ML25022A307
| ML25022A307 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 01/23/2025 |
| From: | NRC/EDO |
| To: | |
| References | |
| Download: ML25022A307 (1) | |
Text
2024 Annual Performance Report U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (October 2023 - September 2024)
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 1
Table of Contents Table of Contents........................................................................................................................................... 1 ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024..................................................................... 2 About the NRC............................................................................................................................................... 2 Mission.......................................................................................................................................................... 3 Vision............................................................................................................................................................. 3 Overview........................................................................................................................................................ 3 Be riskSMART Framework............................................................................................................................. 3 Planning, Budgeting, and Performance Management.................................................................................... 4 Using Evidence for Decision-making.............................................................................................................. 5 STRATEGIC GOALS AND OBJECTIVES FOR FISCAL YEARS 20222026................................................... 7 STRATEGIC GOALS AND PERFORMANCE INDICATORS............................................................................. 8 STRATEGIC GOAL 1: ENSURE THE SAFE AND SECURE USE OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS................ 8 STRATEGIC GOAL 2: CONTINUE TO FOSTER A HEALTHY ORGANIZATION............................................ 29 STRATEGIC GOAL 3: INSPIRE STAKEHOLDER CONFIDENCE IN THE NRC............................................ 43 DATA VALIDATION AND VERIFICATION....................................................................................................... 51
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 2
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024 About the NRC The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or agency), created by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, began operations in 1975.
The NRC is headed by five Commissioners appointed by the President of the United States, and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, to serve staggered 5-year terms. The President designates one of the Commissioners to serve as the Chair. The Commission, as a whole, formulates policies and regulations governing the safety and security of nuclear facilities and radioactive materials, issues orders to licensees, and adjudicates legal matters brought before it.
The NRCs overall responsibility is to protect public health and safety in the civilian uses of radioactive materials. It has the following main regulatory functions:
Establish standards and regulations.
Issue licenses, certificates, and permits.
Conduct research and risk and performance assessments to support regulatory decisions.
Ensure compliance with established standards and regulations.
Issue adjudicatory decisions.
The NRC carries out these functions to regulate nuclear power plants, fuel cycle facilities, and other civilian uses of radioactive materials, such as nuclear medicine programs at hospitals and academic activities at educational and research institutions. The agency also uses these functions to regulate such industrial applications as gauges, irradiators, and other devices that contain radioactive material. The NRC also licenses the import and export of radioactive materials and works closely with its international counterparts to enhance global nuclear safety and security.
In performing its regulatory activities, the NRC complies with Federal laws and mandates, including the National Environmental Policy Act and other environmental laws that require the agency to assess the environmental impacts of its proposed licensing and regulatory activities. Specific areas the NRC staff considers include potential human health and socioeconomic impacts and potential impacts on endangered species, air quality, water quality, environmental justice, climate change, historic properties, and Tribal cultural resources. As part of the agencys licensing activities, rulemaking, or policy development, the NRC consults with Tribes and interacts with Tribal governments as required by the National Historic Preservation Act (1966) and consistent with the Commissions Tribal Policy Statement.
The NRCs regulatory activities have also been affected in recent years by regulatory reform and licensing modernization required by the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (NEIMA)
(Public Law 115-439) and the Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act (NEICA) (Public Law 115-248).
Among other things, NEIMA mandates that the NRC develop strategies for the licensing of commercial advanced nuclear reactors within its existing regulatory framework and complete a technology-inclusive rulemaking by the end of 2027 for the licensing of such reactors. NEICA directs the NRC to cooperate with the U.S. Department of Energy to ensure that the NRC has sufficient technical expertise to assist in the evaluation of applications for licenses, permits, and design certifications and other requests for regulatory approval for advanced nuclear reactors. Both laws are intended to ensure the NRC has the capacity and capabilities to license the new and innovative technologies of the 21st century.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 3
Most recently, the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act of 2024, also referred to as the ADVANCE Act, was signed into law by President Biden on July 9, 2024. The Act contains a variety of requirements that address a wide range of NRC activities, such as the NRCs budgeting process, recruitment and retention of the NRC workforce, reduced fee rates for advanced nuclear reactor applicants and pre-applicants, the regulatory framework for advanced reactors and fusion technology, as well as strategies to enhance the NRCs efficient, timely, and predictable reviews of license applications. The NRC is working to meet the Acts various deadlines for providing reports to Congress and completing appropriate revisions to agency regulations or guidance.1 Mission The NRC licenses and regulates the Nations civilian use of radioactive materials, to provide reasonable assurance of adequate protection of public health and safety, to promote the common defense and security, and to protect the environment.2 Vision In performing the agency mission, the NRC demonstrates the Principles of Good Regulation through effective, responsive, and timely regulatory actions, consistent with our organizational values and our open, collaborative work environment.3 Overview The U.S. NRC Annual Performance Report (APR) fulfills the performance reporting requirements from the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) Modernization Act of 2010. The APR provides a comprehensive overview of the NRCs progress toward achieving the goals and objectives described in the agencys Strategic Plan for FYs 202220264 and the agencys performance goals. The APR also monitors progress toward the agencys performance measures and provides historical performance results and upcoming targets.
Be riskSMART Framework The NRC is a modern, risk-informed regulator and has implemented the Be riskSMART framework that enables the use of risk information across all of the NRCs regulatory and mission support programs, to make sound decisions. The Be riskSMART framework gives the staff confidence to consistently apply and communicate risk information for all NRC decisions without compromising its mission.
1 The AVANCE Act implementation status dashboard is available at https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/governing-laws/advance-act.html#dashboard 2 As required by the Act, the NRC will update its mission statement to specify that licensing and regulation of the civilian use of radioactive materials and nuclear energy will be conducted in a manner that is efficient and does not unnecessarily limit the civilian use of radioactive materials and deployment of nuclear energy or the benefits of civilian use of radioactive materials and nuclear energy technology to society.
3 The Commission established the NRCs Principles of Good Regulation in 1991 to focus the agency on its safety and security mission while appropriately considering the interests of the NRCs stakeholders, including the public and licensees. The agency puts these principles into practice with effective, realistic, and timely regulatory actions, consistent with the NRCs organizational values and open, collaborative work environment.
The NRCs Principles of Good Regulation and other values are described at https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/
values.html#principles.
4 The NRCs Strategic Plan for FYs 20222026 is available at https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/plans-performance/strategic-planning.html.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 4
The Be riskSMART framework combines traditional risk-informed concepts into a plain language framework to apply and communicate risk insights for NRC decisions, whether they are in the technical, corporate, or legal arena. The framework ensures the staffs basic understanding of how risk information is applied across the different program areas and allows the agency to effectively communicate how it uses risk information to make sound regulatory decisions.
The Be riskSMART framework includes guidance and steps for identifying and managing risk information (for issues where there is no predetermined answer in a law, regulation, or policy); performance metrics for how well the agency considers risk information; and training to ensure a common understanding of how risk information is applied across NRC program areas. In March 2021, the NRC issued NUREG/KM-0016, Be riskSMART: Guidance for Integrating Risk Insights into NRC Decisions, to provide detailed guidance on using the Be riskSMART framework and case studies from across a series of disciplines.
Planning, Budgeting, and Performance Management The NRC utilizes a synchronized performance framework which involves full coordination between the Office of the Executive Director for Operations and the Office of the Chief Financial Officer that supports agency decision-making via a cycle of managing for performance at the enterprise level. This framework is known as the Planning, Budgeting, and Performance Management (PBPM) process (See Figure 1). Through the PBPM, the NRC is able to define clear missions with desired outcomes; measure performance to gauge progress; use performance information as a bases for decision-making; establish general goals and objectives, along with associated strategies, to achieve the agencys mission; describe evaluation activities the agency plans to conduct, including those intended to help answer priority questions outlined in the Evidence-Building Plan5; ensure that formulated budget addresses identified resources to achieve strategic and performance goals and objectives; and, use goals, indicators, targets, analyses, and data-driven reviews to monitor and improve budgeted program outcomes and the effectiveness and efficiency of agency operations.
5 Nuclear Regulatory Commission Evidence Building Plan https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr2252/index.html
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 5
Figure 1 NRC Planning, Budgeting, and Performance Management6 Using Evidence for Decision-making The Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (Evidence Act), signed into law on January 14, 2019, emphasizes collaboration and coordination to advance data and evidence-building functions in the Federal government. The Evidence Act statutorily mandates Federal evidence-building activities, open government data, confidential information protection, and statistical efficiency. Evidence includes fact finding, performance measurement, policy analysis, and program evaluation used to make critical decisions about program operations, policy, and regulations, and to gain visibility into the impact of resource allocation on achieving program objectives.
An Evidence-Building Plan is a systematic approach for identifying and addressing priority questions relevant to an agencys programs, policies, and regulations. More broadly, it is a coordination tool to engage stakeholders in evidence planning and building to help achieve an agencys mission. The plan is intended to emphasize and foster an agency culture of learning and continuous improvement. Once the plan is implemented, decision-makers can use the resulting evidence to guide choices to improve the agency programs, policies, and regulations.
The NRC is an evidence-based organization, with a culture of continuous learning and improvement.
Historically, the NRC has relied on high-quality data and evidence obtained from external entities or obtained through its own capacity. The NRC strategically plans for information and data gathering used to generate the evidence needed for decision-making. The agency uses evidence-building activities (e.g., analysis, research) to support licensing new or novel nuclear technologies, including advanced, non-light-water reactor designs; accident tolerant nuclear fuel; and digital instrumentation and controls.
Evidence-building informs agency activities and actions, such as licensing, oversight, budgeting, human 6 Figure 1, NRC Planning, Budgeting and Performance Management, is adapted from The ERM Policy Framework diagram in the Playbook: Enterprise Risk Management for the U.S. Federal Government, Fall 2022 Update.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 6
capital management, program improvement, accountability, management, rulemaking, guidance development, and policy development. This emphasis on evidence is meant to support innovation, improvement, and learning.
The NRC is committed to complying with the Evidence Act and evaluating the effectiveness and efficiency of its programs and their contributions to achieving the agencys mission. Evaluations and other evidence-building activities conducted by the NRC are expected to adhere to the standards discussed in the NRCs Evidence-Building and Evaluation Policy Statement (86 FR 29683; June 3, 2021). The NRCs priority questions in the Evidence-Building Plan include key areas to support agency needs and the strategic goals and objectives for Fiscal Years (FYs) 2022-2026.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 7
STRATEGIC GOALS AND OBJECTIVES FOR FISCAL YEARS 20222026 The NRCs Strategic Plan for FYs 20222026 sets the strategic direction and aligns priorities for the agency.
Each strategic goal has supporting objectives and strategies that reflect the desired outcome and the NRCs role in achieving it. The NRC has established three strategic goals that are supported by eight strategic objectives.
Strategic Goal 1:
Ensure the safe and secure use of radioactive materials.
Objective 1.1:
Provide quality licensing and oversight of nuclear facilities and radioactive materials.
Objective 1.2:
Ensure regulatory requirements adequately support the safe and secure use of radioactive materials.
Objective 1.3:
Maintain emergency preparedness and response capabilities for NRC and NRC-licensed facilities.
Strategic Goal 2:
Continue to foster a healthy organization.
Objective 2.1:
Foster an organizational culture in which the workforce is engaged, adaptable, and receptive to change and makes data-driven and evidence-based decisions.
Objective 2.2:
Enable the workforce to carry out the agencys mission by leveraging modern technology, innovation, and knowledge management to support data-driven decisions in an evolving regulatory landscape.
Objective 2.3:
Attract, develop, and maintain a high-performing, diverse, engaged, and flexible workforce with the skills needed to carry out the NRCs mission now and in the future.
Strategic Goal 3:
Inspire stakeholder confidence in the NRC.
Objective 3.1:
Engage stakeholders in NRC activities in an effective and transparent manner.
Objective 3.2:
Uphold an NRC decision-making process that is data-driven and evidence-based while ensuring information is available and accessible to interested stakeholders.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 8
STRATEGIC GOALS AND PERFORMANCE INDICATORS In conjunction with the development of the agencys Strategic Plan for FYs 2022-2026, the NRC developed performance goals and indicators for each strategic objective. Performance goals and indicators for the agency strategic goals may consist of output-based or outcome-based performance indicators. Performance goals and indicators for Strategic Goal 1, which focus on safety and security, are output-based and describe the level of a particular measure over time.
Strategic Goals 2 and 3 focus on organizational health and stakeholder confidence, respectively. These strategic goals use outcome-based performance indicators, which reflect an assessment of actions that the agency has established to accomplish associated performance goals, and whether those actions are adequately supporting the agency in making progress toward achieving the intended results. These outcome-based performance indicators use a target of heading in the right direction to reflect the fact that actions put in place should be supporting the agencys progress. The measures for these outcome-based indicators can also produce results of opportunity for improvement or heading in the wrong direction, depending on the results of the agencys annual assessment.
The memorandum Formation of the Programmatic Senior Assessment Team (PSAT), dated March 31, 2016 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System Accession Number ML16067A159), discusses the PSATs role in considering performance indicators that are out of standard or not meeting the targets to ensure that mitigating strategies are in place. The PSAT addresses these performance indicators and associated mitigating strategies during the agencys Quarterly Performance Review.
The PSAT, with support from the Performance Improvement Panel, also makes the determinations for the NRCs outcome-based performance indicators, assessing whether established actions are supporting the agencys progress toward achieving the intended results. This assessment will also be supported by input from a third-party assessment team, who conducts an independent review that will inform the PSATs final determination.
STRATEGIC GOAL 1: ENSURE THE SAFE AND SECURE USE OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS The NRC is tasked with providing reasonable assurance of adequate protection of public health and safety, promoting the common defense and security, and protecting the environment. The agency accomplishes this through day-to-day activities such as reviewing, issuing, and renewing power reactor licenses and amendments; overseeing the safety and security of power reactor facilities, including the storage and transportation of spent fuel; and licensing and regulating non-power uses of radioactive materials, such as industrial and medical applications of radionuclides. Although licensees and certificate holders have the primary responsibility for the safe and secure use of licensed radioactive material that they possess, the NRC establishes regulatory requirements, develops guidance, maintains continuing regulatory oversight, and, when necessary, enforces compliance with agency requirements throughout the license term.
Safety and Security Objective 1.1: Provide quality licensing and oversight of nuclear facilities and radioactive materials.
FY 2024 Strategic Objective Progress The NRC continues to provide quality licensing and oversight of nuclear facilities and radioactive materials in a manner that protects public health and safety, promotes the common defense and security, and protects the environment.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 9
The NRCs Nuclear Reactor Safety Program encompasses licensing and oversight of civilian nuclear power reactors and non-power production or utilization facilities (NPUFs) in a manner that adequately protects public health and safety. It also provides reasonable assurance of the security of such facilities and protection against radiological sabotage. This program contributes to the NRCs safety and security strategic goals through the activities of the Operating Reactors and New Reactors Business Lines, which regulate operating and new nuclear reactors to ensure they meet applicable requirements.
The Operating Reactors Business Line encompasses the regulation of operating civilian nuclear power reactors and NPUFs in a manner that provides for reasonable assurance of adequate protection of public health and safety and promotes the common defense and security. The NRC establishes regulatory requirements for the design, construction, operation, and security of nuclear power plants, research and test reactors and NPUFs, in accordance with the provisions of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (AEA).
Through the activities of this business line, the NRC implements programs to meet its safety and security strategic goals in protecting the public, workers, and the environment from the radiation hazards of nuclear reactors. To ensure that plants and facilities are operating safely, the NRC licenses the plants to operate and the personnel who operate them.
The NRC provides continuing oversight of civilian nuclear reactors and verifies operator adherence to the agencys rules and regulations. The Reactor Oversight Process (ROP) is the NRCs program used to inspect, measure, and assess the safety and security performance of operating commercial nuclear power plants and to respond to any decline in their performance.
Within the Operating Reactors Business Line, the NRC staff is proactively leading the first requested restart of a decommissioning reactor. The Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan ceased operations on May 20, 2022, after more than 50 years of commercial operation. In early 2023, Holtec, the licensee for Palisades, submitted a plan to return the plant to an operational status. The NRC staff established the Palisades Restart Panel and issued IMC 2562, Light-Water Reactor Inspection Program for Restart of Reactor Facilities Following Permanent Cessation of Options. The NRC staff has held six public meetings, several in-person in Region III (RIII) and within the vicinity of the plant. The staff is currently reviewing six licensing requests (an exemption, four license amendments, and a license transfer) submitted to support the potential restart. If approved by the NRC, Holtec plans to resume operations at Palisades in 2025.
In addition, the NRC staff issued two initial renewed licenses (Comanche Peak Units 1 and 2) and two subsequent renewed licenses (North Anna Units 1 and 2); completed the acceptance review of two license renewal applications (LRAs) (Clinton and Diablo Canyon) and two subsequent license renewal applications (SLRA) (Dresden and Browns Ferry). Eight additional applications for renewed licenses were under review at the end of FY2024. The NRC staff also completed the licensing and oversight activities to support safe transition of the new AP1000 units at Vogtle to commercial operation.
The New Reactors Business Line encompasses the review, licensing, and oversight of the design, siting, and construction of new nuclear power reactors, including small modular reactors and advanced non-light-water reactors (non-LWRs). The new reactor activities ensure that new civilian nuclear power facilities are developed and regulated in a manner consistent with the NRCs public health and safety mission.
The NRC reviews new nuclear power reactor design certification, combined license, standard design approval, and early site permit applications, consistent with Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 52, Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants. The NRC also reviews construction permits and OL applications for new nuclear power reactors, consistent with 10 CFR Part 50, Domestic Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities. The application process under 10 CFR Part 50, which was used for all currently operating reactors, involves separate applications for a construction permit and an operating license.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 10 The NRC conducts oversight of construction activities through inspections of facilities under construction. The NRC also updates its new reactor regulatory infrastructure to account for lessons learned, as well as interactions with all stakeholders during its licensing and oversight activities.
In addition, the NRC staff issued the first construction permit for a non-light-water reactor in 44 years (Kairos Hermes 1 test reactor). The review was completed in 18 months, 3 months ahead of schedule. Leveraging the success from the Hermes 1 review, the NRC staff completed the review of Kairos Hermes 2 construction permit application in 10 months, 4 months ahead of schedule. The NRC staff also issued the first construction permit for a research and test reactor (RTR) in 40 years to the Abilene Christian University Molten Salt Research Reactor and accepted for review a construction permit application for Kemmerer Power Station Unit 1 from U.S. SFO Owner, LLC and issued a 27-month review schedule. Separate from the commercial review of power plants, the NRC also performed an independent safety review of the US Navys Columbia-class submarine propulsion plant.
The Nuclear Materials and Waste Safety Program encompasses the NRCs licensing and oversight of nuclear materials in a manner that adequately protects public health and safety. This program provides assurance of the physical security of materials and waste, and protection against radiological sabotage, theft, or diversion of nuclear materials. Through this program, the NRC regulates uranium processing and fuel facilities, research and pilot facilities, nuclear materials users, spent fuel storage and transport, radioactive material transportation and packaging, decontamination and decommissioning of facilities, and low-level and high-level radioactive waste. The program contributes to the NRCs safety and security strategic goals through the activities of the Nuclear Materials Users, Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste, Fuel Facilities, and Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Lines.
The Nuclear Materials Users Business Line activities support licensing and oversight of industrial, medical, research, and academic uses of radioactive materials. These activities include licensing, inspection, oversight, source security, import and export authorizations, the Integrated Materials Performance Evaluation Program (IMPEP), and programmatic assistance to Agreement States, including preparation to license fusion machines.
Agreement States are those States that have signed an agreement with the NRC in accordance with Section 274.b of the AEA, which authorizes the NRC to discontinue, and the State to assume, regulatory authority over certain materials cited in the AEA. With respect to Agreement States, the NRC has oversight responsibility to periodically review the State programs to ensure adequacy and compatibility. There are currently 39 Agreement States. Additionally, Connecticut, Indiana, and West Virginia have submitted letters of intent to become Agreement States and the staff has been working with the states to enable an efficient transition.
This business lines activities also include intergovernmental communication and coordination, implementation of the Tribal Policy Statement and coordination with other Federal agencies on Tribal matters, and maintenance of major information technology (IT) systems to support the regulatory safety and security infrastructure needed to track the possession and use of nuclear materials.
Within the Nuclear Materials Users Business Line, the NRC completed multiple high profile licensing activities, including the transfer of 15 sealed source and device registrations from the New York Agreement State to the NRC as New York returned their program, issuing the license for ABK Biomedical, Inc. Eye90 microspheres manual brachytherapy device for hepatocellular carcinoma. Significant oversight activities also included the Cammenga and Glow Rhino investigatory proceedings.
The NRC also conducted 12 IMPEP reviews of Agreement States, including obtaining Commission approval to move Mississippi from probation to heightened oversight. The NRC staff also provided to the Commission for consideration several rulemaking products including: the 10 CFR Part 30, Alternatives to Use of Credit Ratings, for financial qualifications and assurances final rulemaking; the 10 CFR Part 35, Reporting Nuclear
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 11 Medicine Injection Extravasations as Medical Events, proposed rulemaking; and the 10 CFR Part 37, Advance Tribal Notification of Category 1 Quantities of Radioactive Material Shipments, proposed rule.
The Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Business Line activities support the licensing reviews and oversight of uranium recovery facilities and sites undergoing decommissioning. Decommissioning is the safe removal of a nuclear facility from service and the reduction of residual radioactivity to a level that permits the termination of the NRC license. The NRC regulates the decommissioning of complex materials sites, fuel cycle facilities, uranium recovery facilities, power reactors, and NPUFs, with the goal of license termination.
This business line also oversees the national low-level waste program and monitors the U.S. Department of Energy waste incidental to reprocessing activities at the Savannah River Site and the Idaho National Laboratory, consistent with the NRCs responsibilities under the Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005. Other business line activities include interfacing with licensees, applicants, Federal and State agencies, Tribal governments, and the public.
Within the Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Business Line, the NRC staff completed multiple high profile licensing activities, including the partial reactor site release for Zion and full reactor site release for La Crosse; the decommissioning and transfer of the license for the Vallecitos Nuclear Center from GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy to NorthStar Group Services; and the license termination for Western Nuclear Split Rock Uranium Mill. The staff also provided to the Commission for consideration the 10 CFR Part 61, Integrated Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal, proposed rulemaking.
The Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Line activities support the safe and secure storage of spent nuclear fuel and the transport of radioactive materials. These activities include conducting safety, security, and environmental reviews of license applications for spent nuclear fuel storage casks and independent spent fuel storage installations (ISFSIs), as well as performing safety and security reviews of radioactive material transportation packages. This work also includes reviewing storage system and ISFSI renewal applications, developing and updating related regulations and guidance, conducting safety inspections of transportation packages and storage cask vendors and fabricators, observing ISFSI operations, and performing security inspections of ISFSIs.
Within the Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Line, the NRC staff completed 88 licensing actions including the certification of 4 new package designs, 45 amendments, 21 renewals, 15 exemptions, a letter authorization, and 2 revalidations. These included nine exigent exemptions to licensees and an amendment to a vendor to support safe loading of ISFSI casks that had a Certificate of Compliance nonconformance, in a timely manner to support their loading campaigns, and approval of transportation packages for HALEU and ATF shipments. The staff also provided to the Commission for consideration the 10 CFR Part 71 Harmonization of Transportation Safety Requirements with International Atomic Energy Agency Standards final rulemaking, and an Information Paper endorsing a risk methodology for transportable microreactors.
The Fuel Facilities Business Line encompasses the licensing and oversight of fuel cycle facilities in a manner that adequately protects public health and safety and promotes the common defense and security. The uranium fuel cycle begins with uranium ore that is mined and then milled to extract uranium from the ore. The conversion of the uranium changes it into a form suitable for enrichment. The enrichment process makes uranium suitable for use as nuclear fuel. The Fuel Facilities Business Line includes licensing and oversight activities related to fuel conversion, enrichment, and fuel fabrication. The Fuel Facilities Business Line also provides licensing and oversight support for a number of additional licensees that possess greater than critical mass quantities of special nuclear material (SNM), such as universities and research and test facilities.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 12 Within the Fuel Facilities Business Line, the NRC staff successfully used risk management (Be riskSMART and Enterprise Risk Management (ERM)) to identify, assess, and mitigate key agency risks, including preparation for the expected High-Assay Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU) fuel cycle workload. The NRC published a pilot dashboard tool for improved transparency and accountability of progress on the Louisiana Energy Services increased enrichment application. The NRC staff completed 45 licensing actions, including the amendment for Global Nuclear FuelAmericas, which was the first fuel facility license that allows for production of ATF with increased enrichment (HALEU), and issued the license amendment for Centrus Phase II supporting the DOE HALEU demonstration project. The NRC issued a high priority license amendment in 7 days related to damage from Hurricane Helene at Nuclear Fuel Services and approved sites production of Uranium metals.
Performance Measures Performance Goal 1.1.1: Prevent radiation exposures that significantly exceed regulatory limits.
Performance Indicator: Number of radiation exposures that meet or exceed Abnormal Occurrence (AO) Criteria I.A.1 (unintended radiation exposure to an adult), I.A.2 (unintended radiation exposure to a minor), or I.A.3 (radiation exposure that has resulted in unintended permanent functional damage to an organ or physiological system).7 Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 Operating Reactors Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 New Reactors Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Fuel Facilities Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Nuclear Materials Users Target 3
3 3
3 3
3 3
Actual 1
2 0
18 29 0
Performance Goal 1.1.2: Prevent releases of radioactive materials that significantly exceed regulatory limits.
Performance Indicator: Number of releases of radioactive materials that meet or exceed AO Criterion 1.B (discharge or dispersal of radioactive material from its intended place of confinement).
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 Operating Reactors Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 New Reactors Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 7 All references to the AO criteria in this section refer to the criteria approved by the Commission in SRM-SECY-17-0019, Staff Requirements SECY-17-0019Final Revision to Policy Statement on Abnormal Occurrence Reporting Criteria, dated August 24, 2017.
8 The event description can be found at the Event Notifications Reports website, under event number 55920.
9 The event descriptions can be found at the Event Notifications Reports website, under event number 56327 and 56761.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 13 Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 Fuel Facilities Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Nuclear Materials Users Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Performance Goal 1.1.3: Prevent the occurrence of any inadvertent criticality events.
Performance Indicator: Number of instances of unintended nuclear chain reactions involving NRC licensed radioactive materials.
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 Operating Reactors Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Fuel Facilities Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Performance Goal 1.1.4: Prevent significant unauthorized disclosures of classified or safeguards information.
Performance Indicator: Number of significant unauthorized disclosures of classified or Safeguards Information by licensees as defined by AO criterion 1.C.5 (significant unauthorized disclosure of classified information or Safeguards Information by NRC employees or contractors, as defined by NRC internal criteria).
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Agencywide Performance Indicators The NRC developed the following agencywide performance indicators, which cover the overall performance of the licensing and oversight program areas for the agency.
Percentage of Timely Completion of Final Safety Evaluations by the Generic Milestone Date for All Requested Activities of the Commission, as Identified by the NEIMA, from a Licensee or Applicant Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 100%
100%
New indicator in FY 2022.
FY 2023 100%
98.7%
FY 2024 100%
99.6%
FY 2025 99%
Target adjusted to better reflect actual performance in this area.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 14 Percentage of Timely Completion of Final Safety Evaluations by the Generic Milestone Date for All Requested Activities of the Commission, as Identified by the NEIMA, from a Licensee or Applicant This indicator includes all requested activities of the Commission from licensees or applicants that involve the issuance of a final safety evaluation accepted after July 13, 2019 (associated business line indicators include OR-27, NR-21, SF-12, DL-10, and FF-13). This includes design certifications, licenses, permits, license amendments, license renewals, certificates of compliance, power uprates, and any other requested activity, as applicable, that involves the issuance of a final safety evaluation processed for the agency. This is measured per the generic milestone schedules. Additional information on generic milestone schedules is available at https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/generic-schedules.html.
Operating Reactors Business Line (OR-27)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2021 100%
100%
New indicator in FY 2021.
FY 2022 100%
99.8%
The staff continues to (1) conduct monthly workload management meetings to monitor and assess potential schedules at risk, utilizing advance data tools; (2) capture improvements in the reactor program system to enhance milestone tracking and identify schedule challenges early (e.g., updated work aids and training); (3) evaluate project-specific schedules and identify those potential cases extending beyond the generic milestone schedules; and (4) review existing licensing inventory to identify other requested actions that may impact this indicator.
FY 2023 100%
99.5%
The staff has modernized internal processes, to maximize data analysis opportunities through (1) development and implementation of workflow tools for improved tracking capabilities; (2) real-time and historical performance tools to ensure transparency in driving improvement in metrics and schedule performance; (3) monthly workload management meetings to monitor and assess potential schedules at risk, to hold staff accountable to schedules; and (4) continuing to review and evaluate the existing licensing inventory to potential risks, for early intervention and communication. Of note, in some cases circumstances outside the NRC staffs purview limit the amount of influence on the projected outcome.
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
New Reactors Business Line (NR-21)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2021 100%
100%
New indicator in FY 2021 FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Line (SF-12)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2021 100%
100%
New indicator in FY 2021 FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Business Line (DL-10)
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 15 Percentage of Timely Completion of Final Safety Evaluations by the Generic Milestone Date for All Requested Activities of the Commission, as Identified by the NEIMA, from a Licensee or Applicant Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2021 100%
100%
New indicator in FY 2021 FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Fuel Facilities Business Lines (FF-13)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2021 100%
100%
New indicator in FY 2021 FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Average Percentage of Time Allotted Used in the Established Schedule for All Requested Activities of the Commission, as Identified by NEIMA, from a Licensee or Applicant Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 115 or 75 88.1%
FY 2023 115 or 75 91.5%
FY 2024 115 or 75 96.4%
FY 2025 115 or 75 This indicator includes all requested activities of the Commission from licensees or applicants that involve the issuance of a final safety evaluation accepted after July 13, 2019 (associated business line indicators include OR-29, NR-22, SF-14, DL-11, and FF-14). This includes design certifications, licenses, permits, license amendments, license renewals, certificates of compliance, power uprates, and any other requested activity, as applicable, that involves the issuance of a final safety evaluation processed for the agency. This is measured per the established schedule issued to a licensee or applicant for the requested activity. A result of 100 percent indicates that, on average, actions within the reporting period were completed on the established schedule completion date. A result above or below 100 percent indicates that actions were completed after or before the established schedule completion date on average (e.g., a result of 90 percent indicates that the actions within the reporting period were completed, on average, 10 percent earlier than the established schedule completion date).
Operating Reactors Business Line (OR-29)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 115 or 75 81%
New indicator in FY 2022.
FY 2023 115 or 75 89%
FY 2024 115 or 75 93%
FY 2025 115 or 75 New Reactors Business Line (NR-22)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 115 or 75 86%
New indicator in FY 2022.
FY 2023 115 or 75 73%
For new reactors, some licensing actions were prioritized to support operational needs, demonstrating review efficiency but causing the average review time to be 73%, missing the 75% metric.
FY 2024 115 or 75 100%
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 16 Average Percentage of Time Allotted Used in the Established Schedule for All Requested Activities of the Commission, as Identified by NEIMA, from a Licensee or Applicant FY 2025 115 or 75 Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Line (SF-14)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 115 or 75 92%
New indicator in FY 2022.
FY 2023 115 or 75 103%
FY 2024 115 or 75 97%
FY 2025 115 or 75 Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Business Line (DL-11)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 115 or 75 93.4%
New indicator in FY 2022 FY 2023 115 or 75 92.5%
FY 2024 115 or 75 95.9%
FY 2025 115 or 75 Fuel Facilities Business Line (FF-14)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 115 or 75 88%
New indicator in FY 2022 FY 2023 115 or 75 100%
FY 2024 115 or 75 96%
FY 2025 115 or 75 Percentage of Required Inspections Completed in Accordance with the Applicable Inspection Manual Chapters for the Fiscal Year Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 98%
100%
FY 2023 98%
98.2%
FY 2024 98%
99.8%
FY 2025 98%
This indicator includes the completion of required inspections under applicable inspection manual chapters agencywide (associated business line indicators include OR12.1, SF15, NM05, DL12, and FF15)
Operating Reactors Business Line: Percentage of All Required Baseline Inspection Procedures Completed for All Plants (OR-12.1)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 99%
100%
FY 2020 99%
100%
FY 2021 99%
100%
FY 2022 99%
100%
FY 2023 99%
99.5%
FY 2024 99%
100%
FY 2025 99%
Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Line: Percentage of Inspections Completed in Accordance with Inspection Manual Chapter 2690 (SF-15)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 98%
100%
New indicator in FY 2022.
FY 2023 98%
100%
FY 2024 98%
100%
FY 2025 98%
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 17 Percentage of Required Inspections Completed in Accordance with the Applicable Inspection Manual Chapters for the Fiscal Year Nuclear Materials Users Business Line: Percentage of Safety Inspections of Materials Licensees Completed on Time (NM-05)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 98%
100%
FY 2020 98%
99%
FY 2021 98%
99%
FY 2022 98%
100%
FY 2023 98%
100%
FY 2024 98%
99%
FY 2025 98%
Decommissioning Low-Level Waste Business Line: Percentage of Required Inspections Completed in Accordance with the Applicable Inspection Manual Chapter* (DL-12)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 98%
100%
New indicator in FY 2022.
FY 2023 98%
100%
FY 2024 98%
100%
FY 2025 98%
- Includes the completion of required inspections under Inspection Manual Chapter (IMC) 2561, Decommissioning Power Reactor Inspection Program, for decommissioning power reactors; IMC 2602, Decommissioning Oversight and Inspection Program for Fuel Cycle Facilities and Materials Licensees, for decommissioning materials sites; and inspections of uranium recovery facilities under IMC 2641, In Situ Leach Facilities Inspection Program, and IMC 2801, Uranium Recovery and 11e.(2) Byproduct Material Facility Inspection Program.
Fuel Facilities Business Line: Inspection Manual Chapter 2600 (FF-15)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 98%
100%
New indicator in FY 2022.
FY 2023 98%
100%
FY 2024 98%
100%
FY 2025 98%
Other Performance Indicators The NRC developed the following performance indicators, which cover the overall performance of the licensing and oversight program areas for Operating Reactors, Nuclear Materials Users, and Fuel Facilities Business Lines for the agency.
Operating Reactors Business Line Licensing Percentage of Reviews Completed within Resource Estimate* (OR-28)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 80%
96.5%
New indicator in FY 2022 FY 2023 80%
95.5%
FY 2024 80%
92.5%
FY 2025 80%
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 18 Percentage of Reviews Completed within Resource Estimate* (OR-28)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment
- Percentage of reviews, including issuance of final safety evaluations, completed within 125 percent of resource estimates issued to licensees or applicants for all requested activities of the Commission, as identified by NEIMA.
Oversight Number of Final Significance Determinations Issued More Than 255 Days from the Start Date for All Potentially Greater-Than-Green Findings* (OR-13.1)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2021
<1 3
This is a new indicator for FY 2021. Three significance determinations were finalized beyond the 255 day timeline.
This delay was primarily attributed to additional time required to establish the appropriate risk significance of the findings.
FY 2022
>10 then 10% or 10 then 1 3
Three significance determinations were finalized beyond the 255-day timeline. Delays associated with these findings are attributed to a first-of-a-kind cybersecurity issue, added time deliberating the appropriate performance deficiency or risk significance, and additional time required to review licensee provided information.
FY 2023
>10 then 10% or 10 then 1 2
Two significance determinations were finalized beyond the 255-day timeline. Delays associated with both of these findings are attributed to additional time needed to deliberate the appropriate performance deficiency. The staff conducted a self-assessment of the timeliness of the Significance Determination Process program in CY2022 (ML22335A003). In the report, the review team offered several recommendations to improve the SDP - both related to the metric definition and efficiencies within the process itself. The staff is currently implementing some of the recommendations in the report.
FY 2024
>10 then 10% or 10 then 1 1
One significance determination was finalized beyond the 255-day timeline. The delay was attributed to resident inspector staffing challenges that resulted in additional time to recognize the potential significance and deliberate an appropriate performance deficiency.
FY 2025
>10 then 10% or 10 then 1
- Applies to all findings for which a preliminary determination that the finding is potentially greater-than-Green (e.g., to be determined, apparent violation, or preliminary greater-than-Green finding) is transmitted to the licensee, regardless of final significance. The 255 day timeframe is based on the identification date of the issue of concern (i.e., the date an issue of concern was self-revealed or the date the NRC became aware of the underlying condition leading to the issue of concern) and is the target the agency strives for when conducting significance determination process reviews. If there are more than 10 greater-than-Green findings in the FY, the target is less than or equal to 10 percent. If there are 10 or fewer greater-than-Green findings in the FY, the target is less than or equal to one finding.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 19 Percentage of Technical Allegation Reviews Completed in 360 Days or Less* (OR-16)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 100%
100%
FY 2020 100%
100%
FY 2021 100%
100%
FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
- Includes the calculations for the New Reactors Business Line for the same indicator and is reported under the Operating Reactors Business Line.
Percentage of Enforcement Actions Where Investigation Is Involved Completed in 330 Days or Less* (OR-18)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 100%
100%
FY 2020 100%
100%
FY 2021 100%
100%
FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
- Includes calculations for the New Reactors Business Line for the same indicator and is reported under the Operating Reactors Business Line.
Percentage of Investigations that Developed Sufficient Information to Reach a Conclusion on Wrongdoing Completed in 12 Months or Less (OR-19)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 85%
92%
FY 2020 85%
97%
FY 2021 85%
96%
FY 2022 85%
100%
FY 2023 85%
100%
FY 2024 85%
100%
FY 2025 85%
Percentage of Investigations Completed in Time to Initiate Civil and/or Criminal Enforcement Action (OR-20)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 100%
100%
FY 2020 100%
100%
FY 2021 100%
100%
FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 20 Percentage of Force-on-Force Inspections Performed as Scheduled within the Calendar Year (OR-30)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2023 100%
100% New indicator in FY 2023.
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Nuclear Materials Users Business Line Licensing Percentage of Licensing Application Reviews for New Materials Licenses and License Amendments (Excluding Change of Control Amendments)
- Completed in 90 Days or Less (NM-01)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019*
92%
97%
FY 2020*
92%
95%
FY 2021*
92%
93%
FY 2022*
92%
94%
FY 2023*
92%
100%
FY 2024*
92%
97%
FY 2025 92%
- Beginning in FY 2019, this indicator description excludes change of control amendments. The process for reviewing change of control amendments involves public notification and legal steps that are more complex and require more time than for other typical amendment reviews. Change of control amendments are now captured under NM-03.
Percentage of Licensing Application Reviews for Materials License Renewals and Sealed Source and Devices Reviews and Associated Licensing Actions, and Change of Control Amendments*
Completed in 180 Days or Less (NM-03)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019*
92%
99%
FY 2020*
92%
97%
FY 2021*
92%
94%
FY 2022*
92%
92%
FY 2023**
94%
100%
FY 2024**
94%
95%
FY 2025 94%
- Change of control amendments were added to this indicator description beginning in FY 2019. As of FY 2019, change of control amendments that were being captured in NM-01 are captured under NM-03.
- Beginning in FY 2023, the target will be increased to 94 percent. The use of data analytical techniques will improve the efficiency of internal processes to monitor workload and to predict and manage schedules.
Oversight Percentage of Technical Allegation Reviews Completed in 360 Days or Less*(NM-08)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 100%
100%
FY 2020 100%
100%
FY 2021 100%
100%
FY 2022 100%
100%
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 21 Percentage of Technical Allegation Reviews Completed in 360 Days or Less*(NM-08)
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
- This target also includes the calculations for the Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Business Line for the same indicator and is reported under the Nuclear Materials Users Business Line.
Percentage of Enforcement Actions in which Investigation Is Involved Completed in 330 Days or Less* (NM-10)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 100%
100%
FY 2020 100%
100%
FY 2021 100%
100%
FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
- This indicator also includes calculations for the same indicator for the Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste, Fuel Facilities, and Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Lines.
Percentage of Investigations that Developed Sufficient Information to Reach a Conclusion on Wrongdoing Completed within 12 Months or Less* (NM-11)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 85%
94%
FY 2020 85%
58%
Investigations are unpredictable; complex issues, Department of Justice (DOJ) involvement, or standards for conducting thorough investigations can cause them to go beyond the self-imposed timeliness standard. During FY 2020, only 12 investigations were closed in this category of which 4 were delayed in closing in order to resolve unforeseeable issues. However, this did result in a comprehensive review of the investigation timeliness standards and the Office of Investigations has updated policy and guidance, increased operational oversight, and updated performance standards.
FY 2021 85%
95%
FY 2022 85%
100%
FY 2023 85%
99.5%
FY 2024 85%
100%
FY 2025 85%
- This indicator also includes calculations for the same indicator for the Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste, Fuel Facilities, and Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Lines.
Percentage of Investigations Completed in Time to Initiate Civil Enforcement and/or Criminal Prosecution Action* (NM-12)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 100%
100%
FY 2020 100%
100%
FY 2021 100%
100%
FY 2022 100%
100%
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 22 Percentage of Investigations Completed in Time to Initiate Civil Enforcement and/or Criminal Prosecution Action* (NM-12)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
- This indicator also includes calculations for the same indicator for the Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste, Fuel Facilities, and Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Lines.
State, Tribal, and Federal Programs Percentage of Materials Programs with More Than One Unsatisfactory Performance Indicator (NM-23)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 0%
14%
New indicator in FY 2022. Two programs (Mississippi and Washington) had more than one unsatisfactory performance indicator, and the NRC is engaging to support those State programs, consistent with their performance improvement plans. To address broader contributing issues, the NRC has formed a joint working group with Agreement States to assess potential enhancements to ensure the effective and proactive assessment of performance across the NMP.
FY 2023 0%
0%
FY 2024 0%
0%
FY 2025 Discontinued Indicator NM-24 will replace NM-23 starting in FY 2025.
Percentage of National Materials Programs on Enhanced Oversight or Probation* (NM-24)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2025 15%
New indicator in FY 2025. This indicator replaces NM-23.
- This metric measures NMP performance by tracking the percentage of programs that are on enhanced oversight (e.g., monitoring, heightened oversight) or probation.
Fuel Facilities Business Line Oversight Percentage of Technical Allegation Reviews Completed in 360 Days or Less* (FF-08)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 100%
100%
FY 2020 100%
100%
FY 2021 100%
100%
FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
- This target also includes the calculations for the Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Business Line for the same indicator and is reported under the Fuel Facilities Business Line.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 23 Percentage of Force-on-Force Inspections Performed as Scheduled within the Calendar Year (FF-16)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2023 100%
N/A New indicator in FY 2023 There were no Fuel Facilities Force-on-Force Inspections scheduled in FY 2023.
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Safety and Security Objective 1.2: Ensure regulatory requirements adequately support the safe and secure use of radioactive materials.
FY 2024 Strategic Objective Progress The NRC continues to ensure that the agencys regulatory requirements adequately support the safe and secure use of radioactive materials. The NRCs regulations impose requirements that licensees must meet to obtain or retain a license or certificate to use nuclear materials or operate a nuclear facility. These regulations govern the use of materials at such nuclear facilities as power plants, research reactors, uranium mills, fuel facilities, and waste repositories; the use of materials for medical, industrial, and academic purposes; and the transportation of materials.
The NRC Initiates a new rule or a change to an existing rule when, for example, there is a need to do so to ensure adequate protection of public health and safety and the environment. Additionally, any member of the public may petition the NRC to develop, change, or rescind a rule. The Commission directs staff to begin work on a new rulemaking activity through approval of a staff rulemaking plan. During FY 2024, the NRC pursued substantial rulemaking activities within the Nuclear Reactor Safety Program and the Nuclear Materials and Waste Safety Program Business Lines. The current status of the agencys rulemaking activities are available at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/rulemaking-ruleforum/active/ruleindex.html.
Within the Operating Reactors Business Line, the agency supported rulemaking activities including proposed rules for ASME Code Cases and Update Frequency for ASME Code Editions 2021-2022 and Renewing Nuclear Power Plant Operating Licenses - Environmental Review; and final rules for ASME Code Editions 2019-2020, Fitness-for-Duty Drug Testing Program Requirements, Inflation Adjustments to the Price-Anderson Act Financial Protection Regulations, and Enhanced Weapons, Firearms Background Checks, and Security Event Notifications.
Within the New Reactors Business Line, the agency published the Alternative Physical Security for Advanced Reactors proposed rule for public comment and provided the Commission the proposed rule Risk-informed, Technology-Inclusive Regulatory Framework for Advanced Reactors (Part 53) as a voting matter. These rulemakings support effective and efficient readiness for advanced reactor licensing and oversight in accordance with NEIMA and the Commissions Policy Statement on Advanced Reactors.
Within the Nuclear Materials Users Business Line, the agency supported rulemaking activities including the 10 CFR Part 30, Alternatives to Use of Credit Ratings, for financial qualifications and assurances final rulemaking; the 10 CFR Part 35, Reporting Nuclear Medicine Injection Extravasations as Medical Events, proposed rulemaking; and the 10 CFR Part 37, Advance Tribal Notification of Category 1 Quantities of Radioactive Material Shipments, proposed rule.
Within the Corporate Support Business Line, the staff received Commission approval to initiate rulemaking to revise Part 110 to incorporate clarifying changes on advanced reactor concepts into NRC regulations governing exports of nuclear reactor components and material.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 24 The agency leveraged Be riskSMART Principles to: conduct a widely attended public risk forum with panelists from across the government to share best practices and successes and expand risk-informed decision-making across business lines; used the Very Low Safety Significance Issue Resolution process three times, enabling inspectors to promptly disposition very low safety issues; reviewed 35 licensing application requests to adopt risk-informed operational programs that afforded licensees increased operational flexibility to focus on risk-significant activities and issued the associated safety evaluations; and issued an update to the Risk-Informed Process for Evaluations (RIPE) temporary staff guidance TSG-DORL-2021-01, Revision 3, Risk-Informed Process for Evaluations, to incorporate enhancements to the process from feedback received from the first application using RIPE.
The NRC continued to develop several documents that contain guidance for applicants and licensees, as well as internal and external stakeholders. The NRC issued a Part 52 lessons learned report and conducted public meetings on the report. Other accomplishments include:
Issued Part 52 construction lessons learned report and conducted public meetings on the lessons learned report Expanded the Memorandum of Cooperation with the Canadian regulatory agency to include the UKs regulatory agency, further supporting international collaboration on new and advance reactor licensing.
Completed a review of Power Uprate licensing process to streamline and risk inform approaches.
Issued 52 exemptions to specific requirements of 10 CFR 73, Physical Protection of Plant and Material, subpart T, Security Notifications, Reports, and Recordkeeping. These exemptions are related to the Enhanced Weapons, Firearms Background Checks, and Security Event Notifications (EWR) final rule (88 FR 15864) that became effective April 13, 2023, with a compliance date of January 8, 2024. These exemptions provided regulatory coverage while the NRC staff revised associated guidance and while licensees begin to implement the revised guidance.
Performance Measures Performance Goal 1.2.1: Prevent accident precursors and reductions of safety margins at commercial nuclear power plants that are of high safety significance.
Performance Indicator: Number of malfunctions, deficiencies, events, or conditions at commercial nuclear power plants (operating or under construction) that meet or exceed AO Criteria II.A-II.E (commercial nuclear power plant licensees).
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 Operating Reactors Target 3
3 3
3 3
3 3
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 New Reactors Target 3
3 3
3 3
3 3
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Performance Goal 1.2.2: Prevent accident precursors and reductions of safety margins at non-reactor facilities or during transportation of nuclear materials that are of high safety significance.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 25 Performance Indicator: Number of malfunctions, deficiencies, events, or conditions at non-reactor facilities or during transportation of nuclear materials that meet or exceed AO Criteria III.A or III.B (events at facilities other than nuclear power plants and all transportation events).
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 Fuel Facilities Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Performance Goal 1.2.3: Prevent sabotage, theft, diversion, or loss of risk-significant quantities of radioactive material.
Performance Indicator: Number of instances of sabotage, theft, diversion, or loss of risk-significant quantities of radioactive material that meet or exceed AO Criteria I.C.1 (stolen, abandoned, or unrecovered lost), I.C.2 (radiological sabotage), or I.C.3 (substantiated case of actual theft, diversion, or loss of a formula quantity of SNM or inventory discrepancy).
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target 0
0 0
0 0
0 0
Actual 110 0
0 0
211 0
Agencywide Performance Indicator The NRC developed the following agencywide performance indicator, which covers the overall performance of the research program areas for the agency.
Combined Score on a Scale of 1 to 5 for the Technical Quality of Agency Research Technical Products*
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 4.0 4.62 FY 2023 4.0 4.75 FY 2024 4.0 4.4 FY 2025 4.0 This indicator includes the average technical quality score of all research products (associated business line indicators include OR-23 and NR-18). The NRC has developed a process to measure the quality of research products on a five-point scale using surveys of end users to determine the usability and added value of the products.
Operating Reactors Business Line: Combined Score on a Scale of 1 to 5 for the Technical Quality of Agency Research Technical Products* (OR-23)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 4.0 4.26 FY 2020 4.0 4.64 10 In 2019, an NRC Agreement State reported the theft of three industrial radiography cameras that were recovered by law enforcement within hours.
The event description can be found at the Event Notifications Reports website, under event number 54033.
11 In 2023, NRC Agreement States reported the theft of two industrial radiography cameras that were recovered by law enforcement. The event description can be found at the Event Notifications Reports website, under event number 56396 and 56222.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 26 Combined Score on a Scale of 1 to 5 for the Technical Quality of Agency Research Technical Products*
FY 2021 4.0 4.58 FY 2022 4.0 4.6 FY 2023 4.0 4.75 FY 2024 4.0 4.64 FY 2025 4.0
- As appropriate, the NRC will develop and add other mechanisms to this process to measure the quality of research products New Reactors Business Line: Combined Score on a Scale of 1 to 5 for the Technical Quality of Agency Research Technical Products* (NR-18)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2019 4.0 4.68 FY 2020 4.0 4.41 FY 2021 4.0 4.44 FY 2022 4.0 4.68 FY 2023 4.0 4.75 FY 2024 4.0 4.20 FY 2025 4.0
- As appropriate, the NRC will develop and add other mechanisms to this process to measure the quality of research products Safety and Security Objective 1.3: Maintain emergency preparedness and response capabilities for NRC and NRC-licensed facilities.
Summary of FY 2024 Progress The NRC continues to maintain an incident response program that oversees required emergency response activities for the NRC, NRC-licensed facilities, and radioactive materials licensees. The NRCs incident response program relies on the agencys Headquarters Operations Center (HOC) (Rockville, Maryland) and four Regional Incident Response Centers (Region I in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania; Region II in Atlanta, Georgia; Region III in Naperville, Illinois; and Region IV in Arlington, Texas). The agencys response provides expert consultation, support, and assistance to State and local public safety officials responding to an event.
Activating the NRC incident response program brings teams of specialists, as needed, to the HOC and Regional Incident Response Centers. These teams obtain and evaluate event information, assessing the events potential impact on public health and safety and the environment. The NRC staff and management at the HOC coordinate with the NRC Chair, Commission, Office of Public Affairs, and Office of Congressional Affairs any needed communications with the news media, State government, Federal agencies, members of Congress, and the White House.
During FY 2024, staff enhanced existing training for NRCs incident responders. The enhanced training focused on agency roles and responsibilities during a nuclear and radiological incident and the coordination of efforts across the Federal Government to respond to and recover from such incidents. In addition, the staff developed, planned, and coordinated efforts to conduct the NRCs participation in one Continuity of Operations Planning (COOP) tabletop exercise, Eagle Horizon (EH) 2024, in September 2024. The staff coordinated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other Federal partners and ensured that the NRCs plans for exercise conduct met all Federal COOP requirements.
The NRC ensures that all licensees have effective preparedness and response programs in place to address an emergency. Every two years, each operating nuclear power plant performs a full-scale emergency
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 27 preparedness exercise inspected by the NRC and evaluated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Operating nuclear power plants conduct additional emergency drills between full-scale exercises to maintain their preparedness and proficiency in responding to emergencies.
Nuclear power plants must be able to successfully defend against a set of hypothetical threats that the agency refers to as the design-basis threat. These hypothetical threats challenge a plants physical security, personnel security, and cybersecurity. The agency continuously evaluates this set of hypothetical threats against real-world intelligence to ensure safety and security. The NRC verifies that licensees are complying with security requirements through its baseline inspection program. This includes force-on-force inspections designed to test a facilitys defenses against the design-basis threat. Force-on-force inspections are held at each nuclear power plant once every 3 years, employing a highly trained mock adversary force to attack a nuclear facility. In FY 2024, 100% of the scheduled force-on-force inspections were completed.
The staff published the "Small Modular Reactors and Other New Technologies Final Rulemaking in November 2023. This rulemaking supports effective and efficient readiness for advanced reactor licensing and oversight in accordance with NEIMA and the Commissions Policy Statement on Advanced Reactors.
Performance Measures Performance Goal 1.3.1: Prevent substantial breakdowns of physical security, cybersecurity, or material control and accountability.
Performance Indicator: Number of substantial breakdowns of physical security, cybersecurity, or material control and accountability that meet or exceed AO Criteria I.C.4 (substantial breakdown in physical security, cybersecurity, or material control and accountability) or I.C.3 (substantiated case of actual theft, diversion, or loss of a formula quantity of SNM or an inventory discrepancy).
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target 1
1 1
1 1
1 1
Actual 0
0 0
0 0
0 Agencywide Performance Indicator The NRC developed the following agencywide performance indicator, which covers the overall performance of the emergency response program areas for the agency.
Emergency Response Performance Index* (ERPI)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 28 Emergency Response Performance Index* (ERPI)
- This indicator includes the percentage assessment of the agencys readiness to respond to a nuclear or terrorist emergency situation or other events of national interest. Includes specific subindicators for the agency (associated business line indicators include OR-26, SF-13, NM-22, and FF-12) that will be assessed and updated on an annual basis to reflect the agencys readiness to respond. Examples may include (1) training and qualifications of the different incident response teams are sufficient to ensure enough personnel are trained and qualified for different incident response positions, (2) communications systems at NRC Headquarters (HQ) and in the backup location are properly maintained and tested to ensure licensees and other stakeholders can report incidents consistent with the NRCs regulatory requirements, and (3) facility/functional availability at NRC HQ and in the backup location is properly maintained to ensure availability for notification and response for licensee events.
Operating Reactors ERPI (OR-26)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2021 100%
100%
New for FY 2021. This indicator is being added because a new internally tracked subindicator, Critical Incident Response Positions, is being included as part of the rollup to the ERPI, which provides a more accurate measure for monitoring the NRCs readiness.
FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Spent Fuel Storage and Transportation ERPI (SF-13)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2022 100%
100%
New for FY 2022. This indicator is being added because a new internally tracked subindicator, Critical Incident Response Positions, is being included as part of the rollup to the ERPI, which provides a more accurate measure for monitoring the NRCs readiness.
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Nuclear Materials Users ERPI (NM-22)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment FY 2021 100%
100%
New for FY 2021. This indicator is being added because a new internally tracked subindicator, Critical Incident Response Positions, is being included as part of the rollup to the ERPI, which provides a more accurate measure for monitoring the NRCs readiness.
FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
Fuel Facilities ERPI (FF-12)
Fiscal Year Target Actual Comment
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 29 Emergency Response Performance Index* (ERPI)
FY 2021 100%
100%
New for FY 2021. This indicator is being added because a new internally tracked subindicator, Critical Incident Response Positions, is being included as part of the rollup to the ERPI, which provides a more accurate measure for monitoring the NRCs readiness.
FY 2022 100%
100%
FY 2023 100%
100%
FY 2024 100%
100%
FY 2025 100%
STRATEGIC GOAL 2: CONTINUE TO FOSTER A HEALTHY ORGANIZATION The health of an organization is a vital factor that affects its capacity and capability to continuously improve.
Focusing on organizational health provides opportunities to strengthen the workforce, culture, technology, and decision-making, which in turn enhances performance.
Organizational Health Objective 2.1:Foster an organizational culture in which the workforce is engaged, adaptable, and receptive to change and makes data-driven and evidence-based decisions.
FY 2024 Strategic Objective Progress The NRC strives for a successful outcome of this goal by facilitating continuous learning, innovation, and knowledge management; promoting and sustaining a strong safety culture; fostering creativity and innovation; connecting vision with action; and continuously adapting and striving to be a healthy organization. In FY 2024, the NRC continued implementing the agencys culture improvement strategy which included a focus on coaching and empowerment, recognizing and sharing different viewpoints, taking innovative approaches and discussing risk, showing mutual support and shared responsibility, and bringing the whole self to work.
In FY 2024, the NRC experienced several senior leadership transitions. Leadership transitions can introduce new priorities and fresh perspectives to the agencys strategic direction and may also pose challenges in maintaining continuity as employees adjust to evolving goals and leadership styles.
Through this period, the NRC continued to take proactive steps to support the organizations culture. The FY 2024 significant accomplishments to support Organizational Health Objective 2.1 include the following:
Conducted a workforce survey on workload management, gathering insights to guide organizational adjustments and support a balanced work environment.
Enhanced workplace comfort and safety through key facility improvements, including reopening the One White Flint North (OWFN) NuReg Café as "Wills Café," completing water quality testing across NRC facilities (OWFN, Two White Flint North [TWFN], 3 White Flint North [3WFN], and the NRC Warehouse), and replacing the air conditioning unit atop the OWFN entrance.
Completed a Confirmation and Impact Analysis of FY 2024 Requirements and sponsored the Regulatory Information Conference (RIC) technical session, "Cultivating the Creativity of Innovation,"
supporting a culture of regulatory alignment, compliance, and creative thinking across the agency.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 30 Delivered extensive training, including 2024 mandatory courses for employees and contractors, 18 special annual courses, a pilot Leadership Orientation course, and two new courses: Crucial Conversations for handling difficult discussions and H-314 Well Logging to support NRC and Agreement State students and reduce training backlogs.
Developed a process improvement plan for managing All Offices Branch Chief vacancy announcements, enhancing staffing efficiency and career development opportunities.
Defined desired culture in the agencys new ideal culture statement and created the culture leader model. Two agencywide culture leader events were held in FY 2024.
Conducted a virtual Executive Leadership Seminar on workplace culture, attended by 235 leaders, to reinforce principles of recognition, engagement, and positive culture-building.
Performance Measures Performance Goal 2.1.1: Foster an organizational culture that represents shared values, assumptions, beliefs, and behaviors.
Performance Indicator: Annual assessment of the actions in place to foster a desired organizational culture.
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Actual N/A N/A N/A N/A Opportunity for improvement Opportunity for improvement In 2024, the NRC developed the following Ideal Culture Statement: We achieve mission excellence by fostering a culture centered on trust, characterized by high engagement, mutual support, and a sense of belonging. All employees demonstrate behaviors consistent with ISOCCER values and fully embrace the traits established in the NRC Leadership model. The ISOCCER values are Integrity, Service, Openness, Commitment, Cooperation, Excellence, and Respect. The six characteristics of the NRCs leadership model are Participative Decision-Making, Receptivity to New Ideas and Thinking, Empowerment and Shared Leadership, Diversity in Thought, Innovation and Risk Tolerance, Collaboration and Teamwork.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 31 Data from the 2024 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) offers key insights into aspects of the Ideal Culture Statement and suggests that key aspects of the agency environment are heading in the right direction to support the desired culture (See Figures 2 and 3). Specifically, perceptions of Employee Engagement and Global Satisfaction are particularly relevant to the Ideal Culture Statement. The Employee Engagement and Global Satisfaction indices and their sub-indices scores remained the same or increased from the 2023 FEVS survey data. All indices and sub-indices scored above the average for medium-size agencies except the Leaders Lead sub-index. The Leaders Lead sub-index reflects employee perceptions of leadership integrity, communication, and motivation of the workforce. This is an area of opportunity for the agency, with the sub-index receiving a 62% favorable rating (i.e., the percentage of respondents who selected either agree or strongly agree).
Figure 2 FEVS Results (2022 - 2024): Employee Engagement Index Figure 3 FEVS Results (2022 - 2024): Global Satisfaction Index 76%
80%
72%
79%
72%
76%
79%
71%
81%
73%
77%
81%
73%
81%
75%
77%
77%
71%
80%
74%
DEIA (Overall)
Diversity Equity Inclusion Accessibility
% Positive 2022 2023 2024 Medium-Sized Agencies (2024)
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 32 In addition to employee engagement and Global Satisfaction indices, other areas of FEVS measurement reveal similar trends relevant to the NRCs culture and environment. In 2024, the majority of NRC employees responded positively regarding Mission Accomplishment (85% positive), Employee Experience (74% positive),
perceptions of Goal Orientation: Accountability (90% positive), Goal Clarity (83% positive), Performance Feedback (79% positive) and Cooperation between employees (88% positive). However, less than 70% of employees responded with positive perceptions about innovation (68% positive), Merit Principles (65%
positive), Communication (65% positive), and Recognition (64% positive), suggesting opportunities to improve in these areas. (Note: The FEVS data outlined in this paragraph are not represented in any of the graphs included in the report.)
The NRC values respect for individuals work-life balance and provides staff opportunities to work flexibly, including through telework and remote work arrangements. Employee perceptions of work-life balance are represented in the FEVS items, Employees in my work unit support my need to balance my work and personal responsibilities (84% positive), My supervisor supports my need to balance work and other life issues (91%
positive), My workload is reasonable (65% positive), and Senior leaders demonstrate support for Work-Life programs (63% positive). Employee workload and senior leadership support for work-life programs represent areas for improvement.
In summary, the NRC acts to improve and maintain its culture, and the majority of NRC staff have positive perceptions concerning many components of the NRCs culture and work environment. However, FEVS survey data suggests that some areas of culture have room to grow, including perceptions of senior leadership and satisfaction with workloads and work-life balance. Therefore, Performance Goal 2.1.1 is identified as an opportunity for improvement for the agency.
Performance Goal 2.1.2: Empowering decision-making across the agency.
Performance Indicator: Annual assessment of the actions in place to empower staff decision-making.
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Actual N/A N/A N/A N/A Opportunity for improvement Opportunity for improvement
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 33 Data from the 2024 FEVS suggest an opportunity to improve staff experiences of Employee Voice and Autonomy to support the desired decision-making culture (see Figures 4 and 5). Most items scores were similar to 2023 data with I have autonomy to decide how I do my job and I can influence decisions in my work unit percent positive ratings slightly decreasing from 2023. Items I can make decisions about my work without getting permission first, Management involves employees in decisions that affect their work, and How satisfied are you with your involvement in decisions that affect your work? all represent areas for improvement with fewer than 70% of employees responding positively to each item.
Figure 4 FEVS Results (2022 - 2024) Agility Figure 5 FEVS Results (2022 - 2024) Employee Voice The NRC uses the IdeaScale platform to elevate employee voices and encourage innovative decision-making by crowdsourcing ideas, recognizing and rewarding ideas, and engaging innovators across the organization. In FY 2024, over 1,200 employees used the platform to engage in more than 4,000 actions. Figure 6 below highlights staff engagement in submitting ideas as well as engaging in voting and commenting.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 34 Figure 6 IdeaScale Data for FY 2023 - FY 2024 NRC also empowers its employees to make risk-informed decisions by providing a variety of training courses focused on risk-informed decision-making. As of September 2024, 2,850 NRC employees have completed the Be riskSMART: A Tool for Everyone Training.
The NRC promotes a psychologically safe environment for its employees to speak up and offer new ideas without fear of negative consequences, including through the he Differing Professional Opinion (DPO) and Non-Concurrence Process (NCP). The DPO program remains active. In the past four years, eight DPO cases were opened. Five of these cases have been closed, with three remaining open in CY2024. In addition, the NCP has opened and closed 24 cases in the past four years.
In summary, the NRC provides programs to promote staffs ability to make better-informed and confident decisions. However, a large portion of NRC staff disagree with survey items related to empowered decision-making. Performance Goal 2.1.2 is identified as an opportunity for improvement for the agency.
Organizational Health Objective 2.2 Enable the workforce to carry out the agencys mission by leveraging modern technology, innovation, and knowledge management to support data-driven decisions in an evolving regulatory landscape.
FY 2024 Strategic Objective Progress The NRC continues to carry out the agencys mission by leveraging modern technology, innovation, and knowledge management to support data-driven decisions in an evolving regulatory landscape. The NRCs approach focuses on modernizing IT tools and systems, improving business processes, enhancing access to data for more risk-informed decision-making, modernizing the agencys network, and improving stakeholder experience. To support the development, modernization, and enhancement of agency operational and IT to support the mission, the NRC aims to prioritize the development and enhancement of tools and applications that support the mission, increase staff engagement with tools and applications, and foster forward-thinking by executing strategic plans and embracing modern technologies. The NRC implemented several enhancements to the IT infrastructure to ensure an effective work environment.
The FY 2024 significant accomplishments to support Organizational Health Objective 2.2 include the following:
Implemented an AI-powered virtual assistant in the Strategic Acquisition System (STAQS), providing step-by-step guidance to assist users with requisition processes, and launched the AI Incubator Site 269 1,087 613 333 1,294 196
- of Ideas Submitted
- of Votes
- of Comments FY 2023 FY 2024
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 35 and the AI Governance Board, providing structured oversight of AI initiatives, alongside the deployment of the AI Compliance Plan and a new AI information page on NRC.gov.
Completed the transition to General Services Administration (GSAs) USAccess Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card solution to ensure secure and standardized access for personnel across NRC facilities.
Migrated the Cost Activity Code System to the NRCs Microsoft Azure IaaS Cloud platform to enhance reporting capabilities through Microsoft Power BI.
Hosted the 2024 Radiation Protection Computer Code Analysis and Maintenance Program (RAMP)
Users Group meeting in collaboration with Korea Nuclear Institute of Safety, fostering international knowledge exchange on radiation protection and dose assessment with 70+ representatives from nine countries.
Modernized the Succession Planning Application through Microsoft Power Platform, streamlining processes to improve efficiency in talent and succession planning.
Initiated Windows 11 deployment across NRC workstations, marking the first user-initiated operating system upgrade to improve efficiency and security.
Completed construction and audio-visual (AV) installation for the OWFN First Floor Conference space, and continued renovations on OWFN floors 11 and 13.
Launched the Technical Review Package (TRP) Tool Phase 3, enhancing efficiency in the license renewal review process, and introduced the Travel Estimation Planning Tool (TEPT) to optimize travel resources.
Hosted a public seminar on transportation risk methodologies and engaged in international inspector exchanges, strengthening regulatory knowledge sharing and risk communication.
Closed an IdeaScale campaign to solicit innovative approaches to risk information, generating actionable ideas from 57 staff participants for enhancing NRCs risk-informed decision-making.
Achieved a B grade on the Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) Scorecard, reflecting the agencys progress in managing its IT portfolio efficiently.
Awarded contracts for agency conference room upgrades and completed a remote webcast for a public Commission briefing on Region I activities using the NRCs advanced video technology.
Automated the transmission of external training registration and payment information to reduce the manual workload and improve efficiency in the training registration process.
Successfully modernized the 2024 FEVS data ingestion process using Anaconda Python software, enabling dashboard display of results a month earlier than the prior year.
Mapped cost centers to Standard Investments and validated Business Reference Model (BRM) codes to ensure accurate passback reporting and data-driven resource management.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 36 Performance Measures Performance Goal 2.2.1: Enhance innovation, knowledge management, and data-driven and evidence-based decision-making.
Performance Indicator: Annual assessment of the actions in place for the development, modernization, and enhancement of agency operational and information technologies to support the mission.
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Actual N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Development, modernization, and enhancement includes projects and activities leading to new IT assets/systems, as well as projects and activities that change or modify existing IT assets to improve capability. The NRC has identified five areas of major IT investments, which include Financial Services, Enterprise-wide Acquisition Services, Materials Licensing and Oversight, Incident Response, and Reactor Licensing and Oversight. Within these areas, the NRC continues to initiate and complete development, modernization, and enhancement projects, including in FY 2024 (see table below).
Major IT Investment Projects FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 Projects initiated 9
11 9
10 Projects initiated and completed 9
11 9
4 Projects initiated and still in progress 0
0 0
6 The NRC equips its employees to navigate rapidly changing technology landscapes by leading workshops and offering technology-related training and AI-specific training through Skillsoft. Participation continues to increase throughout the organization (see table below).
Technology-Related Training FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 Completed technology-related training in Skillsoft 84 179 609 936 Completed AI-related training in Skillsoft 1,736 4,553 15,809 21,056 AI workshops at the NRC 2
1 1
1 NRC participants at AI workshops 353 136 175 210 The NRCs Mission Analytics Portal-External, or MAP-X, is a tool designed to modernize and enhance communications with licensees. The NRC expects MAP-X to further enhance the agencys online capabilities for licensees and NRC staff. User engagement continues to increase in FY 2024 (see table below).
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 37 MAP-X Engagement FY 2023 FY 2024 Number of active users 14 29 Number of submissions 16 49 Number of submission types 1
4 The NRC prioritizes IT customer service and satisfaction. The Mission Support Customer Satisfaction Survey results suggest that the NRC provides excellent IT customer service. All indicators increased except for satisfaction with Development, Modernization, and Enhancement, though it should be noted that this value was still above the government median for 2024. See Figures 7 and 8.
Figure 7 Customer Satisfaction with IT Services (2022 - 2024)
Figure 8 Customer Satisfaction with IT Services (2022 - 2024) Continued NRCs Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) also tracks IT service data on its Customer Support Center (CSC). The CSC resolved 88% of their tickets on the first call. Across 2,788 surveys administered in FY 2024, the OCIO received an average satisfaction score of 4.79 (on a 5-point scale) and resolved 95% of cases.
The CSC scored highly on all aspects of customer experience (see Figure 9).
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 38 Figure 9 OCIO Customer eXperience Dashboard FY 2024 Data Based on these results, the NRC is heading in the right direction regarding Performance Goal 2.2.1.
Organizational Health Objective 2.3: Attract, develop, and retain a high-performing, diverse, engaged, and flexible workforce with the skills needed to carry out the NRCs mission.
FY 2024 Strategic Objective Progress The NRC continues to promote strong employee engagement and to attract, develop, and maintain a high-performing, engaged, and flexible workplace with the skills needed to carry out the NRCs mission. The NRC is also taking steps to implement recommendations to strengthen the hybrid work environment and ensure that its workforce has the tools and resources to effectively achieve its mission. To maintain an adaptable and skilled workforce, the NRC focuses on refining selection and recruitment processes to align with workforce planning efforts and enhance strategies for filling vacant positions at the agency. Additionally, the agency emphasizes staff training and development to ensure employees remain skilled, while fostering a supportive work environment that promotes employee engagement and retention.
The FY 2024 significant accomplishments to support Organizational Health Objective 2.3 include the following:
Delivered over 200 training courses to NRC, Agreement State, and international staff, including technical, professional development, and specialized programs such as fire protection engineering and event response training.
Implemented a 15% group retention incentive for Resident Inspectors, addressing recruitment and retention challenges and supporting mission-critical oversight functions.
Launched an Integrated Project Team to streamline the onboarding process, accelerating access to essential materials and services for new employees.
Submitted the 2024 Annual Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Plan to the Department of Education, aligning with Federal initiatives to promote educational and strengthen partnerships with HBCUs.
Supported career development through Competency-Based Qualification pilot programs and finalized a report with recommendations for enhancing qualification and training processes.
4.78 4.79 4.87 4.79 4.78 Overall Experience Timeliness Curtesy/Professional Communication Ability to Resolve Issue Mean (5-point Scale)
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 39 Hosted the NRC Small Business Exchange and other workforce engagement events, sharing opportunities and best practices for Federal procurement with small business representatives.
Recognized successful completion of the Career Development Program and Nuclear Regulator Apprenticeship Network (NRAN), transitioning all graduates to their permanent positions.
Collaborated with regional staff to facilitate recruitment events at institutions like Kansas State University, Southern Methodist University, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, promoting career opportunities at the NRC.
Updated and assigned mandatory agency training for ethics, confidentiality, and technical skills to align with annual compliance requirements.
Conducted an internal review of human capital alignment with the Office of Personnel Management Human Capital Framework (HCF), confirming NRCs standards for strategic planning, alignment, and workforce management.
Improved knowledge management with an AI-powered AI-bot for internal information searches and launched a page within Nuclepedia, a centralized knowledge sharing platform, specific for Contracting Officer Representatives (CORs).
Enhanced employee engagement with record participation in the 2024 FEVS.
Reorganized roles and responsibilities within the Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer to improve operational efficiency and redistribute workloads effectively.
Facilitated over 1,800 training sessions, maintaining technical expertise within the workforce.
Implemented COR Open Office Hours, offering CORs real-time, practical support and advice from colleagues across the agency.
Continued University Champions Program efforts, with 129 NRC managers and senior staff serving as University Champions across 97 universities, including 30 minority-serving institutions and 13 HBCUs.
Performance Measures Performance Goal 2.3.1: Develop and maintain a high-performing workforce.
Performance Indicator: Annual assessment of the actions in place to maintain an adaptable and skilled workforce through workforce planning and staff training and development.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 40 Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Actual N/A N/A N/A N/A Opportunity for improvement Opportunity for Improvement The NRC invests in efforts to recruit and hire a high-performing workforce. Throughout FY 2024, the NRC hosted a hiring expo with 597 registrants and attended 58 hiring events at campuses, career fairs, and professional conferences. The NRC attended 21 campus events at minority-serving institutions and 13 campus events at HBCUs. Across all campus events, the NRC received 280 resumes from applicants.
The NRC has multiple programs to recruit and hire talent into a cooperative education program (co-op),
internships, and apprenticeships. Within the co-op, students integrate alternating periods of academic study and work experience. During Calendar Year (CY) 2024, 30 co-op students converted to full-time positions and 18 left the NRC. The NRC also sponsors summer internships. In CY 2024, the NRC hired 61 interns (out of 1,185 applicants). The NRC also supports the NRAN, a paid, full-time 18-month training program for outstanding engineers and scientists from across the nation who wish to start an advancement-oriented career with the NRC. In CY 2024, the NRC hired 23 NRAN participants (out of 188 applicants). Most internship and NRAN applicants came from schools where the NRC had attended a hiring event.
As of September 26, 2024, the NRC hired 277 new employees during the Calendar Year (compared to 279 in CY 2023). The average time to hire (total calendar days) was 123.1 days (down from 128 in FY 2023). In FY 2024, 208 employees left the NRC (compared to 197 in FY 2023), and the attrition rate slightly increased (see Figure 10). Further, the average years past retirement eligibility for retirement-eligible staff was 5.33 years in FY 2024, compared to 5.12 in FY 2023.
Figure 10 Agency Attrition Data by Fiscal Year The Mission Support Customer Satisfaction Survey measures NRC staff satisfaction with recruiting and hiring.
Though still below the government median, survey results increased from 2023 to 2024 (see Figure 11).
188 181 251 197 208 7%
7%
9%
7%
8%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
9%
10%
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 Seperations Agency Attrition Rate
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 41 Figure 11 Customer Satisfaction with Recruiting and Hiring Services (2022 - 2024)
The NRC is taking many positive steps to recruit and hire a skilled workforce and has noted positive trends in several areas, including reduced time to hire and increased satisfaction with recruiting and hiring services.
Performance Goal 2.3.2: Enhance the agencys decision-making through knowledge management.
Performance Indicator 2.3.2: Annual assessment of the actions in place to enhance knowledge management through the identification and capturing of critical information and leveraging the agencys investments in modern information management (IM) and technology.
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Actual N/A N/A N/A N/A Opportunity for improvement Heading in the right direction The NRC aims to improve employee decision-making through training and knowledge management.
Throughout FY 2024, NRC staff and contractors continued to effectively participate in training and development opportunities. In FY 2024, there were 34,988 completed training curriculums and 132 staff training hours logged per Full-Time Equivalent (FTE). Over 95% of NRC employees and contractors completed all mandatory training. Considering technical trainings, there were 173 completed technical trainings in FY 2024, with an average seat fill rate of 70% and an average pass rate of 97%.
The NRC also supports the development of a high-performing workforce through a mentorship program. As of September 2024, there were 421 program participants (251 mentees and 170 mentors).
Data from the FEVS provide insight into employee perceptions of training and development. Overall, most employees feel positive about the NRCs training and development support. The NRCs scores on the training and development survey items are above the average for medium-sized agencies (see Figure 12).
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 42 Figure 12 FEVS Results (2022 - 2024): Employee Development Data from the Mission Support Customer Satisfaction Survey also suggests that customer satisfaction with training and development services is headed in the right direction (see Figure 13). Item scores increased over the past year and are greater than the government median.
Figure 13 Customer Satisfaction with Training and Development (2022 - 2024)
Finally, the NRC promotes training and development through its Knowledge Management (KM) program. In FY 2024, the KM program hosted 17 KNOWvember events, published three "In the KNOW" editions, and awarded over 200 digital badges to NRC employees. The online course "Navigating Knowledge Management" is mandatory for all managers and optional for all non-supervisor employees, with an 18% (683 employees) agency completion rate. On-the-job training activities involved 156 new employees, 93 experienced staff, 30 transitioning/retiring employees, and 180 supervisors. Nuclepedia supported knowledge sharing with 2,586 active accounts, 12,606 pages created, 59,610 edits, and 981 person-specific pages, showcasing extensive collaborative updates and organizational learning efforts.
The agency provides many opportunities for NRC employees to improve decision-making through training and KM, and NRC staff engaged in these activities throughout the year. Additionally, NRC staff reported higher than median satisfaction with training and development opportunities and services. Performance Goal 2.3.2 has been identified as heading in the right direction.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 43 STRATEGIC GOAL 3: INSPIRE STAKEHOLDER CONFIDENCE IN THE NRC The NRC values building confidence with all stakeholders. Confidence is forward looking and reflects stakeholder belief in the integrity of future agency actions and decisions. To maintain stakeholder confidence and trust, the agency must engage in a transparent, open, and independent manner and make data-driven and evidence-based decisions.
Stakeholder Confidence Objective 3.1: Engage stakeholders in NRC activities in an effective and transparent manner.
FY 2024 Strategic Objective Progress The NRC continues to engage stakeholders in the agencys activities in an effective and transparent manner.
To achieve this goal, the NRC promotes transparency, openness, and independence in its regulatory activities by fostering engagement and providing multiple ways for members of the public to be informed and participate in the agencys regulatory activities. The NRC continues to publish and provide information to stakeholders through its website (www.nrc.gov); operates the agencys Public Document Room at its headquarters in Rockville, Maryland; and holds public meetings virtually and in-person throughout the country.
FY 2024 significant accomplishments to support Stakeholder Confidence Objective 3.1 include the following:
Conducted public meetings and workshops to engage stakeholders on topics including advanced reactor licensing, probabilistic risk assessment, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems in radiological emergencies, and safety culture.
Launched updates to radiation protection tools, including NRCDose3 and the Clean Air Act Assessment Package (CAP88) code, on the RAMP platform, and signed a Memorandum of Understanding agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency to collaborate on radiation dose assessment software.
Hosted the 2024 RIC, coordinating over 40 international engagements, including bilateral meetings, technical sessions, and a digital exhibit on security and licensing advancements.
Strengthened international partnerships by leading workshops and technical exchanges with Poland, Japan, and Korea on reactor licensing, cybersecurity, and nuclear safety. Supported capacity building in Zambia through the Africa Regional Capacity Building Workshop and in Ukraine on cybersecurity.
Engaged Tribal Nations in regulatory activities, conducting outreach with the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, the Navajo Nation, and other Tribal partners on licensing and programmatic activities.
Published the Radiation Exposure Information and Reporting System (REIRS) dashboard on occupational radiation exposure, enhancing public access to workforce exposure data, and issued a comprehensive report on lessons learned from the construction of Vogtle Units 3 and 4.
Facilitated advanced reactor discussions, hosting in-person and virtual public workshops on Licensing Modernization Project updates and releasing the Advanced Reactor Application Guidance tool to support a streamlined licensing process.
Released the Innovate NRC 2.0 Annual Report, highlighting staff-led initiatives to foster a culture of innovation, efficiency, and continuous improvement within the agency.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 44 Sponsored the MELCOR Accident Consequence Code System User Group meeting in Korea, supporting technical exchanges on severe accident analysis for Asian regulatory counterparts.
Led outreach with Kennesaw State University and other educational institutions to promote careers in nuclear regulation, underscoring NRCs commitment to workforce development.
Published key regulatory documents, including the Part 52 lessons learned report, updates to Regulatory Guide 1.183 on radiological source terms, and NUREG/BR-0531 on Safeguards Information Program resources for applicants.
Coordinated interagency efforts on cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection, participating in national policy discussions to support the goals of Executive Order 14028 on improving national cybersecurity.
Advanced NRCs AI initiatives through a workshop with Microsoft, identifying applications to enhance regulatory effectiveness and exploring AI-driven improvements in agency operations.
Engaged with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and International Atomic Energy Agency on nuclear safety and waste management, supporting workshops and publishing NUREG/CR-7307 on high burnup fuel safety.
Performance Measures Performance Goal 3.1.1: Enhance the effectiveness and transparency of stakeholder engagement.
Performance Indicator: Annual assessment of the actions in place to build stakeholder confidence through effective communication, by providing multiple ways stakeholders can provide feedback and input, and by ensuring the NRC staff is communicating clearly and openly.
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Actual N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction The NRC builds stakeholder engagement and confidence by holding public meetings throughout the FY, and the majority of these meetings are published to the agency's Public Meeting Notice System (PMNS). In FY 2024, the NRC held 611 public meetings posted to PMNS (299 observation meetings, 97 open meetings, 93 information meetings, 74 partially closed meetings, 48 comment-gathering meetings). Out of all public meetings, 96% were held on time. The NRC also offers drop-in meetings for external stakeholders and supported 83 drop-in meetings in FY 2024.
The NRC engaged in a variety of meetings and hearings. In FY 2024, the NRC Commission met 30 times. The NRC participated in 4 total congressional hearings. The NRC held 8 Adjudicatory hearings (5 oral arguments, 2
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 45 prehearing conferences, 1 scheduling conference). The Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguard met a total of 37 times (11 full-committee meetings, 26 sub-committee meetings).
The NRC distributes information to the public using press releases (119 in FY 2024) and Federal Register Notices (443 in FY 2024).
Regarding external stakeholders, the agency has met or exceeded its targets regarding external stakeholder communication. More specifically, 99% of acceptance reviews were completed on time, 100% of licensing actions were completed within estimated hours, and 95% of licensing application reviews for materials license renewals and sealed source and devices were completed within 180 days or less. Concerning safety evaluations, 92% of reviews were completed within resource estimates and 99% of safety evaluations were completed on time as identified by NEIMA.
The NRC accepts rulemaking comments, information requests, rulemaking petitions, and 2.206 petitions from the public. In FY 2024, 121 rulemaking comments were submitted across 11 rules and 10 stakeholders. The NRC received 476 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. Three petitions to adopt, revise, or withdraw existing regulations were submitted in FY 2024 from private citizens and industry representatives. At the end of FY 2024, the NRC had 6 open rulemaking petitions. The NRC also accepts 2.206 petitions which allow members of the public to report potential health and safety concerns related to an NRC licensee. If warranted, the NRC can take action to modify, suspend, or revoke a license, or take other appropriate enforcement action to resolve a problem identified in a 2.206 petition. In FY 2024, two 2.206 petitions were opened, four were closed, and two remain under consideration. On average, the NRC takes 1.5 actions related to closed petitions.
The NRC strives for timeliness when working with stakeholders. The average age of open 2.206 petitions is 4 months and on average, cases that have been closed were closed after 3.5 months. The agencywide FOIA response timeliness percentage was 91% in FY 2024 and 95% of Category 1, 2, and 3 meetings in FY 2024 had a meeting notice placed on the public meeting schedule website at least 10 days in advance of the meeting.
The NRC monitors the timeliness and volume of allegations and investigations to assess the effectiveness of addressing potential safety or compliance concerns. In FY 2024, 311 allegations were received by the NRC. Of these allegations, 90% were closed in 150 days and 100% were closed in 360 days.
The NRC monitors open Office of Inspector General (OIG) and government Accountability Office (GAO) audit recommendations for organizational learning and accountability purposes. By the end of FY 2024, there were 47 open OIG and GAO audit recommendations that were greater than one year old. The number of open audit recommendations greater than one year old has declined from 70 in FY 2023 and 59 in FY 2022. In addition,19 open OIG and GAO audit recommendations were greater than three years old at the end of FY 2024, which has slightly increased from 17 in FY 2023 and 9 in FY 2022.
Considering stakeholder engagement and satisfaction broadly, FEVS data indicates that many staff feel the NRC meets the needs of the NRCs customers (see Figure 14). Compared to meeting the needs of the NRCs customers, fewer staff agree that employees prioritize and consistently improve customer service, though rates for these items have shown a small increase over time.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 46 Figure 14 FEVS Results (2022 - 2024) Customer Service Overall, it has been determined that the agency is heading in the right direction for Performance Goal 3.1.1.
Stakeholder Confidence Objective 3.2: Uphold an NRC decision-making process that is data-driven and evidence-based while ensuring information is available and accessible to interested stakeholders.
FY 2024 Strategic Objective Progress The NRC continues to uphold a data-driven and evidence-based decision-making process while ensuring information is available and accessible to interested stakeholders to build stakeholder confidence and foster engagement. In an effort to employ and incorporate high-quality data and information to support agency decision-making processes, the agency aims to continue to mature the agencys management of data through staff training, modern IT and data analytics tools, and data management process improvements; continue to improve and apply enterprise data skills, tools and techniques to inform decision-making; and foster a principle of openness in sharing with external stakeholders. Further, to facilitate data and information sharing with the public, the agency focus areas include maturing analytical techniques to uncover insights from operational data and introducing modernized tools and implementing data capture and analysis techniques to uncover opportunities for service improvement.
The FY 2024 significant accomplishments to support Stakeholder Confidence Objective 3.2 include the following:
Enhanced digital tools, launching new MAP-X modules for Licensee Event Reports and General Submissions, allowing licensees to submit and track reports more efficiently and improve communication with NRC.
Developed an electronic portal for security clearance application tracking, enabling Human Resource (HR) personnel, CORs, and applicants to monitor the status of security clearances without direct assistance from Personnel Security staff.
Published the Research Operating and Planning System (ROPS), a modernized system that provides clear tracking and monitoring of research activities, including code development and operating experience programs.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 47 Issued updated guidance on reactive inspection decision bases in Inspection Manual Chapters (IMC) 0309, improving transparency for stakeholders into NRCs inspection processes and internal decision-making criteria.
Partnered with other Federal agencies to host the Nuclear Materials Management and Safeguards Systems Users Meeting to train users on enhancements to the system, improving the Nations safeguards of nuclear materials.
Hosted 800+ public meetings to engage stakeholders.
Published the High Energy Arcing Fault (HEAF) Workshop Proceedings to communicate research findings on arcing fault risks, in alignment with NRCs Be riskSMART framework for evidence-based decision-making.
Facilitated oversight of the Mississippi Agreement State Program, supporting the successful completion of a performance improvement plan and removing the program from probation, ensuring consistent regulatory standards across States.
Completed the M-23-07 mandate transition to electronic records, transferring over 1,200 boxes to the Federal Records Center and ensuring compliance with Federal digital record management requirements.
Implemented a new FOIA process designed to streamline large requests, reducing impact on NRC staff and enhancing response efficiency to public information requests.
Performance Measures Performance Goal 3.2.1: Employ and incorporate high-quality data and information to support agency decision-making processes.
Performance Indicator: Annual assessment of the actions in place to identify and disseminate data and evidence used to facilitate programmatic and organizational decision-making and policymaking.
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Actual N/A N/A N/A N/A Opportunity for improvement Opportunity for improvement The NRC is committed to evidence-based decision-making and prioritizes fulfilling the requirements of the Evidence Act. The agency has an Evidence-Building Plan, conducts a capacity assessment, and builds an annual evaluation plan. Additionally, the agency engages in numerous evidence-building activities, including evaluation, identifying priority questions, research, and rulemaking.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 48 The NRC Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research (RES) supplies the NRC with high-quality data for decision-making. With an annual budget of $93,790.4K, the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research conducted research across 15 major research areas, 42 research programs, and 72 Enterprise-wide Project Identifiers or EPIDs, to improve scientific and regulatory knowledge in 2024. The NRC has initiated or revised 6 major user needs requests research projects and completed 3 during FY 2024.
RES maintains the Standardized Plant Analysis Risk (SPAR) Model Program to develop standardized risk analysis models and tools that staff analysts use in many regulatory activities. In FY 2024, the NRC made 9 updates to SPAR Models to anticipate internal events in their risk models. RES also tracks Licensee Event Reports (LERs), detailed reports submitted to NRC within 60 days of a plant abnormality following 10 CFR 50.73. These reports contain root causes and corrective actions undertaken by licensees. Some plant abnormalities that are not of a significant nature are reported only through LERs. In FY 2024, 157 LERS were evaluated.
With the Periodic Research Quality Feedback Reports survey, RES surveys internal research stakeholders of to understand perceived research quality. The survey measures multiple characteristics of the research process, including the soundness of technical approach, usefulness of the project for the agency, effectiveness of interactions with RES staff, and various aspects of the quality of the product/service. In 2024, staff perceived the technical quality of products to be high (average 4.5 out of 5); see Figure 15.
Figure 15 Research Products Technical Quality The NRC created the Future-Focused Research (FFR) program to support the NRCs need for long-term research and development activities to sustain the agency. The FFR program provides basis, direction, and support for extended projects on likely important topics. In FY 2024, 21 FFR proposals were submitted to the program and six of these were selected for initiation.
As part of the University Nuclear Leadership Program, the NRC annually awards university grant funding to support research and development in nuclear science, engineering, technology, and related disciplines. In FY 2023, a total of 22 research and development grants were awarded, totaling $10.7 million in university research and development grants. The FY 2024 research and development awards are in the process of being finalized. The NRC also holds annual research and development presentations with grant recipients, allowing NRC grantees to present their research to NRC staff.
4.62 4.76 4.50 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 Mean (5-point Scale)
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 49 Overall, the NRC facilitates research and evidence-building initiatives to collect data and information that can inform decision-making. For this reason, the NRC is heading in the right direction regarding Performance Goal 3.2.1.
Performance Goal 3.2.2: Provide the public timely access to information to ensure transparency and inclusiveness of the agencys decision-making process.
Performance Indicator: Annual assessment of the actions in place to enhance timeliness and access to discoverable and usable high-quality data sets and information.
Business Line FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 All Business Lines Target N/A N/A N/A N/A Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Heading in the right direction Actual N/A N/A N/A N/A Opportunity for improvement Heading in the right direction The NRC website and social media pages provide opportunities for the NRC to share information with the public. Over the past three calendar years, NRC social media pages have received increasing engagement, with the community size (i.e., number of followers) for each platform growing year over year (See Figure 16).
Figure 16 Social Media Community Growth by Calendar Year The NRC received a score of 77% on the Annual American Customer Satisfaction Index for Federal Web Sites, which passed the agencys target of 76%. The website had high traffic in FY 2024 with 32,720,301 visits and 2,913,399 total hits. The median time users spent on the website was 2 - 5 minutes, and on average, users viewed 14 pages. Website customer satisfaction survey results from FY 2024 suggest that 75% of users 1,152 14,104 18,914 42,531 759 12,142 17,613 39,650 0
10,831 16,395 31,995 Instagram Facebook X/Twitter LinkedIn 2022 2023 2024 No Data for 2022
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 50 reported partially or fully finding what they were looking for. Aspects of satisfaction are displayed in Figure 17.
Respondents for the survey (N = 2,067) varied, with representation among website users from the nuclear industry (24%), students (20%), members of the public (14%), researchers or consultants (13%), and NRC licensees (6%).
Figure 17 Web User Satisfaction by Topic (FY 2024)
The NRC also provides external stakeholders with information by publishing documents to the public Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS). In FY 2024, the NRC published 854,527 public ADAMS documents compared to 37,163 in FY 2023 and 36,912 in FY 2022. (Note: The substantial increase in FY 2024 was due to publishing older documents that were previously stored on microfiche.)
Regarding the transparency and accessibility of NRCs records, the public document room received 1,227 unique reference encounters and 14 visitors. The technical library received 2,037 unique reference encounters and 879 visitors.
The NRC had public engagement across several public dashboards in FY 2024 (see table below).
Public Dashboard Number of Visits Planned Rulemaking Activities - Rules 18,638 NuScale US460 Standard Design Approval Application Review 8,520 Operating Reactor Scram Trending 3,961 Hermes - Kairos Project Status 2,809 MSRR - Abilene Christian University Project Status 2,736 Accident Sequence Precursor Program 2,483 NRC Performance 1,829 Operating Reactor Analytics 1,810 Hermes 2 - Kairos Project Status 1,766 Generic Issues 1,340 NRC Petitions 1,253 While the NRC does not comprehensively collect stakeholder perspectives regarding whether the available information meets the needs of external stakeholders, and there are opportunities to improve or update existing data and metrics available, the agency does maintain and make available to external stakeholders several High-Value Datasets.12 However, many of these datasets could be more regularly updated to provide more current data and information.
12 NRCs High-Value Datasets can be found at https://www.nrc.gov/data/index.html 83 89 77 81 82 77 90 92 89 Site Look &
Feel Site Performance Site Navigation Site Information Online Transparency Easy to Search Would Return Trust Source Primary Resources
% Satisfied
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 51 DATA VALIDATION AND VERIFICATION The NRCs PSAT verifies on a quarterly basis that the performance data included in this report are complete and reliable, as required by the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010. The progress of the indicators is monitored regularly, and accomplishments, risks, and mitigation strategies are documented, reviewed, and discussed by the PSAT, comprised of business and product line leads, on a quarterly basis during Quarterly Performance Review Meetings as described in Management Directive 6.9, Performance Management (ML18073A261). The NRC has verification and validation techniques in place, which provide reasonable assurance of the completeness and reliability of all performance data contained in this APR. These techniques include the following:
verifying, on a quarterly basis, the accuracy, reliability, completeness, consistency, and availability of data collected through internal control and ERM practices.
validating, on a quarterly basis, that the data are rational and acceptable by using data validation techniques that check data type, format, range, and consistency.
reviewing, on a quarterly basis, the accuracy, completeness, and utilization of all indicator data submitted by business and product line leads and continuously making adaptations to its systems and processes as needed.