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3/20/2023 Public Meeting Summary for Proposed Rule: ASME Code Cases 40-21-5 and Update Frequency
	ML23083B303
Person / Time
Issue date:	03/29/2023
From:	Dennis Andrukat; NRC/NMSS/DREFS/RRPB
To:	;
References
	NRC-2018-0291, RIN 3150-AK23
	Download: ML23083B303 (7)
	v • d • e

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Public Meeting Summary March 29, 2023

Title:

Public Meeting on the Proposed Rule: American Society of Mechanical Engineers Code Cases and Update Frequency Meeting Identifier: 20230236 Date of Meeting: March 20, 2023 Location: Webinar (via Microsoft Teams)

Type of Meeting: Information Meeting with a Question and Answer Session Purpose of Meeting:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff hosted a public meeting to discuss the recently published proposed rule, American Society of Mechanical Engineers Code Cases and Update Frequency. This discussion is intended to help stakeholders prepare formal comments on the proposed rule.

General Details:

The NRC is proposing to amend its regulations in 10 CFR 50.55a to provide the NRCs approval of recent American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) code cases related to the ASME Boiler & Pressure Vessel (BPV) Code, Sections III and XI, and the ASME Operation and Maintenance of Nuclear Power Plants (OM) Code. The NRC is also proposing to amend its regulations in 10 CFR 50.55a that require licensees to update at specified intervals the Inservice Inspection (ISI) and Inservice Testing (IST)

Programs to recent editions and addenda of the ASME BPV and OM Codes, as incorporated by reference in 10 CFR 50.55a, to allow extended update intervals with specific conditions.

The proposed rule was published in the Federal Register on March 6, 2023 (88 FR 13717) for a 60-day comment period that is scheduled to end on May 5, 2023. A correction notice was issued in the Federal Register on March 14, 2023 (88 FR 15620) to amend the information collection burden hours regarding the Paperwork Reduction Act.

As part of the proposed rule, the NRC staff also issued, for public comment, the following draft guidance documents proposed to be incorporated by reference:

DG-1405 (Proposed RG 1.84, Rev. 40), Design, Fabrication, and Materials Code Case Acceptability, ASME Section III (ADAMS Accession No. ML22195A282)

DG-1406 (Proposed RG 1.147, Rev. 21), Inservice Inspection Code Case Acceptability, ASME Section XI, Division 1, (ADAMS Accession No. ML22195A284)

DG-1407 (Proposed RG 1.192, Rev. 5), Operation and Maintenance [OM] Code Case Acceptability, ASME OM Code, (ADAMS Accession No. ML22196A063) 1 ADAMS Accession No. ML23083B303

Along with the publication of the proposed rule, the NRC staff publicly released supporting and related materials:

Draft Regulatory Analysis (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML22243A006)

Draft Supporting Statement for Information Collections (ADAMS Accession No. ML22243A007)

Unofficial Redline Rule Language for the Proposed Rule (ADAMS Accession No. ML23073A279)

*DG-1408 (Proposed RG 1.193, Rev 8), ASME Code Cases Not Approved for Use (ADAMS Accession No. ML22196A065)

This draft guidance document is not proposed to be incorporated by reference.

The meeting consisted of one NRC presentation providing an overview of the proposed rule and then a question-and-answer session where the public was invited to pose questions to the NRC to obtain any needed clarifications on the proposed rule and the supporting and related materials. The meeting was attended by approximately 92 people participating through webinar or phone, including NRC staff and members of the public.

Summary of Presentation:

Dennis Andrukat of the NRC opened the meeting, introducing himself as the Project Manager for this rule and acting as the meetings facilitator. Andrukat described the purpose of the meeting - to present an overview of the proposed rule and provide information to help stakeholders prepare any comments on the proposed rule, discussed logistics of the meeting, and advised participants on the features of the webinar platform.

Andrukat noted the agenda in which the first half of the meeting will be the NRC staffs presentation, followed by a short break, and the remaining half of the public meeting will be an open question and answer session. Andrukat provided instructions for how members of the public attending via Microsoft Teams or via the phone could ask questions or offer comments. Andrukat expressed the desire that the meeting will help the public better understand the proposed rule. Andrukat encouraged public participation during the meeting from all stakeholders but noted that the NRC will not be responding in writing to the comments offered during the meeting. He stated that formal comments on the proposed rule should be submitted in writing using the methods described in the proposed rule notice. Andrukat then introduced the NRC staff who will be speakers for this public meeting.

Andrukat highlighted the status of the proposed rule, the schedule of the comment period, and the contents of the proposed rule. The first portion of the proposed rule involved the update frequency for the code of record and ISI and IST programs, and the second portion of the proposed rule involved the NRCs proposed approval of new and revised ASME code cases.

Andrukat then turned the meeting over to David Rudland of the NRC. Rudland began his presentation by providing a short overview of the background of the rulemaking portion related to the update frequency for the code of record and ISI and IST programs.

Rudland highlighted the Commission direction to pursue an integrated rulemaking, and the staffs modified plan as a result of the publication timing of related ASME code cases 2

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(N-921 and OMN-31). Rudland presented the proposed new definitions section, 10 CFR 50.55a(y), and explained the NRCs goal to provide clarity. Rudland also explained the proposed changes to the code of record interval, including a comparison to the existing requirements. Rudlands discussion also highlighted the staffs proposed approval of ASME Code Cases N-921 (for ISI program intervals) and OMN-31 (for IST program intervals), the staffs proposed condition of updating to the ASME 2019/2020, or later, code editions, and a comparison to the existing ISI and IST program intervals.

Next, the NRC staff presented slides on the ASME code cases contained in the proposed rule:

Andrukat explained the proposed rule would incorporate the latest revisions to three regulatory guides (see list above) updated with the NRCs proposed approval of new and revised ASME code cases. Andrukat highlighted the number of code cases considered, approved, approved with conditions, and non-approved for each of the three ASME sections (ASME BPV Code,Section III and XI; and ASME OM Code).

Chakrapani Basavaraju of the NRC gave a brief overview of the ASME BPV Code,Section III code cases.

Michael Benson of the NRC gave a brief overview of the ASME BPV Code,Section XI code cases.

Thomas Scarbrough of the NRC gave a brief overview of the ASME OM code cases.

This concluded the NRC staffs presentation.

Public Feedback and Questions:

Below is a high-level summary of the comments and questions that were offered by the public, as well as the NRC staffs responses.

A member of the public asked for clarity on whether there would be any future rulemakings on the latest ASME code editions. NRC staff clarified that the NRC is currently in the process of developing the next ASME code editions proposed rule with an estimated publication timeframe of August 2023. The public member followed up asking why the ISI/IST update frequency amendment is a part of this ASME code case rulemaking and not the next ASME code editions rulemaking.

The NRC staff responded that although the staff considered using the next ASME code editions rulemaking, the unexpected timing of the publication of ASME code cases N-921 and OMN-31 resulted in the staff reconsidering and deciding to use this ASME code case rulemaking to keep this proposed amendment together with the approval of these two code cases.

A member of the public pointed to the NRCs SECY paper (SECY-21-0029, ADAMS Accession No. ML20273A286) that stated the staff would develop a new streamlined rulemaking approach including the consideration to use the direct final rule process for those ASME code cases that the staff has not conditioned.

The public member asked if and when this effort would occur. The NRC staff responded that the staff is considering such an approach and that development 3

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is currently in progress, but the actual implementation timeframe has not been finalized at this time (e.g., publication of such a direct final rule).

A member of the public asked for the basis on why the NRC staff is proposing that the condition for using ASME Code Cases N-921 or OMN-31 is that the licensee must have updated to the 2019 (BPV)/2020 (OM) ASME code editions, or later. The NRC staff responded that the basis for using the 2019/2020, or later, code editions is based on the maturity of these codes. In order to have such an extended interval, the staff wanted to ensure the licensee will use a code edition that is mature and stable. The staff added that the 2020 OM code addresses a long-standing issue with air-operated valves and motor-operated valves to correct the prior reliance in the ASME OM Code on only stroke-time testing for assessing the operational readiness of these power-operated valves. In addition, for both the 2019 BPV Code and 2020 OM Code, the staff did not see any major issues on the horizon to be addressed. The public member followed up by asking if there were any 2019 BPV Code,Section XI, examples that led specifically to using the 2019 edition. The NRC staff responded that there were no specific examples, but the staff cited the 2019 edition as a mature code in SECY 21-0029. The staff noted that referencing any other edition than 2019, or later, would require approval by the Commission.

A member of the public presented a scenario with a nuclear power plant about to undergo the ISI and IST program updates that would go to the 2017 ASME code edition and would stay under the existing 10-year cycle. The public member asked for clarity about any alternative request for the licensee using the 2017 code edition but be able to extend their program intervals without updating to the 2019/2020 code editions. And the public member asked if there are any specific issues with the 2017 edition (ASME BPV Code,Section XI) that the 2019 edition addresses - what is the delta or problem with the 2017 edition. With respect to IST programs, the NRC provided an example where the licensee for the Browns Ferry nuclear power plant is required to update to the 2017 Edition of the ASME OM Code for its next IST Program interval update this year, and the licensee decided to move up to the 2020 Edition to be prepared for an extended update interval if the proposed rule is finalized. The staff also mentioned that two licensees had recently sent in letters notifying the NRC of their intent to update to the 2019 Edition of Section XI, rather than the otherwise required 2017 Edition.

After the public meeting, the NRC received an email question from a member of the public asking whether a licensee who is updating to the 2020 OM code edition now be able to use the OMN-31 code case before this rule is final. The NRC staff responded informally by e-mail as follows:

A licensee may request the use of ASME OM Code Case OMN-31 in a 10 CFR 50.55a(z) alternative request. The NRC staff would need to review the acceptability of the request because OMN-31 has not yet been approved in RG 1.192. There is some uncertainty regarding whether the staff would entertain such a request at this time. If the NRC staff authorized an alternative request for the use of OMN-31, it might not be helpful for a licensee to apply OMN-31 until the proposed 10 CFR 50.55a rulemaking is finalized to extend the Code of Record interval beyond 10 years. OMN-31 4

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only extends the 10-year interval in ISTA-3120. OMN-31 does not extend the 10-year update requirement in 10 CFR 50.55a. The licensee would still need to update its IST Program every 10 years as currently required in 10 CFR 50.55a. If the rule is finalized, the Code of Record interval would be extended if a licensee implements the 2020 Edition or later editions of the ASME OM Code. The finalized rule would also incorporate by reference Revision 5 to RG 1.192 into 10 CFR 50.55a, including the acceptability of OMN-31 with the condition to apply the 2020 Edition or later edition of the OM Code (subject to any relevant public comments). If a licensee believes that an alternative request to apply OMN-31 at this time would be helpful for its future planning purposes, the licensee should contact its NRC Project Manager to set up a pre-submittal meeting.

In the e-mail response, the NRC staff stated that the licensee should submit a public comment using the public comment process for the proposed rule if a formal response is desired.

Closing:

Dennis Andrukat made brief closing remarks, thanking everyone for their time and attention. Andrukat displayed a slide with the rules www.regulations.gov Docket ID number (NRC-2018-0291), the public repository for key documents related to the development of this rulemaking, as well as contact information.

Andrukat informed participants of the public feedback form available on the NRC website and ended the meeting by stating that the NRC looks forward to the publics comments on the proposed rule.

Action Items/Next Steps:

There were no significant or major actions for NRC staff as a result of the meeting.

The public comment period will be open until May 5, 2023.

ML23083B303

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