees Per Value Percent Licensee Total Conventional and Heap Leach mills (2.A.(2)(a)) 0 0 0 0 Basic In Situ Recovery facilities (2.A.(2)(b)) 1 190 190 100 Expanded In Situ Recovery facilities (2.A.(2)(c)) 0 0 0 0 Section 11e.(2) disposal incidental to existing tailings sites (2.A.(4)) 0 0 0 0 Total 1 190 190 100
The FY 2022 annual fee for the remaining non-DOE licensee is ca lculated by
allocating 100 percent of the budgeted resources, as summarized in Table XIV.
TABLE XIVANNUAL FEES FOR URANIUM RECOVERY LICENSEES (Other than DOE)
[Actual dollars]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Facility Type (fee category) Final Final Annual Fee Annual Fee Conventional and Heap Leach mills (2.A.(2)(a)) N/A N/A Basic In Situ Recovery facilities (2.A.(2)(b)) $47,200 $42,000 Expanded In Situ Recovery facilities (2.A.(2)(c)) N/A N/A Section 11e.(2) disposal incidental to existing tailings sites (2.A.(4)) N/A N/A
- e. Non-Power Production or Utilization Facilities
The NRC will collect $0.270 million in annual fees from the non -power production
or utilization facilities fee class in FY 2022, as shown in Tab le XV. The FY 2021 non-
power production or utilization fa cilities fees are shown for c omparison purposes.
TABLE XVANNUAL FEE
SUMMARY
CALCULATIONS FOR NON-POWER PRODUCTION OR UTILIZATION FACILITIES
[Actual Dollars]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Summary Fee Calculations Final Final Rule Rule Total budgeted resources $2,896,754 $6,071,559 Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts -2,576,000 -5,804,000 Net 10 CFR part 171 resources 320,754 267,559 Allocated generic transportation 3 43,302 35,232 Billing adjustments3 -43,915 -32,485 Total required annual fee recovery 320,141 270,306 Total non-power production or utilization facilities licenses 4 3 Total annual fee per license (rounded) $80,000 $90,100
3In the FY 2021 final fee rule, the decimal places for the allocated generic transportation and billing adjustments calculations were adjusted to the thousandths place instead of the correct ten thousandths place. There was no impact to the overall calculation for the FY 2021 final fee rule. The revised dollar amounts for FY 2021 are shown here to align with the rest of Table XV and provide a clearer comparison to the FY 2022 fees.
In comparison to FY 2021, the FY 2022 annual fee for the non-po wer production
or utilization facilities fee class is increasing, primarily be cause of the decrease of non-
power production or utilization facilities from four to three a s a result of the transition of
the Aerotest Radiography and Research Reactor to decommissionin g.
In FY 2022, the budgetary resources for the non-power productio n or utilization
facilities fee class are primarily increasing because of an inc rease in workload
associated with medical isotope production facilities and advan ced research and test
reactors. In addition, the 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings with respect to the medical
isotope production facilities and advanced research and test re actors are increasing
primarily due to the following: 1) the staffs review of the o perating license application for
SHINE Medical Technologies, LLC and construction inspection act ivities; 2) the staffs
review of the Kairos Power application for a permit to construc t a test reactor; and 3) an
increase in pre-application meetings due to the anticipated sub mission of several license
applications. The 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings associate d with the current fleet of
operating non-power production or utilization facilities licens ees subject to annual fees
are increasing to support activities associated with the specia l team inspection and the
staffs review of a complex license amendment associated with t he restart of the
National Institute of Standards and Technology Neutron Reactor.
The annual fee-recovery amount is divided equally among the thr ee non-power
production or utilization facilities licensees subject to annua l fees and results in an
FY 2022 annual fee of $90,100 for each licensee.
- f. Rare Earth The agency received an application for a rare earth facility an d in FY 2022, the
NRC has allocated approximately $0.2 million in budgeted resour ces to this fee class;
however, because all the budgetary resources will be recovered through service fees
assessed under 10 CFR part 170, the NRC is not assessing and co llecting annual fees
in FY 2022 for this fee class.
- g. Materials Users
The NRC will collect $34.8 million in annual fees from material s users licensed
under 10 CFR parts 30, 40, and 70 in FY 2022, as shown in Table XVI. The FY 2021
materials users fees are shown for comparison purposes.
TABLE XVIANNUAL FEE
SUMMARY
CALCULATIONS FOR MATERIALS USERS
[Dollars in millions]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Summary Fee Calculations Final Final Rule Rule Total budgeted resources for licensees not regulated by Agreement States $35.1 $34.1 Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts -1.0 -0.9 Net 10 CFR part 171 resources 34.1 33.2 Allocated generic transportation 1.5 1.7 LLW surcharge 0.1 0.1 Billing adjustments -0.4 -0.2 Total required annual fee recovery $35.3 $34.8
The formula for calculating 10 CFR part 171 annual fees for the various
categories of materials users is described in detail in the wor k papers. Generally, the
calculation results in a single annual fee that includes 10 CFR part 170 costs, such as
amendments, renewals, inspections, and other licensing actions specific to individual fee
categories.
The total annual fee recovery of $34.8 million for FY 2022 show n in Table XVI
consists of $27.0 million for general costs, $7.7 million for i nspection costs, and
$0.1 million for LLW costs. To equitably and fairly allocate t he $34.8 million required to
be collected among approximately 2,466 diverse materials users licensees, the NRC
continues to calculate the annual fees for each fee category wi thin this class based on
the 10 CFR part 170 application fees and estimated inspection c osts for each fee
category. Because the application fees and inspection costs ar e indicative of the
complexity of the materials license, this approach is the metho dology for allocating the
generic and other regulatory costs to the diverse fee categorie s. This fee calculation
method also considers the inspection frequency (priority), whic h is indicative of the
safety risk and resulting regulatory costs associated with the categories of licenses.
In comparison to FY 2021, the FY 2022 annual fees are increasin g for 47 fee
categories within the materials users fee class primarily due t o the following: 1) an
increase in the budgeted resources for inspections activities c ompared to the FY 2021
biennial review of inspection hours; 2) a decline in 10 CFR par t 170 estimated billings;
- 3) an increase in generic transportation costs for materials us ers; and 4) a decrease of
materials users licensees from FY 2021.
A constant multiplier is established to recover the total gener al costs (including
allocated generic transportation costs) of $27.0 million. To d erive the constant multiplier,
the general cost amount is divided by the sum of all fee catego ries (application fee plus
the inspection fee divided by inspection priority) then multipl ied by the number of
licensees. This calculation results in a constant multiplier o f 1.0 for FY 2022. The
average inspection cost is the average inspection hours for eac h fee category multiplied
by the professional hourly rate of $290. The inspection priori ty is the interval between
routine inspections, expressed in years. The inspection multip lier is established in order
to recover the $7.7 million in inspection costs. To derive the inspection multiplier, the
inspection costs amount is divided by the sum of all fee catego ries (inspection fee
divided by inspection priority) then multiplied by the number o f licensees. This
calculation results in an inspection multiplier of 1.46 for FY 2022. The unique category costs are any special costs that the NRC has budgeted for a spe cific category of
licenses. Please see the work papers for more detail about thi s classification.
The annual fee being assessed to each licensee also takes into account a share
of approximately $0.1 million in LLW surcharge costs allocated to the materials users fee
class (see Table IV, Allocation of LLW Surcharge, FY 2022, in Section III, Discussion,
of this document). The annual fee for each fee category is sho wn in the revision to
§ 171.16(d).
- h. Transportation
The NRC will collect $1.5 million in annual fees to recover gen eric transportation
budgeted resources in FY 2022, as shown in Table XVII. The FY 2021 fees are shown
for comparison purposes.
TABLE XVIIANNUAL FEE
SUMMARY
CALCULATIONS FOR TRANSPORTATION
[Dollars in millions]
FY 2021 FY 2022 Summary Fee Calculations Final Final Rule Rule Total budgeted resources $8.3 $10.2 Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts -2.3 -3.4 Net 10 CFR part 171 resources 5.9 6.8 Less generic transportation resources -4.5 -5.3 Billing adjustments -0.1 0.0 Total required annual fee recovery $1.4 $1.5
In comparison to FY 2021, the FY 2022 annual fee for the transp ortation fee
class is increasing primarily due to an increase in the budgete d resources offset by the
following: 1) an increase in the 10 CFR part 170 estimated bil lings and 2) generic
transportation resources allocated to other fee classes.
In FY 2022, the budgetary resources increased primarily to supp ort the following:
- 1) the staffs review of transportation package applications (i ncluding the reviews of accident tolerant fuels (ATF)); 2) research activities and the development of technical
bases for the review of transportation packages loaded with bat ch quantities of fresh
ATF; and 3) an increase in certain contract costs due to the ab sence of prior year
unobligated carryover funding compared to FY 2021.
The increase in the annual fee is offset by an increase in 10 C FR part 170
estimated billings related to the review of new amendment packa ges and generic
transportation resources allocated to respective fee classes du e to an increase in the
number of CoCs.
Consistent with the policy established in the NRCs FY 2006 fin al fee rule
(71 FR 30721; May 30, 2006), the NRC recovers generic transport ation costs unrelated
to DOE by including those costs in the annual fees for licensee fee classes. The NRC
continues to assess a separate annual fee under § 171.16, fee c ategory 18.A., for DOE
transportation activities. The amount of the allocated generic resources is calculated by
multiplying the percentage of total CoCs used by each fee class (and DOE) by the total
generic transportation resources to be recovered.
This resource distribution to the licensee fee classes and DOE is shown in Table
XVIII. Note that for the non-power production or utilization f acilities fee class, the NRC
allocates the distribution to only those licensees that are sub ject to annual fees.
Although five CoCs benefit the entire non-power production or u tilization facilities fee
class, only three out of 31 non-power production or utilization facilities licensees are
subject to annual fees. Consequently, the number of CoCs used to determine the
proportion of generic transportation resources allocated to ann ual fees for the non-power
production or utilization facilities fee class has been adjuste d to 0.5 so these licensees
are charged a fair and equitable portion of the total fees (see the work papers).
TABLE XVIIIDISTRIBUTION OF TRANSPORTATION RESOURCES, FY 2022
[Dollars in millions]
Number of CoCs Percentage Allocated Licensee Fee Class/DOE Benefiting of Total Generic the Fee CoCs Transportation Classes or Resources DOE Materials Users 24.0 25.7 $1.7 Operating Power Reactors 6.0 6.4 $0.4 Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning 18.0 19.3 $1.3 Non-Power Production or Utilization Facilities 0.5 0.5 $0.0 Fuel Facilities 24.0 25.7 $1.7 Sub-Total of Generic Transportation Resources 72.5 77.5 $5.3 DOE 21.0 22.5 $1.5 Total 93.5 100.0 $6.8
The NRC assesses an annual fee to DOE based on the 10 CFR part 71 CoCs it
holds. The NRC, therefore, does not allocate these DOE-related resources to other
licensees annual fees because these resources specifically sup port DOE.
FY 2022Policy Changes
The NRC is not making any policy changes in FY 2022.
FY 2022Administrative Changes
The NRC is making five administrative changes in FY 2022:
- 1. Amend § 170.3, Definitions, by deleting the definition for the phrase
review is completed and incorporating language from the definition into § 170.12(b )(3).
The NRC is amending § 170.3 by removing the undesignated paragraph that
includes the definition for the phrase review is completed and incorporating language
from the paragraph into § 170.12(b)(3). The paragraph containi ng the definition is
unnecessary in 10 CFR part 170 because this phrase is only refe renced one time. This
amendment will not impact the NRCs assessment of 10 CFR part 1 70 service fees.
- 2. Amend § 170.11, Exemptions, by clarifying exemption requir ements.
The NRC is amending paragraph (a)(1)(i) by replacing the word that with
where the request/report, for consistency with the use of the latter phrase in the
introductory text of paragraph (a)(1). In addition, the NRC is amending paragraph (c) by
replacing the word work with request/report for consistency with paragraph (a)(1) and
to avoid any potential ambiguity about what is considered the work for purposes of the
90-day period in which the fee exemption must be submitted to t he NRCs Chief
Financial Officer.
The NRC is also amending § 170.11(a)(1)(ii) by retaining the g eneric regulatory
improvements clause in paragraph (a)(1)(ii) and moving Office Director level or above,
to a new paragraph (a)(1)(iii). These changes clarify that the Chief Financial Officer may
grant an exemption when the review of a request/report, at the time it is submitted,
would assist the NRC in generic r egulatory improvements or efforts, even if there is no
request from the Office Director level or above to resolve a n identified safety,
safeguards, or environmental issue.
Finally, the NRC is moving paragraph (a)(13) on CFO communicati ons to a new
paragraph (d) because this is not an exemption category but rat her a separate
requirement applicable to all fee exemption requests under 10 C FR part 170.
These amendments to § 170.11 do not change the NRCs fee exempt ion policy.
- 3. Amend § 170.12(f), Method of payment, by clarifying the ty pes of
payments, updating the contact information for payments, and cl arifying the payment
method.
The NRC is amending paragraph (f) by replacing all license fee s with all fee
payments under 10 CFR part 170, for additional clarity. Curre ntly, paragraph (f) states,
in part, that all license fee payments are to be payable to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission. Since paragraph (f) applies to all fees and not on ly licensing fees, this
amendment provides additional clarity for fee payments under 10 CFR part 170. In
addition, the NRC is amending paragraph (f) by replacing Licen se Fee and Accounts
Receivable Branch with the Office of the Chief Financial Offi cer to remove reference to a specific branch because the Office of the Chief Financial Off icer collects fees for the
NRC. This amendment eliminates the need to revise the branch i nformation after
reorganizations or branch name changes. Finally, the NRC is re vising paragraph (f) to
clarify that fee payments can be made electronically using www.Pay.gov or manually
using NRC Form 629, Authorization for Payment by Credit Card, which align with the
terms and conditions that are currently being updated to clarif y the methods of payment.
- 4. Add footnote 6 to the table in § 170.21, Schedule of fees f or production
and utilization facilities, review of standard referenced desig n approvals, special
projects, inspections, and import and export licenses, and foo tnote 12 to the table in
§ 170.31, Schedule of fees for materials licenses and other re gulatory services,
including inspections, and import and export licenses.
The NRC is adding footnote 6 to the table in § 170.21 and footn ote 12 to the
table in § 170.31. In accordance with NEIMA, in FY 2022, the N RC identified
international activities, including the resources for import an d export licensing activities,
as a fee-relief activity to be excluded from the fee-recoverabl e budget. Therefore, the
NRC will not charge fees for import and export licensing action s.
- 5. Add footnote 13 to the table in § 170.31 for clarity.
The NRC is adding footnote 13 to the table in § 170.31 to clari fy, with respect to
10 CFR part 170 fees, that licensees paying fees under 4.A., 4. B. or 4.C. in the table are
not subject to paying fees under 3.N. This footnote is identic al to footnote 21 to the table
in § 171.16(d).
Update on the Fees Transformation Initiative
In the staff requirements memorandum, dated October 19, 2016, f or SECY 0097, Fee Setting Improvements and Fiscal Year 2017 Proposed F ee Rule, the
Commission directed the staff to accelerate its process improve ments for setting fees.
In addition, the Commission directed the staff to begin the fee s transformation activities
listed in SECY-16-0097 as Process Changes Recommended for Futu re ConsiderationFY 2018 and Beyond. The NRC has completed all o f the 40 fees
transformation activities.
The final fees transformation activity that was completed in FY 2022 was the
rulemaking to update the NRCs small business size standards in § 2.810, NRC size
standards. The NRC published a final rule on February 17, 202 2 (87 FR 8943) with an
effective date of March 21, 2022. In the final rule, the NRC i ncreased the upper and
lower tiers for its receipts-based small entity size standards for small businesses and
small not-for-profit organizations. These amendments allow the NRCs standards to
remain consistent with the inflation adjustments made by the Sm all Business
Administration (SBA) size standard for nonmanufacturing concern s. In addition, in
accordance with the Small Business Runway Extension Act of 2018, the NRC changed
the calculation of annual average receipts for the receipts-bas ed NRC size standard for
small businesses that provide a service or for small businesses not engaged in
manufacturing from a 3-year averaging period to a 5-year averag ing period. The public
can track all NRC rulemaking activities on the NRCs Rulemaking Tracking and
Reporting system at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collecti ons/rulemaking-
ruleforum/active/RuleIndex.html. Information on the recently c ompleted rulemaking on
the NRCs size standards can be found by searching for Docket I D NRC-2014-0264 at
For more information, see the fees transformation accomplishmen ts schedule,
located on the NRCs license fees website: https://www.nrc.gov /about-
nrc/regulatory/licensing/fees-transformation-accomplishments.ht ml.
III. Public Comment Analysis
Overview of Public Comments
The NRC published a proposed rule on February 23, 2022 (87 FR 1 0081) and
requested public comment on its proposed revisions to 10 CFR pa rts 170 and 171. By the close of the comment period, the NRC received four written comment submissions
on the FY 2022 proposed rule. In general, the commenters were supportive of the
specific proposed regulatory changes. Some commenters expresse d concerns about
broader fee-policy issues related to transparency, the overall size of the NRCs budget,
fairness of fees, and budget formulation. Some commenters con cerns were outside the
scope of the fee rule.
The commenters are listed in Table XIX.
TABLE XIXFY 2022 PROPOSED FEE RULE COMMENTER SUBMISSIONS
Commenter Affiliation ADAMS Accession No.
Matthew F. Ostdiek, P.E. Rendezvous Engineering, P.C. (RE) ML22074A293
Gusstivol Paul Terricah Reid Sr. No known affiliation ML22087A051 Dr. Jennifer L. Uhle Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) ML22087A052
Cheryl A. Gayheart Southern Nuclear Operating Company (SNC) ML22087A417
Information about obtaining the complete text of the comment su bmissions is
available in the Availability of Documents, section of this d ocument.
IV. Public Comments and NRC Responses
The NRC has carefully considered the public comments received on the
proposed rule. The comments have been organized by topic into six individual
comments. Comments from a single commenter have been quoted to ensure accuracy;
brackets within those comments are used to show changes that ha ve been made to the
quoted comments.
A. Small Entity Comment: [F]rom a small business perspective, the broad revenue rang e
encompassing $485,000 to $7,000,000 favors larger firms while s everely burdening
small entities. Our firms revenue is at the bottom end of thi s range, yet our fee is the
same as another entity seven times our gross revenue. The lice nse fee is a significant
expense to our firm. Please cons ider establishing lower licens ing fees by [adding]
additional fee tiers between the $520,000 to $7,000,000 range. [A] fee rate schedule
with more steps for small busines ses would help reduce the lice nse fee burden on the
smaller entities. Establishing reduced fees by creating more t iers in the gross annual
receipts bracket makes sense to help small business concerns. Firms near the top of
the bracket with significantly higher annual receipts should pa y more that those at the
bottom. (RE)
Response: Under the SBA regulations, other Federal agencies may, at their
discretion, establish their own standards through notice and co mment rulemaking. To
reduce the significance of the annual fees on a substantial num ber of small entities, the
NRC established the maximum small entity fee in FY 1991. In FY 1992, the NRC
introduced a second lower tier to the small entity fee. Becaus e the NRCs methodology
for small entity size standards has been approved by the SBA, t he NRC did not modify
its current methodology for this rulemaking.
As discussed previously in this final fee rule, the NRC recently updated its small
business size standards in § 2.810, NRC size standards, throu gh notice and comment
rulemaking, and those standards are separately codified at § 2. 810 (87 FR 8943;
February 17, 2022).
No change was made to this final rule as a result of this comme nt.
B. Use of Fee-Based Carryover Funds
Comment: In FY 2021, Congress directed NRC to use $35 million in fee -based
carryover funding; $16 million for the University Nuclear Leade rship Program (UNLP)
and $19 million to reduce fee collections. In the recently sig ned budget authorization for FY2022, Congress directed the use of $16 million in available c arryover funding for the
UNLP. Had Congress further directed, consistent with prior yea rs, that available fee-
based carryover be used for the purpose of reducing licensee fe es, the increase seen by
licensees would be much less. W e encourage NRC to use its available discretionary
authority in applying fee-based carryover funds for the purpose of reducing license fees.
(NEI)
Response: Each fiscal year, the NRC follows the direction of Congress in the
explanatory statement that accompanies the annual appropriation s act. In FY 2022, the
explanatory statement associated with the Consolidated Appropri ations Act, 2022
directed the NRC to use $16.0 million in prior-year unobligated carryover funds to fully
fund the UNLP. Under NEIMA, the NRC must recover, to the maxim um extent
practicable, approximately 100 percent of the total budget auth ority appropriated for the
fiscal year, less the budget authority for excluded activities.
No change was made to this final rule as a result of this comme nt.
C. Excluded Activities
Comment: The FY2022 congressionally aut horized budget currently inclu des
over $20 million that should not be included in the fee base. The $16 million
appropriated for the University Nuclear Leadership Program is c urrently being addressed
by fee-based carryover funds. This is contrary to the Nuclear Energy Innovation and
Modernization Act (NEIMA) of 2018, where UNLP is one of the act ivities excluded from
recovery. The FY2022 payment, combined with a similar payment in FY2021, gives
$32M in payments that should have been excluded from the fee ba se. To facilitate the
correction of this, we encourage NRC to include UNLP funding in its FY2023 proposed
budget as a fee relief item under NEIMA.
The FY2022 budget also includes $4.3 million to subsidize rent for the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In its
October 12, 2021, letter to Congress on NEIMA, NRC identified t hat the nuclear industry has paid approximately $21 million to [subsidize] rent for the FDA and the NIH in the
3WFN building and, if unchanged, industry will have to pay an a dditional $27 million to
subsidize rent. These payments do nothing to support the agenc ys mission. We
encourage NRC to continue its discussions with Congress to remo ve these payments
from the fee base. (NEI)
Response: The FY 2023 CBJ was released to Congress on March 28, 2022, and
does not include resources for the UNLP. As part of the NRCs ongoing
communications with Congress, the NRC provides information to a nd has discussions
with Congress regarding various budgetary matters.
No change was made to this final rule as a result of this comme nt.
D. Operating Power Reactors Fee Class Budget and Declining 10 CFR Part 170
Service Fee Collections
Comment: Approximately 85% of the appropriated budget for FY2022 is f rom
the power reactor fee class. Over the past five years the budg et for operating reactors
has decreased less than 4%. During this same period, the numbe r of operating reactors
has decreased by 7% and Part 170 service fee collections have d ecreased by 33%. The
modest decrease in NRC operating plant budget during this time has not kept pace with
the significant reduction in operating plant service fee collec tions. As a result, a greater
percentage of the budget is required to be recovered through an nual fees.... [T]he
percentage of the operating plant budget that is derived from a nnual fees (currently at
75%) continues to increase; up from 64% in FY 2018. The annual fee for operating
plants is increasing by 8.8% over FY2021, to over $5 million pe r reactor. As noted in the
fee rule notices and associated work papers, the reductions in service fee collections in
recent years have been attributable, in part, to plant closures. Plant closures have a
double impact on operating plants annual fees in that service fees are collected from
fewer plants leading to an increase in required annual fees. T his annual fee collection is
then divided among fewer operating plants. (NEI)
Response: The NRC is aware and remains mindful of the impact of its bu dget on
the fees for operating power reactors licensees. The operating power reactors fee class
supports the activities of the operating reactors and new react ors business lines,
including both direct-billable licensing actions and those gene ral activities that indirectly
support the agencys mission in these areas.
When formulating the budget, the NRC takes into consideration various factors.
First, the NRC assesses the current environment and performs wo rkload forecasting,
which includes looking for significant drivers that could impac t the future workload.
These include technical, regulator y, and legislative developments that have the potential
to generate additional work or reduce work (i.e., rulemaking, a guidance change that
could drive new submittals, or known plant closures that will r educe the overall size of
the program). The NRC then reviews historical data and trends to measure how our
execution in previous years lines up with the budget assumption s at the time. The NRC
uses that data to inform the future budget and identify areas w here the assumptions
previously used may have changed. The NRC also relies heavily on communications
from stakeholders to identify plant submittals, including lette rs of intent, collecting
information from the project managers, and considering response s to the periodic
regulatory issue summaries on this topic. In budgeting for lar ge licensing projects, the
NRC tries to balance the anticipated resource needs against the relative certainty that an
application will be submitted on schedule. The NRC recognizes that plans within the
industry are subject to change and can be influenced by differe nt factors; however,
receiving reliable information from the industry can ensure the NRC is more accurate in
budgeting for future workload needs.
Since FY 2016, service fees directly billed to operating power reactor licensees
under 10 CFR part 170 have decreased from $287.8 million in FY 2016 to $160.0 million
in FY 2022, which represents a decline of $127.8 million, or ap proximately 44 percent.
The decline in 10 CFR part 170 collections and reduction in the number of operating
power reactors during this time means that the annual fee did n ot decline proportionate with the reduction in the total budgeted resources for the oper ating power reactors fee
class. In a given year, fact of life changes in the 10 CFR par t 170 estimated collections
(due to circumstances like delayed or cancelled licensing appli cations) also impact the
amount to be recovered through 10 CFR part 171 annual fees. Wh ile the NRC is
mindful of the impact of its budgeted resources on the fees for operating power reactor
licensees, the fee class budget is not linearly proportional to the size of the operating
power reactor fleet. Resources are required to develop and mai ntain the infrastructure
of the nuclear reactor safety program and fulfill the regulator y and statutory role of the
NRC.
Further, while the NRC understands the commenters concern tha t early plant
closures place additional cost s on the existing fleet, the NRC notes that NEIMA caps the
per-licensee annual fee for operating reactors, to the maximum extent practicable, at the
FY 2015 annual fee amount as adjusted for inflation. The NRC c ontinues to evaluate
resource requirements and adjustments that can be made to refin e the operating power
reactors budget and remains committed to providing enhanced tra nsparency throughout
the development of the annual fee rule and supporting work pape rs.
No change was made to this final rule as a result of this comm ent.
E. Non-Power Production or Utilization Facilities Fee Class
Comment: The FY2022 proposed fee rule outlines a 16.3% increase in an nual
fees for non-power production or utilization facilities (NPUFs). It represents the largest
fee increase in the FY2022 proposed fee rule of all the license e categories. The annual
fee for NPUFs has remained steady over the course of the last s everal years. In fact,
the FY2021 Final Fee Rule represented a 1.6% decrease in the an nual fee for NPUFs.
NRC outlines that the annual fee increase is due, primarily, t o the decrease of
NPUF facilities subject to annual fees from four to three. Uni versity-based research and
test reactors are exempt from fees to meet the requirements of 10 CFR 50.41(b). This
decrease was known and anticipated.... Total budgeted resour ces should be appropriately decreased to reflect this change, which would all ow for cost efficiency for
the remaining three licensees. Rather, the remaining three fac ilities are left to cover this
gap. In other fee categories, such as uranium recovery and fue l cycle facilities, NRC
has appropriately recognized that it cannot continue to spread fees across a decreasing
licensee class.
The FRN outlines that Part 170 estimated billings are increasi ng due to a number
of factors. The estimated user fees more than double, from $2, 576,000 in the FY2021
Final Fee Rule to an estimated $5,803,000 for the FY 2022 Propo sed Fee Rule. This
indicates that the Part 171 annual fees would likely have been even higher, except for
being offset by this significant increase in Part 170 fees. Th is increase should have
amply covered the licensees who pay annual fees; they should ha ve seen little-to-no
increase. In fact, it would have been appropriate for NPUF ann ual fees to decrease.
This increase in annual fees under scores the need for NRC to decrease the total
budgeted resources for this business line, for FY2022 and in fu ture years, to avoid such
double-digit increases. We believe that continuing to impose f ee increases of this
magnitude on this business line is inconsistent with Section 10 4.c of the Atomic Energy
Act, as well as 10 CFR 50 41(b), which direct the Commission to regulate and license
class 104 licensees in a manner that will permit the conduct o f widespread and diverse
research and development. (NEI)
Response: The NRC disagrees with the commenters suggestion that the NRC
inappropriately included activities related to the referenced l icensee in the NPUF fee
category for the FY 2022 budget. Pursuant to § 171.15(f), annu al fees are assessed to
licensees authorized to operate a NPUF licensed under 10 CFR pa rt 50, unless the
reactor is exempted from fees under § 171.11(b). Additionally, as discussed in NUREG-
1537, Part 1, Guidelines for Preparing and Reviewing Applicati ons for the Licensing of
Non-Power Reactors: Format and Content, issued in February 19 96, Section 17.1.2, if
a research or test reactor is subject to annual licensing fees, the granting of a
possession-only license amendment removes the basis for assessm ent of 10 CFR part 171 annual fees. Even though the referenced licens ee had declared
cessation of operation of the facility, the licensee is assesse d an annual fee until the
possession-only license amendment is issued. The NRC issued the possession-only
license amendment on December 6, 2021. Therefore, the resource s associated with the
referenced licensee were appropriately included in the FY 2022 CBJ.
Further, the NRC disagrees with the commenters assertion that the increased
budget authority for NPUFs reflects regulatory activities that are inconsistent with the
NRCs obligations under AEA section 104. Rather, the budgeted activities were
necessary to address emerging work needs and maintain adequate oversight of existing
facilities. As discussed in the FY 2022 proposed fee rule, the NPUF budgetary
resources, which are included under the operating reactors busi ness line, increased
because of an increase in workload associated with medical isotope production facilities
and advanced research and test reactors. In addition, the 10 C FR part 170 estimated
billings with respect to the medical isotope production facilit ies and advanced research
and test reactors increased to support the following: 1) the s taffs review of the
operating license application for SHINE Medical Technologies, L LC and construction
inspection activities; 2) the staffs review of the Kairos Powe r application for a permit to
construct a test reactor; 3) pre-application meetings; and 4) t he review of topical reports.
The 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings associated with the curr ent fleet of operating
non-power production or utilization facilities licensees subjec t to annual fees increased
to support the following: 1) activities associated with the re view of the GE Nuclear Test
Reactor license renewal application and amendments and 2) activ ities associated with
the special team inspection and restart for the National Instit ute of Standards and
Technology Neutron Reactor.
While the NRC should reduce its budget commensurate with the re duction in the
number of NPUFs that pay fees, that reduction is not linearly p roportional as there is a
cost for the infrastructure that must be maintained independent of the number of
operational NPUFs. These infrastructure costs include indirect services and the business line portion of corporate support. Indirect services include rulemaking,
maintaining guidance for licensees, and maintaining procedures for NRC staff, training,
and travel. Corporate support includes, for example, the cost for information
management, information technology, security, facilities manage ment, rent, utilities,
financial management, acquisitions, human resources, and policy support.
Under NEIMA, and as stated in the FY 2022 CBJ and the FY 2022 p roposed fee
rule, medical isotope production infrastructure is a fee-relief activity identified by the
Commission. This fee-relief activity includes the budgeted res ources for the
development of a medical isotope production infrastructure. Th is fee-relief activity does
not include activities that are subject to 10 CFR part 170 fees. As stated in the
statements of consideration for the FY 2021 fee rule, while the NRCs fee regulations did
not have a fee class for future NPUF licensees (e.g., medical i sotope production
applicants), the NRC historica lly included budgeted resources for the review of these
applications within the research and test reactor fee class, an d the budgeted resources
not recovered in 10 CFR part 170 service fees have been exclude d from the fee-
recovery requirement as a fee-relief activity.
No change was made to this final rule in response to this comm ent.
F. Transparency
Comment: To ensure notification of significant changes in advance of the final
rule, some commenters requested that the NRC use any means avai lable to notify
licensees of any substantial changes made during the crafting o f the final rule, e.g., the
use of carryover and the number of operating power reactors ass umed. This would
allow licensees additional time needed to realign their own bud gets. One commenter
also encouraged future public meetings to discuss resolution of the industry comments
so that the final rule serves in the best interest of safety in a cost-effective manner. (NEI
and SNC)
Response: The NRC strives to ensure that the proposed fee rule is as a ccurate
as possible and explains its assumptions about the budgetary re sources and the number
of operating power reactors to provide the best information ava ilable regarding the fiscal
years proposed fees. The NRC discussed these assumptions duri ng the FY2022
proposed fee rule public meeting on March 17, 2022. The NRC mu st comply with
statutory requirements, including NEIMA and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).
NEIMA requires the NRC to recover, to the maximum extent practi cable, approximately
100 percent of total budget authority less the budget authority for excluded activity,
through fees assessed by the end of the fiscal year. Section 5 53 of the APA requires
the NRC to give the public an opportunity to comment on a publi shed proposed rule.
Because the Office of Management and Budget has found the fee r ule to be a major rule
under the Congressional Review Act, the effective date of the f inal rule cannot be less
than 60 days from the date of publication and must allow for ti mely final billing prior to
the end of the fiscal year. The NRC, therefore, cannot republi sh the FY 2022 proposed
fee rule to provide advance notification of all changes within the final rule and meet its
statutory requirements.
No changes were made to this final rule in response to these co mments.
V. Regulatory Flexibility Certification
As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amend ed (RFA),3 the
NRC has prepared a regulatory flexibility analysis related to t his final rule. The
regulatory flexibility analysis is available as indicated in th e Availability of Documents
section of this document.
VI. Regulatory Analysis
4 5 U.S.C. 603. The RFA, 5 U.S.C. 601-612, has been amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, Public Law 104-121, Title II, 110 Stat. 847 (1996).
Under NEIMA, the NRC is required to recover, to the maximum extent
practicable, approximately 100 percent of its annual budget for FY 2022 less the budget
authority for excluded activities. The NRC established fee met hodology guidelines for
10 CFR part 170 in 1978 and established additional fee methodol ogy guidelines for
10 CFR part 171 in 1986. In subsequent rulemakings, the NRC ha s adjusted its fees
without changing the underlying principles of its fee policy to ensure that the NRC
continues to comply with the statutory requirements for cost re covery.
In this final rule, the NRC continues this longstanding approac h. Therefore, the
NRC did not identify any alternatives to the current fee struct ure guidelines and did not
prepare a regulatory analysis for this final rule.
VII. Backfitting and Issue Finality
The NRC has determined that the backfit rule, § 50.109, does not apply to this
final rule and that a backfit analysis is not required because these amendments do not
require the modification of, or addition to, 1) systems, struct ures, components, or the
design of a facility; 2) the design approval or manufacturing l icense for a facility; or 3) the
procedures or organization required to design, construct, or op erate a facility.
VIII. Plain Writing
The Plain Writing Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-274) requires Federa l agencies to
write documents in a clear, concise, and well-organized manner. The NRC wrote this
document to be consistent with the Plain Writing Act, as well a s the Presidential
Memorandum, Plain Language in Government Writing, published J une 10, 1998
(63 FR 31885).
IX. National Environmental Policy Act The NRC has determined that this final rule is the type of acti on described in
§ 51.22(c)(1). Therefore, neither an environmental impact stat ement nor environmental
assessment has been prepared for this final rule.
X. Paperwork Reduction Act
This final rule does not contain a collection of information as defined in the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and, t herefore, is not subject
to the requirements of the Act.
Public Protection Notification
The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not require d to respond
to, a collection of information unless the document requesting or requiring the collection
displays a currently valid OMB control number.
XI. Congressional Review Act
This final rule is a rule as defined in the Congressional Revi ew Act of 1996
(5 U.S.C. 801-808). The Office of Management and Budget has fo und it to be a major
rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act.
XII. Voluntary Consensus Standards
The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995, P ub. L. 104-
113, requires that Federal agencies use technical standards tha t are developed or
adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies unless the use of such a standard is inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise impractical. In this final rule, the NRC is
amending the licensing, inspection, and annual fees charged to its licensees and
applicants, as necessary, to recover, to the maximum extent pra cticable, approximately
100 percent of its annual budget for FY 2022 less the budget au thority for excluded
activities, as required by NEIMA. This action does not constit ute the establishment of a
standard that contains generally applicable requirements.
XIII. Availability of Guidance
The Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act requires all Federal
agencies to prepare a written compliance guide for each rule fo r which the agency is
required by 5 U.S.C. 604 to prepare a regulatory flexibility an alysis. The NRC, in
compliance with the law, prepared the Small Entity Compliance Guide for the FY 2021
fee rule. The compliance guide was developed when the NRC comp leted the small
entity biennial review for FY 2021. The NRC plans to continue to use this compliance
guide for FY 2022 and has relabeled the compliance guide to ref lect the current fiscal
year. This compliance guide is available as indicated in the Availability of Documents
section of this document.
XIV. Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the following table are available t o interested
persons through one or more of the following methods, as indica ted.
DOCUMENTS ADAMS ACCESSION NO. / FR CITATION / WEB LINK FY 2022 Final Rule Work Papers ML22136A015 OMB Circular A-25, User Charges https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Circular-025.pdf Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for Fiscal Year 2021, dated June 16, 2021 86 FR 32146 NUREG-1100, Volume 36, Congressional Budget Justification: Fiscal Year 2021 ML20024D764 (February 2020)
NUREG-1100, Volume 37, Congressional Budget Justification: Fiscal Year 2022 (June ML21181A336 2021)
Public Interest Exemption from Provisions in the Fiscal Year 2021 Fee Rule that Require ML21209A553 Fees for Import/Export Licensing Actions, dated August 20, 2021 SECY-05-0164, Annual Fee Calculation Method, dated September 15, 2005 ML052580332 Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for Fiscal Year 2015, dated June 30, 2015 80 FR 37432 NUREG-1100, Volume 38, Congressional Budget Justification: Fiscal Year 2023 (April ML22089A188 2022)
Variable Annual Fee Structure for Small Modular Reactors, dated May 24, 2016 81 FR 32617 "Revision of Fee Schedules; 100% Fee Recovery, FY 1999," dated June 10, 1999 64 FR 31447 Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for FY 2002, dated June 24, 2002 67 FR 42625 Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for FY 2006, dated May 30, 2006 71 FR 30721 SECY-16-0097, Fee Setting Improvements and Fiscal Year 2017 Proposed Fee Rule, ML16194A365 dated August 15, 2016 Staff Requirements Memorandum for SECY-16-0097, dated October 19, 2016 ML16293A902 Receipts-Based NRC Size Standards, dated February 17, 2022 87 FR 8943 Fees Transformation Accomplishments https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/licensing/fees-transformation-accomplishments.html.
FY 2022 Regulatory Flexibility Analysis ML22123A295 FY 2022 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Small Entity Compliance Guide ML22123A299
List of Subjects
Byproduct material, Import and ex port licenses, Intergovernmental relations,
Non-payment penalties, Nuclear energy, Nuclear materials, Nucle ar power plants and
reactors, Source material, Special nuclear material.
Annual charges, Approvals, Byproduct material, Holders of certi ficates,
Intergovernmental relations, N onpayment penalties, Nuclear mate rials, Nuclear power
plants and reactors, Registrations, Source material, Special nu clear material.
For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954, as amended, the Energy Reorganization Act o f 1974, as amended,
and 5 U.S.C. 552 and 553, the NRC is adopting the following ame ndments to
10 CFR parts 170 and 171:
PART 170 -- FEES FOR FACILITIES, MATERIALS, IMPORT AND EXPORT
LICENSES, AND OTHER REGULATORY SERVICES UNDER THE ATOMIC ENERGY
ACT OF 1954, AS AMENDED
- 1. The authority citation for part 170 continues to read as fo llows:
Authority: Atomic Energy Act of 1954, secs. 11, 161(w) (42 U.S.C. 2014, 2201(w)); Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, sec. 201 (42 U.S.C. 5841); 42 U.S.C.
2215; 31 U.S.C. 901, 902, 9701; 44 U.S.C. 3504 note.
§ 170.3 [Amended]
- 2. In § 170.3, remove the undesignated paragraph following the definition for
Research reactor.
- 3. In § 170.11:
- a. Revise paragraph (a)(1);
- b. Redesignate paragraph (a)(13) as paragraph (d); and
- c. Revise paragraph (c).
The revisions read as follows:
§ 170.11 Exemptions.
(a) * * *
(1) A special project that is a request/report submitted to the NRC (i) In response to a generic letter or NRC bulletin, where the request/report does
not result in an amendment to the license, does not result in t he review of an alternate
method or reanalysis to meet the requirements of the generic le tter, or does not involve
an unreviewed safety issue;
(ii) When the NRC, at the time the request/report is submitted, plans to use the
information to assist the NRC in generic regulatory improvement s or efforts (e.g., rules,
regulatory guides, regulations, policy statements, generic lett ers, or bulletins); or
(iii) When the NRC, at the time the request/report is submitted, plans to use the
information in response to an NRC request from the Office Direc tor level or above to
resolve an identified safety, safeguards, or environmental issu e.
(c) For purposes of paragraph (a)(1) of this section, a request for a fee exemption
must be submitted to the Chief Financial Officer within 90 days of the date of the NRCs
receipt of the request/report.
- 4. In § 170.12, revise paragraphs (b)(3) and (f) to read as fo llows.
§ 170.12 Payment of fees.
(b)* * *
(3) The NRC intends to bill each applicant or licensee at quart erly intervals for all
accumulated costs for each application the applicant or license e has on file for NRC
review, until the review has been brought to an end, whether by issuance of a permit,
license, approval, certificate, exemption, or other form of per mission; by denial,
withdrawal, or suspension of review of the application; or by p ostponement of action on
the application by the applicant.
(f) Method of payment. All fee payments under 10 CFR part 170 are to be made
payable to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The payment s are to be made in U.S. funds by electronic funds transfer such as ACH (Automated Clearing House) using
E.D.I. (Electronic Data Interchange), check, draft, money order, or credit card (submit
electronic payment at www.Pay.gov or manual payment using the N RC Form 629,
Authorization for Payment by Credit Card). Payment of invoic es of $5,000 or more
should be paid via ACH through the NRC's Lockbox Bank at the ad dress indicated on
the invoice. Credit card payments should be made up to the lim it established by the
credit card bank at the address indicated on the invoice. Spec ific written instructions for
making electronic payments and credit card payments may be obta ined by contacting
the Office of the Chief Financial Officer at 301-415-7554. In accordance with
Department of the Treasury requirements, refunds will only be m ade upon receipt of
information on the payees financial institution and bank accou nts.
§ 170.20 [Amended]
- 5. In § 170.20, remove the dollar amount $288 and add in its place the dollar
amount $290.
- 6. In § 170.21, in table 1, revise the entry for K. Import a nd export licenses to
read as follows:
§ 170.21 Schedule of fees for production and utilization facili ties, review of
standard referenced design approvals, special projects, inspect ions and import
and export licenses.
Table 1 to § 170.21Schedule of Facility Fees
[See footnotes at end of table]
Facility categories and type of fees Fees1, 2
K. Import and export licenses:6 Licenses for the import and export only of production or utiliz ation facilities or the export only of components for production or u tilization facilities issued under 10 CFR part 110.
- 1. Application for import or export of production or utilizati on facilities4 (including reactors and other facilities) and exports of components requiring Commission and Executive Branch review, for example, actions under 10 CFR 110.40(b).
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption request N/A
- 2. Application for export of reactor and other components requ iring Executive Branch review, for example, those actions under 10 CFR 110.41(a).
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption request N/A
- 3. Application for export of components requiring the assistan ce of the Executive Branch to obtain foreign government assurances.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption request N/A
- 4. Application for export of facility components and equipment not requiring Commission or Executive Branch review, or obtaining foreign government assurances.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption request N/A
- 5. Minor amendment of any active export or import license, for example, to extend the expiration date, change domestic information, or make other revisions which do not involve any substantive changes to license terms or conditions or to the ty pe of facility or component authorized for export and, therefore, do not require in-depth analysis or review or consultation with the Ex ecutive Branch, U.S. host state, or foreign government authorities.
Minor amendment to license N/A
1Fees will be charged for approvals issued under a specific exemption provision of the Commission's regulations under title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (e.g., 10 CFR 50.12, 10 CFR 73.5) and any other sections in effect now or in the future, regardless of whether the approval is in the form of a license amendment, letter of approval, safety evaluation report, or other form.
2Full cost fees will be determined based on the professional staff time and appropriate contractual support services expended. For applications currently on file and for which fees are determined based on the full cost expended for the review, the professional staff hours expended for the review of the application up to the effective date of the final rule will be determined at the professional rates in effect when the service was provided.
4Imports only of major components for end-use at NRC-licensed reactors are authorized under NRC general import license in 10 CFR 110.27.
6Because the resources for import and export licensing activities are identified as a fee-relief activity to be excluded from the fee-recoverable budget, import and export licensing actions will not incur fees.
- 7. In § 170.31, revise table 1 to read as follows:
§ 170.31 Schedule of fees for materials licenses and other regu latory services,
including inspections, and import and export licenses.
Table 1 to § 170.31 -- Schedule of Materials Fees
[See footnotes at end of table]
Category of materials licenses and type of fees 1 Fees2, 3
- 1. Special nuclear material: 11 A. (1) Licenses for possession and use of U-235 or plutonium f or fuel fabrication activities.
(a) Strategic Special Nuclear Material (High-Enriched Uranium) 6
[Program Code(s): 21213] Full Cost (b) Low-Enriched Uranium in Dispersible Form Used for Fabrication of Power Reactor Fuel 6 [Program Code(s): 21210] Full Cost (2) All other special nuclear materials licenses not included i n Category 1.A. (1) which are licensed for fuel cycle activities. 6 (a) Facilities with limited operations 6 [Program Code(s): 21240, 21310, 21320] Full Cost (b) Gas centrifuge enrichment demonstration facilities. 6 [Program Code(s): 21205] Full Cost (c) Others, including hot cell facilities. 6 [Program Code(s): 21130, 21133] Full Cost B. Licenses for receipt and storage of spent fuel and reactor-r elated greater-than-Class C (GTCC) waste at an independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI)6 [Program Code(s): 23200] Full Cost C. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear material of less than a critical mass as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter in sealed sources contained in devices used in industrial measuring systems, incl uding x-ray fluorescence analyzers.4 Application [Program Code(s): 22140] $1,300 D. All other special nuclear material licenses, except licenses authorizing special nuclear material in sealed or unsealed form in combinat ion that would constitute a critical mass, as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, for which the licensee shall pay the same fees as those under Categ ory 1.A.4 Application [Program Code(s): 22110, 22111, 22120, 22131, 2213 6, $2,700 22150, 22151, 22161, 22170, 23100, 23300, 23310]
E. Licenses or certificates for construction and operation of a uranium enrichment facility6 [Program Code(s): 21200] Full Cost F. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear material greater than critical mass as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, for de velopment and testing of commercial products, and other non-fuel-cycle ac tivities.4, 6
[Program Code(s): 22155] Full Cost
- 2. Source material:11 A. (1) Licenses for possession and use of source material for refining uranium mill concentrates to uranium hexafluoride or for deconv erting uranium hexafluoride in the production of uranium oxides for di sposal.6
[Program Code(s): 11400] Full Cost (2) Licenses for possession and use of source material in recov ery operations such as milling, in-situ recovery, heap-leaching, ore buying stations, ion-exchange facilities, and in processing of ores co ntaining source material for extraction of metals other than uranium or thorium, including licenses authorizing the possession of byproduct wast e material (tailings) from source material recovery operations, a s well as licenses authorizing the possession and maintenance of a facili ty in a standby mode.6 (a) Conventional and Heap Leach facilities 6 [Program Code(s):
11100] Full Cost (b) Basic In Situ Recovery facilities6 [Program Code(s): 11500] Full Cost (c) Expanded In Situ Recovery facilities6 [Program Code(s): 11510] Full Cost (d) In Situ Recovery Resin facilities6 [Program Code(s): 11550] Full Cost (e) Resin Toll Milling facilities 6 [Program Code(s): 11555] Full Cost (f) Other facilities6 [Program Code(s): 11700] Full Cost (3) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal, except those licenses subject to the f ees in Category 2.A.(2) or Category 2.A.(4)6 [Program Code(s): 11600, 12000] Full Cost (4) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal incidental to the disposal of the urani um waste tailings generated by the licensees milling operations, except those licenses subject to the fees in Category 2.A.(2) 6 [Program Code(s):
12010] Full Cost B. Licenses which authorize the possession, use, and/or install ation of source material for shielding. 7, 8 Application [Program Code(s): 11210] $1,300 C. Licenses to distribute items containing source material to p ersons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 40 of this chapt er.
Application [Program Code(s): 11240] $6,200 D. Licenses to distribute source material to persons generally licensed under part 40 of this chapter.
Application [Program Code(s): 11230, 11231] $2,900 E. Licenses for possession and use of source material for proce ssing or manufacturing of products or materials containing source materi al for commercial distribution.
Application [Program Code(s): 11710] $2,800 F. All other source material licenses.
Application [Program Code(s): 11200, 11220, 11221, 11300, 1180 0, 11810, 11820] $2,800
- 3. Byproduct material:11 A. Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of byprod uct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for proce ssing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commer cial distribution. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
Application [Program Code(s): 03211, 03212, 03213] $13,600 (1). Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of bypr oduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for proce ssing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commer cial distribution. Number of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04010, 04012, 04014] $18,100 (2). Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of bypr oduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for proce ssing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commer cial distribution. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04011, 04013, 04015] $22,600 B. Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing o f items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Num ber of locations of use: 1-5. $3,700 Application [Program Code(s): 03214, 03215, 22135, 22162]
(1). Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct materia l issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufact uring of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution.
Number of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04110, 04112, 04114, 04116] $5,000 (2). Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct materia l issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing o f items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Num ber of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04111, 04113, 04115, 04117] $6,200 C. Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapter that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or r edistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kits, and/or sourc es and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational institutions whose pro cessing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Number of locati ons of use:
1-5.
Application [Program Code(s): 02500, 02511, 02513] $5,400 (1). Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapte r that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kit s, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This catego ry does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational instituti ons whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Nu mber of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04210, 04212, 04214] $7,200 (2). Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapte r that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kit s, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This catego ry does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational instituti ons whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Nu mber of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04211, 04213, 04215] $9,000 D. [Reserved] N/A E. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material in sea led sources for irradiation of materials in which the source is not removed from its shield (self-shielded units).
Application [Program Code(s): 03510, 03520] $3,300 F. Licenses for possession and use of less than or equal to 10, 000 curies of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of mate rials in which the source is exposed for irradiation purposes. This category also includes underwater irradiators for irradiation of materials wh ere the source is not exposed for irradiation purposes.
Application [Program Code(s): 03511] $6,800 G. Licenses for possession and use of greater than 10,000 curie s of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of materia ls in which the source is exposed for irradiation purposes. This category also includes underwater irradiators for irradiation of materials wh ere the source is not exposed for irradiation purposes.
Application [Program Code(s): 03521] $64,800 H. Licenses issued under subpart A of part 32 of this chapter t o distribute items containing byproduct materia l that require device review to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapt er. The category does not include specific licenses authorizing redistr ibution of $6,900 items that have been authorized for distribution to persons exe mpt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter.
Application [Program Code(s): 03254, 03255, 03257]
I. Licenses issued under subpart A of part 32 of this chapter t o distribute items containing byproduct material or quantities of byproduct material that do not require device evaluation to persons exempt from the lic ensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter. This category does no t include specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons exempt from the licensin g requirements of part 30 of this chapter.
Application [Program Code(s): 03250, 03251, 03253, 03256] $15,400 J. Licenses issued under subpart B of part 32 of this chapter t o distribute items containing byproduct material that require sealed source and/or device review to persons generally licensed under part 31 of th is chapter.
This category does not include specific licenses authorizing re distribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons gen erally licensed under part 31 of this chapter.
Application [Program Code(s): 03240, 03241, 03243] $2,100 K. Licenses issued under subpart B of part 32 of this chapter t o distribute items containing byproduct material or quantities of byproduct material that do not require sealed source and/or device review to persons ge nerally licensed under part 31 of this chapter. This category does not include specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter.
Application [Program Code(s): 03242, 03244] $1,200 L. Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Num ber of locations of use: 1-5.
Application [Program Code(s): 01100, 01110, 01120, 03610, 0361 1, 03612, 03613] $5,700 (1) Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for resea rch and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Num ber of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04610, 04612, 04614, 04616, 0461 8, 04620, 04622] $7,600 (2) Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for resea rch and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Num ber of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04611, 04613, 04615, 04617, 0461 9, 04621, 04623] $9,500 M. Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution.
Application [Program Code(s): 03620] $8,600 N. Licenses that authorize services for other licensees, except :
(1) Licenses that authorize only calibration and/or leak testin g services are subject to the fees specified in fee Category 3.P.; and (2) Licenses that authorize waste disposal services are subject to the fees specified in fee Categories 4.A., 4.B., and 4.C. 13 $9,300 Application [Program Code(s): 03219, 03225, 03226]
O. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operations. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
Application [Program Code(s): 03310, 03320] $9,200 (1). Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issu ed under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operat ions.
Number of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04310, 04312] $12,300 (2). Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issu ed under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operat ions.
Number of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04311, 04313] $15,400 P. All other specific byproduct material licenses, except those in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.9 Number of locations of use: 1-5.
Application [Program Code(s): 02400, 02410, 03120, 03121, 0312 2, 03123, 03124, 03130, 03140, 03220, 03221, 03222, 03800, 03810, 22130] $6,600 (1). All other specific byproduct material licenses, except tho se in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.9 Number of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04410, 04412, 04414, 04416, 0441 8, 04420, 04422, 04424, 04426, 04428, 04430, 04432, 04434, 04436, 04438] $8,800 (2). All other specific byproduct material licenses, except tho se in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.9 Number of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04411, 04413, 04415, 04417, 0441 9, 04421, 04423, 04425, 04427, 04429, 04431, 04433, 04435, 04437, 04439] $11,000 Q. Registration of a device(s) generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter.
Registration $400 R. Possession of items or products containing radium-226 identi fied in
§ 31.12 of this chapter which exceed the number of items or lim its specified in that section.5
- 1. Possession of quantities exceeding the number of items or li mits in
§ 31.12(a)(4) or (5) of this chapter but less than or equal to 10 times the number of items or limits specified.
Application [Program Code(s): 02700] $2,700
- 2. Possession of quantities exceeding 10 times the number of it ems or limits specified in § 31.12(a)(4) or (5) of this chapter.
Application [Program Code(s): 02710] $2,600 S. Licenses for production of accelerator-produced radionuclide s.
Application [Program Code(s): 03210] $14,800
- 4. Waste disposal and processing: 11 A. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of waste bypro duct material, source material, or special nuclear material from other persons for the purpose of contingency storage or commercial land disposal by t he licensee; or licenses authorizing contingency storage of low-le vel radioactive waste at the site of nuclear power reactors; or lic enses for receipt of waste from other persons for incineration or other t reatment, packaging of resulting waste and residues, and transfer of pack ages to another person authorized to receive or dispose of waste materi al.
Application [Program Code(s): 03231, 03233, 03236, 06100, 0610 1] Full Cost B. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of waste bypro duct material, source material, or special nuclear material from other persons for the purpose of packaging or repackaging the material. The licensee will dispose of the material by transfer to another person authorize d to receive or dispose of the material.
Application [Program Code(s): 03234] $7,200 C. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of prepackaged waste byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear materia l from other persons. The licensee will dispose of the material by transfer to another person authorized to receive or dispose of the material.
Application [Program Code(s): 03232] $5,200
- 5. Well logging:11 A. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material, sourc e material, and/or special nuclear material for well logging, well surveys, and tracer studies other than field flooding tracer studies.
Application [Program Code(s): 03110, 03111, 03112] $4,800 B. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material for fi eld flooding tracer studies.
Licensing [Program Code(s): 03113] Full Cost
- 6. Nuclear laundries:11 A. Licenses for commercial collection and laundry of items cont aminated with byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear ma terial.
Application [Program Code(s): 03218] $23,100
- 7. Medical licenses:11 A. Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapt er for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nu clear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radi osurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therapy devices. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
Application [Program Code(s): 02300, 02310] $11,600 (1). Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this cha pter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nu clear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therap y devices. Number of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04510, 04512] $15,400 (2). Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this cha pter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nu clear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therap y devices. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04511, 04513] $19,300 B. Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or tw o or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter a uthorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct mate rial, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or spe cial nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. T his category also includes the possession and use of source material for shi elding when authorized on the same license. Number of locations of us e: 1-5.
Application [Program Code(s): 02110] $9,100 (1). Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chap ter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, sou rce material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contain ed in $12,000 teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possessio n and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the sam e license. Number of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04710]
(2). Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chap ter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, sou rce material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contain ed in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possessio n and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the sam e license. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04711] $15,000 C. Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or specia l nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source materi al, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy dev ices.10 Number of locations of use: 1-5.
Application [Program Code(s): 02120, 02121, 02200, 02201, 0221 0, 02220, 02230, 02231, 02240, 22160] $11,000 (1). Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of t his chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, a nd/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct materia l, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contain ed in teletherapy devices.10 Number of locations of use: 6-20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04810, 04812, 04814, 04816, 0481 8, 04820, 04822, 04824, 04826, 04828] $9,100 (2). Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of t his chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, a nd/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct materia l, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contain ed in teletherapy devices.10 Number of locations of use: more than 20.
Application [Program Code(s): 04811,04813, 04815, 04817, 04819, 04821,04823, 04825, 04827, 04829] $11,400
- 8. Civil defense:11 A. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material, sourc e material, or special nuclear material for civil defense activities.
Application [Program Code(s): 03710] $2,700
- 9. Device, product, or sealed source safety evaluation:
A. Safety evaluation of devices or products containing byproduc t material, source material, or special nuclear material, except reactor fu el devices, for commercial distribution.
Application -- each device $18,100 B. Safety evaluation of devices or products containing byproduc t material, source material, or special nuclear material manufactured in ac cordance with the unique specifications of, and for use by, a single app licant, except reactor fuel devices.
Application -- each device $9,400 C. Safety evaluation of sealed sources containing byproduct mat erial, source material, or special nuclear material, except reactor fu el, for commercial distribution.
Application -- each source $5,500 D. Safety evaluation of sealed sources containing byproduct mat erial, source material, or special nuclear material, manufactured in a ccordance with the unique specifications of, and for use by, a single app licant, except reactor fuel. $1,100 Application -- each source
- 10. Transportation of radioactive material:
A. Evaluation of casks, packages, and shipping containers.
- 1. Spent fuel, high-level waste, and plutonium air packages Full Cost
- 2. Other casks Full Cost B. Quality assurance program approvals issued under part 71 of this chapter.
- 1. Users and Fabricators.
Application $4,400 Inspections Full Cost
- 2. Users.
Application $4,400 Inspections Full Cost C. Evaluation of security plans, route approvals, route surveys, and transportation security devices (including immobilization devic es). Full Cost
- 11. Review of standardized spent fuel facilities. Full Cost
- 12. Special projects:
Including approvals, pre-application/licensing activities, and inspections.
Application [Program Code: 25110] Full Cost
- 13. A. Spent fuel storage cask certificate of compliance. Full Cost B. Inspections related to storage of spent fuel under § 72.210 of this chapter. Full Cost
- 14. Decommissioning/Reclamation 11 A. Byproduct, source, or special nuclear material licenses and other approvals authorizing decommissioning, decontamination, reclama tion, or site restoration activities under parts 30, 40, 70, 72, and 76 of this chapter, including master materials licenses (MMLs). The transition to this fee category occurs when a licensee has permanently ceased principa l activities. [Program Code(s): 03900, 11900, 21135, 21215, 213 25, 22200] Full Cost B. Site-specific decommissioning activities associated with unl icensed sites, including MMLs, regardless of whether or not the sites h ave been previously licensed. Full Cost
- 15. Import and Export licenses: 12 Licenses issued under part 110 of this chapter for the import a nd export only of special nuclear material, source material, tritium and other byproduct material, and the export only of heavy water, or nuclear grade graphite (fee categories 15.A. through 15.E.).
A. Application for export or import of nuclear materials, inclu ding radioactive waste requiring Commission and Executive Branch rev iew, for example, those actions under § 110.40(b) of this chapter.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request B. Application for export or import of nuclear material, includ ing radioactive waste, requiring Executive Branch review, but not Commission re view.
This category includes applications for the export and import o f radioactive waste and requires the NRC to consult with domestic host state authorities (i.e., Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact Commission, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, etc.).
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request C. Application for export of nuclear material, for example, rou tine reloads of low enriched uranium reactor fuel and/or natural uranium source material requiring the assistance of the Executive Branch to ob tain foreign government assurances.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request D. Application for export or import of nuclear material not req uiring Commission or Executive Branch review, or obtaining foreign government assurances.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request.
E. Minor amendment of any active export or import license, for example, to extend the expiration date, change domestic information, or mak e other revisions which do not involve any substantive changes to licen se terms and conditions or to the type/quantity/chemical composition of the material authorized for export and, therefore, do not require i n-depth analysis, review, or consultations with other Executive Branch, U.S. host state, or foreign government authorities.
Minor amendment N/A Licenses issued under part 110 of this chapter for the import a nd export only of Category 1 and Category 2 quantities of radioact ive material listed in appendix P to part 110 of this chapter (fee categories 15.F. through 15.R.).
Category 1 (Appendix P, 10 CFR Part 110) Exports:
F. Application for export of appendix P Category 1 materials requiring Commission review (e.g., exceptional circumstance review under
§ 110.42(e)(4) of this chapter) and to obtain one government-to -
government consent for this process. For additional consent se e fee category 15.I.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request G. Application for export of appendix P Category 1 materials re quiring Executive Branch review and to obtain one government-to-governm ent consent for this process. For additional consents see fee cate gory 15.I.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request H. Application for export of appendix P Category 1 materials an d to obtain one government-to-government consent for this process. For add itional consents see fee category 15.I.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request I. Requests for each additional government-to-government consen t in support of an export license applic ation or active export license.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption request N/A Category 2 (Appendix P, 10 CFR Part 110) Exports:
J. Application for export of appendix P Category 2 materials re quiring Commission review (e.g., exceptional circumstance review under
§ 110.42(e)(4) of this chapter). N/A Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption request K. Applications for export of appendix P Category 2 materials r equiring Executive Branch review.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request L. Application for the export of Category 2 materials.
Application -- new license, or amendment; or license exemption N/A request M. [Reserved] N/A N. [Reserved] N/A O. [Reserved] N/A P. [Reserved] N/A Q. [Reserved] N/A Minor Amendments (Category 1 and 2, Appendix P, 10 CFR Part 110, Export):
R. Minor amendment of any active export license, for example, to extend the expiration date, change domestic information, or make other revisions which do not involve any substantive changes to licen se terms and conditions or to the type/quantity/chemical composition of the material authorized for export and, therefore, do not require i n-depth analysis, review, or consultations with other Executive Branch, U.S. host state, or foreign authorities.
Minor amendment N/A
- 16. Reciprocity:
Agreement State licensees who conduct activities under the reci procity provisions of § 150.20 of this chapter.
Application $2,700
- 17. Master materials licenses of broad scope issued to Governme nt agencies.
Application [Program Code(s): 03614] Full Cost
- 18. Department of Energy.
A. Certificates of compliance. E valuation of casks, packages, and shipping containers (including spent fuel, high-level waste, an d other casks, and plutonium air packages). Full Cost B. Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) activities. Full Cost
1Types of feesSeparate charges, as shown in t he schedule, will be assessed for pre-application consultations and reviews; applications for new licenses, approvals, or license terminations; possession-only licenses; issuances of new licenses and approvals; certain amendments and renewals to existing licenses and approvals; safety evaluations of sealed sources and devices; generally licensed device registrations; and certain inspections. The following guidelines apply to these charges:
(1) Application and registration fees. Applications for new materials licenses and export and import licenses; applications to reinstate expired, terminated, or inactive licenses, except those subject to fees assessed at full costs; applications filed by Agreement State licensees to register under the general license provisions of 10 CFR 150.20; and applications for amendments to materials licenses that would place the license in a higher fee category or add a new fee category must be accompanied by the prescribed application fee for each category.
(i) Applications for licenses covering more than one fee category of special nuclear material or source material must be accompanied by the prescribed application fee for the highest fee category.
(ii) Applications for new licenses that cover both byproduct material and special nuclear material in sealed sources for use in gauging devices will pay the appropriate application fee for fee category 1.C. only.
(2) Licensing fees. Fees for reviews of applications for new licenses, renewals, and amendments to existing licenses, pre-application consultations and other documents submitted to the NRC for review, and project manager time for fee categories subject to full cost fees are due upon notification by the Commission in accordance with § 170.12(b).
(3) Amendment fees. Applications for amendments to export and import licenses must be accompanied by the prescribed amendment fee for each license affected. An application for an amendment to an export or import license or approval classified in more than one fee category must be accompanied by the prescribed amendment fee for the category affected by the amendment, unless the amendment is applicable to two or more fee categories, in which case the amendment fee for the highest fee category would apply.
(4) Inspection fees. Inspections resulting from investigations conducted by the Office of Investigations and nonroutine inspections that result from third-party allegations are not subject to fees. Inspection fees are due upon notification by the Commission in accordance with § 170.12(c).
(5) Generally licensed device registrations under 10 CFR 31.5. Submittals of registration information must be accompanied by the prescribed fee.
2Fees will be charged for approvals issued under a specific exemption provision of the Commissions regulations under title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (e.g., 10 CFR 30.11, 40.14, 70.14, 73.5, and any other sections in effect now or in the future), regardless of whether the approval is in the form of a license amendment, letter of approval, safety evaluation report, or other form. In addition to the fee shown, an applicant may be assessed an additional fee for sealed source and device evaluations as shown in fee categories 9.A. through 9.D.
3Full cost fees will be determined based on the professional staff time multiplied by the appropriate professional hourly rate established in § 170.20 in effect when the service is provided, and the appropriate contractual support services expended.
4Licensees paying fees under categories 1.A., 1.B., and 1.E. are not subject to fees under categories 1.C.,
1.D. and 1.F. for sealed sources authorized in the same license, except for an application that deals only with the sealed sources authorized by the license.
5Persons who possess radium sources that are used for operational purposes in another fee category are not also subject to the fees in this category. (This exception does not apply if the radium sources are possessed for storage only.)
6Licensees subject to fees under fee categories 1.A., 1.B., 1.E., or 2.A. must pay the largest applicable fee and are not subject to additional fees listed in this table.
7Licensees paying fees under 3.C., 3.C.1, or 3.C.2 are not subject to fees under 2.B. for possession and shielding authorized on the same license.
8Licensees paying fees under 7.C. are not subject to fees under 2.B. for possession and shielding authorized on the same license.
9Licensees paying fees under 3.N. are not subject to paying fees under 3.P., 3.P.1, or 3.P.2 for calibration or leak testing services authorized on the same license.
10Licensees paying fees under 7.B., 7.B.1, or 7.B.2 are not subject to paying fees under 7.C., 7.C.1, or 7.C.2. for broad scope licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices authorized on the same license.
11A materials license (or part of a materials license) that transitions to fee category 14.A is assessed full-cost fees under 10 CFR part 170, but is not assessed an annual fee under 10 CFR part 171. If only part of a materials license is transitioned to fee category 14.A, the licensee may be charged annual fees (and any applicable 10 CFR part 170 fees) for other activities authorized under the license that are not in decommissioning status.
12Because the resources for import and export licensing activities are identified as a fee-relief activity to be excluded from the fee-recoverable budget, import and export licensing actions will not incur fees.
13Licensees paying fees under 4.A., 4.B. or 4.C. are not subject to paying fees under 3.N. licenses that authorize services for other licensees authorized on the same license.
PART 171 -- ANNUAL FEES FOR REACTOR LICENSES AND FUEL CYCLE
LICENSES AND MATERIALS LICENSES, INCLUDING HOLDERS OF
CERTIFICATES OF COMPLIANCE, REGISTRATIONS, AND QUALITY ASSURANCE
PROGRAM APPROVALS AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES LICENSED BY THE NRC
- 8. The authority citation for part 171 continues to read as fo llows:
Authority: Atomic Energy Act of 1954, secs. 11, 161(w), 223, 234 (42 U.S.C.
2014, 2201(w), 2273, 2282); Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, sec. 201 (42 U.S.C.
5841); 42 U.S.C. 2215; 44 U.S.C. 3504 note.
- 9. In § 171.15, revise paragraphs (b)(1), (b)(2) introductory text, (c)(1), (c)(2)
introductory text, and (e) to read as follows:
§ 171.15 Annual fees: Non-power production or utilization lice nses, reactor
licenses, and independent spent fuel storage licenses.
(b)(1) The FY 2022 annual fee for each operating power reactor that must be
collected by September 30, 2022, is $5,165,000.
(2) The FY 2022 annual fees are comprised of a base annual fee for power
reactors licensed to operate, a base spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning annual
fee and associated additional charges. The activities comprisi ng the spent fuel
storage/reactor decommissioning base annual fee are shown in pa ragraphs (c)(2)(i) and
(ii) of this section. The activities comprising the FY 2022 ba se annual fee for operating
power reactors are as follows:
(c)(1) The FY 2022 annual fee for each power reactor holding a 10 CFR part 50
license or combined license issued under 10 CFR part 52 that is in a decommissioning
or possession-only status and has spent fuel onsite, and for ea ch independent spent fuel
storage 10 CFR part 72 licensee who does not hold a 10 CFR part 50 license or a
10 CFR part 52 combined license, is $227,000.
(2) The FY 2022 annual fee is comprised of a base spent fuel st orage/reactor
decommissioning annual fee (which is also included in the opera ting power reactor
annual fee shown in paragraph (b) of this section). The activi ties comprising the
FY 2022 spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning rebaselined annual fee are:
(e) The FY 2022 annual fee for licensees authorized to operate one or more non-
power production or utilization facilities under a single 10 CF R part 50 license, unless
the reactor is exempted from fees under § 171.11(b), is $90,100.
- 10. In § 171.16, revise paragraphs (b) introductory text and ( d) to read as follows:
§ 171.16 Annual fees: Materials licensees, holders of certific ates of compliance,
holders of sealed source and device registrations, holders of q uality assurance
program approvals, and government agencies licensed by the NRC.
(b) The FY 2022 annual fee is comprised of a base annual fee an d associated
additional charges. The base FY 2022 annual fee is the sum of budgeted costs for the
following activities:
(d) The FY 2022 annual fees for materials licensees and holder s of certificates,
registrations, or approvals subject to fees under this section are shown in table 2 to this
paragraph (d):
Table 2 to Paragraph (d) - Schedule of Materials Annual Fees and Fees for Government Agencies Licensed by NRC
[See footnotes at end of table]
Category of materials licenses Annual fees1, 2, 3
- 1. Special nuclear material:
A. (1) Licenses for possession and use of U-235 or plutonium fo r fuel fabrication activities.
(a) Strategic Special Nuclear Material (High Enriched Uranium) 15
[Program Code(s): 21213] $4,334,000 (b) Low Enriched Uranium in Dispersible Form Used for Fabrication of Power Reactor Fuel 15 [Program Code(s): 21210] $1,469,000 (2) All other special nuclear materials licenses not included i n Category 1.A.(1) which are licensed for fuel cycle activities.
(a) Facilities with limited operations 15 [Program Code(s): 21310, 21320] $968,000 (b) Gas centrifuge enrichment demonstration facility 15 [Program Code(s): 21205] N/A (c) Others, including hot cell facility 15 [Program Code(s): 21130, 21133] N/A B. Licenses for receipt and storage of spent fuel and reactor-r elated Greater than Class C (GTCC) waste at an independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) 11, 15 [Program Code(s): 23200] N/A C. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear material of less than a critical mass, as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, in sealed sources contained in devices used in industrial measuring syste ms, including x-ray fluorescence analyzers. [Program Code(s): 221 40] $2,400 D. All other special nuclear material licenses, except licenses authorizing special nuclear material in sealed or unsealed form in combinat ion that would constitute a critical mass, as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, for which the licensee shall pay the same fees as those under Categ ory 1.A. [Program Code(s): 22110, 22111, 22120, 22131, 22136, 221 50, 22151, 22161, 22170, 23100, 23300, 23310] $5,800 E. Licenses or certificates for the operation of a uranium enri chment facility15 [Program Code(s): 21200] $1,888,000 F. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear materials greater than critical mass, as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, for d evelopment and testing of commercial products, and other non-fuel cycle ac tivities.4
[Program Code: 22155] $4,300
- 2. Source material:
A. (1) Licenses for possession and use of source material for r efining uranium mill concentrates to uranium hexafluoride or for deconv erting uranium hexafluoride in the production of uranium oxides for di sposal.15
[Program Code: 11400] $436,000 (2) Licenses for possession and use of source material in recov ery operations such as milling, in-situ recovery, heap-leaching, or e buying stations, ion-exchange facilities and in-processing of ores con taining source material for extraction of metals other than uranium or thorium, including licenses authorizing the possession of byproduct wast e material (tailings) from source material recovery operations, a s well as licenses authorizing the possession and maintenance of a facili ty in a standby mode.
(a) Conventional and Heap Leach facilities. 15 [Program Code(s):
11100] N/A (b) Basic In Situ Recovery facilities.15 [Program Code(s): 11500] $42,000 (c) Expanded In Situ Recovery facilities15 [Program Code(s):
11510] N/A (d) In Situ Recovery Resin facilities.15 [Program Code(s): 11550] 5N/A (e) Resin Toll Milling facilities. 15 [Program Code(s): 11555] 5N/A (f) Other facilities6 [Program Code(s): 11700] 5N/A (3) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal, except those licenses subject to the f ees in Category 2.A.(2) or Category 2.A.(4)15 [Program Code(s): 11600, 12000] 5N/A (4) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal incidental to the disposal of the uranium waste tailings generated by the licensees milling oper ations, except those licenses subject to the fees in Category 2.A.(2) 15
[Program Code(s): 12010] N/A B. Licenses which authorize the possession, use, and/or install ation of source material for shielding. 16, 17 Application [Program Code(s):
11210] $2,700 C. Licenses to distribute items containing source material to p ersons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 40 of this chapt er.
[Program Code: 11240] $9,000 D. Licenses to distribute source material to persons generally licensed under part 40 of this chapter. [Program Code(s): 11230 and 11 231] $5,100 E. Licenses for possession and use of source material for proce ssing or manufacturing of products or materials containing source materi al for commercial distribution. [Program Code: 11710] $6,500 F. All other source material licenses. [Program Code(s): 1120 0, 11220, 11221, 11300, 11800, 11810, 11820] $8,800
- 3. Byproduct material:
A. Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commer cial distribution. Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code (s):
03211, 03212, 03213] $27,800 (1). Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct mater ial for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 6-20.
[Program Code(s): 04010, 04012, 04014] $37,000 (2). Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct mater ial for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: more than
- 20. [Program Code(s): 04011, 04013, 04015] $46,200 B. Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing o f items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Num ber of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 03214, 03215, 22135, 22162] $9,700 (1). Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct materia l issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufact uring of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribut ion.
Number of locations of use: 6-20.
[Program Code(s): 04110, 04112, 04114, 04116] $12,900 (2). Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct materia l issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufact uring of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribut ion.
Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s):
04111, 04113, 04115, 04117] $16,000 C. Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapter that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kit s, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This catego ry does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational inst itutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4 ) of this chapter. Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code (s):
02500, 02511, 02513] $9,100 (1). Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapte r that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kit s, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educati onal institutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under
§ 170.11(a)(4). Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04210, 04212, 04214] $12,100 (2). Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapte r that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kit s, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educati onal institutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under
§ 170.11(a)(4). Number of locations of use: more than 20.
[Program Code(s): 04211, 04213, 04215] $16,500 D. [Reserved] 5N/A E. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material in sea led sources for irradiation of materials in which the source is not removed from its shield (self-shielded units). [Program Code(s): 03510, 03520] $10,000 F. Licenses for possession and use of less than or equal to 10, 000 curies of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of mate rials in which the source is exposed for irradiation purposes. This cat egory also includes underwater irradiators for irradiation of materia ls in which the source is not exposed for irradiation purposes. [Program Code(s):
03511] $9,100 G. Licenses for possession and use of greater than 10,000 curie s of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of materia ls in which the source is exposed for irradiation purposes. This category also includes underwater irradiators for irradiation of materials in which the source is not exposed for irradiation purposes. [Program Code( s):
03521] $72,700 H. Licenses issued under subpart A of part 32 of this chapter t o distribute items containing byproduct materia l that require device review to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of th is chapter, except specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons exempt from th e licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter. [Program Co de(s):
03254, 03255, 03257] $8,700 I. Licenses issued under subpart A of part 32 of this chapter t o distribute items containing byproduct material or quantities of byproduct material that do not require device evaluation to persons exempt from th e licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter, except for s pecific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been aut horized for distribution to persons exempt from the licensing requireme nts of part 30 of this chapter. [Program Code(s): 03250, 03251, 0325 3, 03256] $17,500 J. Licenses issued under subpart B of part 32 of this chapter t o distribute items containing byproduct material that require sealed source and/or device review to persons generally licensed under part 31 of th is chapter, except specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons generally lice nsed under part 31 of this chapter. [Program Code(s): 03240, 03241,
03243] $3,600 K. Licenses issued under subpart B of part 32 of this chapter t o distribute items containing byproduct material or quantities of byproduct material that do not require sealed source and/or device review to perso ns generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter, except specif ic licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized f or distribution to persons generally licensed under part 31 of thi s chapter.
[Program Code(s): 03242, 03244] $2,700 L. Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Num ber of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 01100, 01110, 01120,
03610, 03611, 03612, 03613] $12,700 (1) Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of product material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for resea rch and development that do not authorize commercial distribution.
Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04610, 04612, 04614, 04616, 04618, 04620, 04622]
$16,900 (2) Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for resea rch and development that do not authorize commercial distribution.
Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s):
04611, 04613, 04615, 04617, 04619, 04621, 04623] $21,100 M. Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. [Program Code(s): 03620] $13,500 N. Licenses that authorize services for other licensees, except :
(1) Licenses that authorize only calibration and/or leak testin g services are subject to the fees specified in fee Category 3.P.; and (2) Licenses that authorize waste disposal services are subject to the fees specified in fee categories 4.A., 4.B., and 4.C. 21 [Program Code(s): 03219, 03225, 03226] $15,400 O. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operations. This category also includes the possession and use of source materia l for shielding authorized under part 40 of this chapter when authori zed on the same license Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Co de(s):
03310, 03320] $29,600 (1). Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issu ed under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operat ions.
This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding authorized under part 40 of this chapter when authorized on the same license. Number of locations of use: 6 -20.
[Program Code(s): 04310, 04312] $39,400 (2). Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issu ed under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operat ions.
This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding authorized under part 40 of this chapter when authorized on the same license. Number of locations of use: m ore than 20. [Program Code(s): 04311, 04313] $49,400 P. All other specific byproduct material licenses, except those in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.18 Number of locations of use: 1-5.
[Program Code(s): 02400, 02410, 03120, 03121, 03122, 03123, 03124, 03140, 03130, 03220, 03221, 03222, 03800, 03810, 22130] $9,900 (1). All other specific byproduct material licenses, except tho se in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.18 Number of locations of use: 6-20.
[Program Code(s): 04410, 04412, 04414, 04416, 04418, 04420, 04422, 04424, 04426, 04428, 04430, 04432, 04434, 04436, 04438] $13,200 (2). All other specific byproduct material licenses, except tho se in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.18 Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04411, 04413, 04415, 04417, 04419, 04421, 04423, 04425, 04427, 04429, 04431, 04433, 04435, 04437, 04439] $16,500 Q. Registration of devices generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter 13N/A R. Possession of items or products containing radium-226 identi fied in
§ 31.12 of this chapter which exceed the number of items or lim its specified in that section: 14 (1). Possession of quantities exceeding the number of items or limits in § 31.12(a)(4), or (5) of this chapter but less than or equal to 10 times the number of items or limits specified [Program Code(s) :
02700] $6,100 (2). Possession of quantities exceeding 10 times the number of items or limits specified in § 31.12(a)(4) or (5) of this chapt er
[Program Code(s): 02710] $6,500 S. Licenses for production of accelerator-produced radionuclide s [Program Code(s): 03210] $24,200
- 4. Waste disposal and processing:
A. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of waste bypro duct material, source material, or special nuclear material from oth er persons for the purpose of contingency storage or commercial la nd disposal by the licensee; or licenses authorizing contingency s torage of low-level radioactive waste at the site of nuclear power reacto rs; or licenses for receipt of waste from other persons for incinerati on or other treatment, packaging of resulting waste and residues, and tran sfer of packages to another person authorized to receive or dispose of waste material. [Program Code(s): 03231, 03233, 03236, 06100, 06101 ] $23,000 B. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of waste bypro duct material, source material, or special nuclear material from oth er persons for the purpose of packaging or repackaging the materia l. The licensee will dispose of the material by transfer to another pe rson authorized to receive or dispose of the material. [Program Cod e(s):
03234] $15,900 C. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of prepackaged waste byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear materia l from other persons. The licensee will dispose of the material by tr ansfer to another person authorized to receive or dispose of the material.
[Program Code(s): 03232] $8,800
- 5. Well logging:
A. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material, sourc e material, and/or special nuclear material for well logging, wel l surveys, and tracer studies other than field flooding tracer studies. [ Program Code(s): 03110, 03111, 03112] $12,700 B. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material for fi eld flooding tracer studies. [Program Code(s): 03113] 5N/A
- 6. Nuclear laundries:
A. Licenses for commercial collection and laundry of items cont aminated with byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear ma terial.
[Program Code(s): 03218] $28,500
- 7. Medical licenses:
A. Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapt er for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nu clear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therap y devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license. 9 Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 02300, 02310] $27,500 (1). Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this cha pter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nu clear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therap y devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same licen se.9 Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04510, 04512] $36,700 (2). Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this cha pter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or specia l nuclear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotac tic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therap y devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same licen se.9 $45,900 Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s):
04511, 04513]
B. Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or tw o or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter a uthorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct mate rial, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or spe cial nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy dev ices.
This category also includes the possession and use of source ma terial for shielding when authorized on the same license. 9 Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 02110] $37,800 (1). Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chap ter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, sou rce material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contain ed in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possessio n and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the sam e license.9 Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s):
04710] $50,200 (2). Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chap ter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, sou rce material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contain ed in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possessio n and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the sam e license.9 Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04711] $62,600 C. Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or specia l nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, sourc e material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contain ed in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possessio n and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the sam e license.9, 19 Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s):
02120, 02121, 02200, 02201, 02210, 02220, 02230, 02231, 02240, 22160] $17,000 (1). Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of t his chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, a nd/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct materia l, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when author ized on the same license.9, 19 Number of locations of use: 6-20.
[Program Code(s): 04810, 04812, 04814, 04816, 04818, 04820, 04822, 04824, 04826, 04828] $17,100 (2). Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of t his chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, a nd/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct materia l, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when author ized on the same license.9, 19 Number of locations of use: more than 20.
[Program Code(s): 04811, 04813, 04815, 04817, 04819, 04821, 04823, 04825, 04827, 04829] $21,200
- 8. Civil defense:
A. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material, sourc e material, or special nuclear material for civil defense activities. [Pro gram Code(s): 03710] $6,100
- 9. Device, product, or sealed source safety evaluation:
A. Registrations issued for the safety evaluation of devices or products containing byproduct material, source material, or special nucl ear material, except reactor fuel devices, for commercial distribut ion $18,100 B. Registrations issued for the safety evaluation of devices or products containing byproduct material, source material, or special nucl ear material manufactured in accordance with the unique specificati ons of, and for use by, a single applicant, except reactor fuel dev ices $9,400 C. Registrations issued for the safety evaluation of sealed sou rces containing byproduct material, source material, or special nucl ear material, except reactor fuel, for commercial distribution $5,5 00 D. Registrations issued for the safety evaluation of sealed sou rces containing byproduct material, source material, or special nucl ear material, manufactured in accordance with the unique specificat ions of, and for use by, a single applicant, except reactor fuel $1,100
- 10. Transportation of radioactive material:
A. Certificates of compliance or other package approvals issued for design of casks, packages, and shipping containers.
- 1. Spent fuel, high-level waste, and plutonium air packages 6N/A
- 2. Other casks 6N/A B. Quality assurance program approvals issued under part 71 of this chapter.
- 1. Users and Fabricators 6N/A
- 2. Users 6N/A C. Evaluation of security plans, route approvals, route surveys, and transportation security devices (including immobilization devic es) 6N/A
- 11. Standardized spent fuel facilities 6N/A
- 12. Special Projects [Program Code(s): 25110] 6N/A
- 13. A. Spent fuel storage cask Certificate of Compliance 6N/A B. General licenses for storage of spent fuel under § 72.210 of this chapter 12N/A
- 14. Decommissioning/Reclamation:
A. Byproduct, source, or special nuclear material licenses and other approvals authorizing decommissioning, decontamination, reclama tion, or site restoration activities under parts 30, 40, 70, 72, and 76 of this chapter, including master materials licenses (MMLs). The trans ition to this fee category occurs when a licensee has permanently ceased principal activities. [Program Code(s): 03900, 11900, 21135, 21215, 21325, 22200] 7, 20N/A B. Site-specific decommissioning activities associated with unlicensed sites, including MMLs, whether or not the sites have been previously licensed 7N/A
- 15. Import and Export licenses 8N/A
- 16. Reciprocity 8N/A
- 17. Master materials licenses of broad scope issued to Governme nt agencies.15 [Program Code(s): 03614] $344,000
- 18. Department of Energy:
A. Certificates of Compliance 10$1,503,000 B. Uranium Mill Tailings Radiat ion Control Act (UMTRCA) activities [Program Code(s): 03237, 03238] $211,000
1Annual fees will be assessed based on whether a licensee held a valid license with the NRC authorizing possession and use of radioactive material during the current FY. The annual fee is waived for those materials licenses and holders of certificates, registrations, and approvals who either filed for termination of their licenses or approvals or filed for possession only/storage licenses before October 1 of the current FY, and permanently ceased licensed activities entirely before this date. Annual fees for licensees who filed for termination of a license, downgrade of a license, or for a possession-only license during the FY and for new licenses issued during the FY will be prorated in accordance with the provisions of § 171.17. If a person holds more than one license, certificate, registration, or approval, the annual fee(s) will be assessed for each license, certificate, registration, or approval held by that person. For licenses that authorize more than one activity on a single license (e.g., human use and irradiator activities), annual fees will be assessed for each category applicable to the license.
2Payment of the prescribed annual fee does not automatically renew the license, certificate, registration, or approval for which the fee is paid. Renewal applications must be filed in accordance with the requirements of part 30, 40, 70, 71, 72, or 76 of this chapter.
3Each FY, fees for these materials licenses will be calculated and assessed in accordance with §171.13 and will be published in the Federal Register for notice and comment.
4Other facilities include licenses for extraction of metals, heavy metals, and rare earths.
5There are no existing NRC licenses in these fee categories. If NRC issues a license for these categories, the Commission will consider establishing an annual fee for this type of license.
6Standardized spent fuel facilities, 10 CFR parts 71 and 72 certificates of compliance and related quality assurance program approvals, and special reviews, such as topical reports, are not assessed an annual fee because the generic costs of regulating these activities are primarily attributable to users of the designs, certificates, and topical reports.
7Licensees in this category are not assessed an annual fee because they are charged an annual fee in other categories while they are licensed to operate.
8No annual fee is charged because it is not practical to administer due to the relatively short life or temporary nature of the license.
9Separate annual fees will not be assessed for pacemaker licenses issued to medical institutions that also hold nuclear medicine licenses under fee categories 7.A, 7.A.1, 7.A.2, 7.B., 7.B.1, 7.B.2, 7.C, 7.C.1, or 7.C.2.
10This includes certificates of compliance issued to the U.S. Department of Energy that are not funded from the Nuclear Waste Fund.
11See §171.15(c).
12See §171.15(c).
13No annual fee is charged for this category because the cost of the general license registration program applicable to licenses in this category will be recovered through 10 CFR part 170 fees.
14Persons who possess radium sources that are used for operational purposes in another fee category are not also subject to the fees in this category. (This exception does not apply if the radium sources are possessed for storage only.)
15Licensees subject to fees under categories 1.A., 1.B., 1.E., 2.A., and licensees paying fees under fee category 17 must pay the largest applicable fee and are not subject to additional fees listed in this table.
16Licensees paying fees under 3.C. are not subject to fees under 2.B. for possession and shielding authorized on the same license.
17Licensees paying fees under 7.C. are not subject to fees under 2.B. for possession and shielding authorized on the same license.
18Licensees paying fees under 3.N. are not subject to paying fees under 3.P., 3.P.1, or 3.P.2 for calibration or leak testing services authorized on the same license.
19Licensees paying fees under 7.B., 7.B.1, or 7.B.2 are not subject to paying fees under 7.C., 7.C.1, or 7.C.2 for broad scope license licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices authorized on the same license.
20No annual fee is charged for a materials license (or part of a materials license) that has transitioned to this fee category because the decommissioning costs will be recovered through 10 CFR part 170 fees, but annual fees may be charged for other activities authorized under the license that are not in decommissioning status.
21Licensees paying fees under 4.A., 4.B. or 4.C. are not subject to paying fees under 3.N. licenses that authorize services for other licensees authorized on the same license.
Dated: June 8, 2022.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
/RA/
Lee B. Ficks, Jr.,
Acting Chief Financial Officer.
SUBJECT:
REVISION OF FEE SCHEDULES; FEE RECOVERY FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022, FINAL FEE RULE, 10 CFR PARTS 15, 170 AND 171; [NRC-2020-0031] - RIN 3150-AK44
DATED: June 8, 2022
Adams: Yes No Initials: Initials: JJ SUNSI Review: JJ Publicly Available Non-Publicly Available Sensitive Non-Sensitive
ADAMS ACCESSION NO: ML22123A291
OFFICE OCFO/DOB/LFPT OCFO/DOB/LFPT OCFO/DOB/LFPT OCFO/DOB/LFPT NAME JJacobs WBlaney CGalster ARossi DATE 05/04/2022 05/04/2022 05/04/2022 05/11/2022 OFFICE NMSS/REFS/RASB OCIO DOC NMSS/DFM NAME CBladey (ALove Blair for) DCullison DDAbate (MBlair for) LHowell DATE 05/13/2022 05/04/2022 05/06/2022 05/10/2022 OFFICE NMSS/MSST NMSS/DUWP NSIR OIP NAME TClark ARoberts CErlanger NMamish DATE 05/09/2022 05/10/2022 05/10/2022 05/09/2022 OFFICE NRR OGC OCFO/DOB D/CFO NAME MKing CMcCann NLO JShay LBFicks DATE 05/11/2022 05/26/2022 05/17/2022 05/23/2022 OFFICE EDO D/CFO NAME DHDorman LBFicks DATE 06/05/2022 06/08/2022 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY