ML25057A276
| ML25057A276 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 03/04/2025 |
| From: | Jackie Cook NRC/RGN-IV/DRSS |
| To: | Bruedigan L State of TX, Dept of State Health Services |
| References | |
| Download: ML25057A276 (1) | |
Text
Lisa Bruedigan, Director Radiation Section Consumer Protection Division Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS)
Mail Code 1986, P.O. Box 149347 Austin, TX 78714-9347
SUBJECT:
TEXAS 2024 PERIODIC MEETING
SUMMARY
Dear Lisa Bruedigan:
A periodic meeting was held with you and your staff on March 20, 2024, at your office in Austin, Texas. The purpose of this meeting was to review and discuss the status of the Texas Agreement State Program. The scope of the meeting was limited to activities conducted by the Radiation Section. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission was represented by Tammy Bloomer, Division Director, Division of Radiological Safety and Security, and me.
I have completed and enclosed a general meeting summary, including any specific actions resulting from discussions. Based on the criteria established in Section IV.D.1 of NMSS Procedure SA-116 Periodic Meetings between IMPEP Reviews, a Management Review Board meeting for this periodic meeting is not required at this time.
If you feel that our conclusions do not accurately summarize the meeting discussion or have any additional remarks about the meeting in general, please contact me at 817-200-1132, or by email at Jackie.Cook@nrc.gov.
Sincerely, Jacqueline D. Cook Regional State Agreements Officer Division of Nuclear Materials Safety
Enclosure:
Texas DSHS Periodic Meeting Summary cc: Joann Harthcock, Deputy Director Radiation Section March 4, 2025 Signed by Cook, Jacqueline on 03/04/25
Enclosure INTEGRATED MATERIALS PERFORMANCE EVALUATION PROGRAM PERIODIC MEETING WITH THE STATE OF TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES (DSHS)
TYPE OF OVERSIGHT: NONE March 20, 2024
2 PERIODIC MEETING PARTICIPANTS NRC Tamara Bloomer: Director, Division of Radiological Safety and Security, Region IV Jacqueline Cook: Regional State Agreements Officer, Division of Radiological Safety and Security, Region IV State of Texas (DSHS)
Lisa Bruedigan: Radiation Section Director Karl Von Ahn: Radioactive Material License Manager Bob Free: Environmental Monitoring Manager Eric Skotak: Radioactive Materials Inspections Branch Jason Callahan: Radioactive Materials Inspection Manager Brian Vamvakias: Radiation Operations Manager
Texas Periodic Meeting Summary 3
1.0 INTRODUCTION
The last IMPEP review was February 28-March 4, 2022, with the Management Review Board (MRB) being held on June 9, 2022. The team recommended and the MRB agreed that the five recommendations from the 2018 IMPEP review be closed. All nine performance indicators were found to be satisfactory. This includes the non-common performance indicators Legislation, Regulations, and Other Program Elements; Sealed Source and Device (SS&D) Evaluation Program; Low-Level Radioactive Waste; and Uranium Recovery Program. The MRB directed that the next periodic meeting take place in approximately 2 years and the next IMPEP review take place in approximately 4 years.
2.0 COMMON PERFORMANCE INDICATORS Five common performance indicators are used to review the NRC Office and Agreement State radiation control programs during an IMPEP review. These indicators are (1) Technical Staffing and Training, (2) Status of Materials Inspection Program, (3) Technical Quality of Inspections, (4) Technical Quality of Licensing Actions, and (5) Technical Quality of Incident and Allegation Activities.
2.1 Technical Staffing and Training (2022 Satisfactory)
The program was realigned back together into branches effective March 2024 instead of dividing by functional silo units. There is a total of 28 full time equivalent when fully staffed.
Thirteen inspector positions when fully staffed with 6 fully qualified, 4 in training, and 3 vacancies (from 4 months to 19 days); 9 license reviewers when fully staffed with 6 fully qualified, 1 in training and 2 vacancies (8 months to 7 months); 4 incident investigators when fully staffed with 1 fully qualified, 2 in training, and 1 vacancy (3 weeks); 2 quality assurance (compliance) reviewers both who are fully qualified.
Since the 2022 IMPEP review, a total of 10 inspector positions were vacated with 7 being hired; a total of 3 license reviewer positions were vacated with 1 hired.
Although the inspection branch has 3 vacancies, the current 10 FTE is adequate for the inspection workload because there are 3 qualified inspectors in other branches that are available to inspect, if needed. The 9 FTE for license reviewers will be adequate when the 2 vacant positions are filled. Although the current staff is strained, they are still able to address safety-related items in a timely manner.
A trainer position was created in April 2023 to maintain/develop training policy, procedure, and training resources; oversee the training progress of trainees; review trainee draft inspection reports before returning to a qualified inspector for submittal; ensure training events are documented accurately, just to name a few of the trainers responsibilities.
The Texas Qualification Program is equivalent to Inspection Manual Chapter (IMC) 1248 for both materials inspectors and license reviewers.
Fees have not been raised since the last IMPEP in 2022; the Radiation Section is self-funded.
Texas Periodic Meeting Summary 4
2.2 Status of the Materials Inspection Program (2022 Satisfactory)
Thirty-two priority 1, 2, and 3 inspections were performed overdue since the 2022 IMPEP review. Six of the 32 overdue inspections were attempted to be performed before the overdue date with one being a decommissioning inspection. Nine initial inspections were completed overdue with 2 of the 9 overdue inspections being attempted before the overdue date.
The Radiation Section performed 25 reciprocity inspections in 2022; 20 reciprocity inspections were performed in 2023; so far 5 reciprocity inspections performed in 2024 based on risk.
The Radiation Section has no inspection frequencies that exceed the NRC intervals in accordance with Inspection Manual Chapter 2800; however, portable gauges, self-shielded irradiators and other specific licenses that have an NRC inspection interval of 5 years are inspected by the Radiation Section at a 3-year inspection interval.
2.3 Technical Quality of Inspections (2022 Satisfactory)
The branch manager accompanied all Radioactive Material Inspection Branch inspectors (both those who are partially qualified and those who are fully qualified) in 2022 and 2023. At the time of the periodic meeting, 2 inspectors have been accompanied in 2024.
The technical reviewers in the Operations Branch perform the inspection report review and issue the letter to the licensee (those containing both no violations and notice(s) of violations) 30 days after an inspection.
The technical reviewers in the Operations Branch attend inspection accompaniments annually.
The Radiation Section has updated their inspection manual and inspection procedures to be compatible with all NRC updates to these documents.
A significant activity was the revision of the General License Acknowledgement which now requires the licensee to perform an annual review of all information on the license and submit a subsequent application to account for any changes that have occurred.
A challenge for the Radiation Section is in the years 2021-2023 there has been approximately 30% turnover in the Radioactive Material Inspection Branch inspector positions.
2.4 Technical Quality of Licensing Actions (2022 Satisfactory)
The Radiation Section has approximately 1,328 specific licensees. Texas has completed 2,556 licensing actions since the 2022 IMPEP which included news, amendments, renewals, terminations, decommissioning plan reviews, financial assurance, and transfer of control.
2.5 Technical Quality of Incident and Allegation Activities (2022 Satisfactory)
There were 13 allegations referred to Texas from the NRC. All have been closed or no action was necessary. There were 89 reportable events reported since the last IMPEP review.
Texas Periodic Meeting Summary 5
3.0 NON-COMMON PERFORMANCE INDICATORS Four non-common performance indicators are used to review Agreement State/NRC Region programs: (1) Legislation, Regulations, and Other Program Elements (formerly Compatibility Requirements), (2) SS&D Evaluation Program, (3) Low-Level Radioactive Waste (LLRW)
Disposal Program, and (4) Uranium Recovery (UR) Program. Because Texas DSHS has authority for Legislation, Regulations, and Other Program Elements and SS&D Evaluation Program, these non-common performance indicators were discussed. LLRW Disposal Program and UR Program non-common performance indicators were discussed with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
3.1 Legislation, Regulations, and Other Program Elements (formerly Compatibility Requirements) (2022 Satisfactory)
Six regulation amendments were due since the last IMPEP review. All six proposed regulation amendments have been submitted.
At the time of the periodic meeting, the following six amendments were overdue, but have been addressed in current rulemaking projects. The NRC has reviewed the drafts and the proposed rules and did not have any comments:
Miscellaneous Corrections, 10 CFR Parts 1, 2, 34, 37, 50, 71, 73, and 140, that was due for Agreement State adoption on July 30, 2022 (time overdue: 1 year and 8 months overdue).
Miscellaneous Corrections, 10 Parts 2, 21, 37, 50, 52, 73, and 110, that was due for Agreement State adoption on December 18, 2022 (time overdue: 1 year and 3 months overdue).
Organizational Changes and Conforming Amendments, 10 CFR Parts 1, 2, 37, 40, 50, 51, 52, 55, 71, 72, 73, 74, 100, 140, and 150, that was due for Agreement State adoption on December 30, 2022 (time overdue: 1 year and 3 months overdue).
Individual Monitoring Devices, 10 CFR Parts 34, 36, and 39, that was due for Agreement State adoption on June 16, 2023 (time overdue: 9 months).
Social Security Number Fraud, 10 CFR Parts 9 and 35, that was due for Agreement State adoption on August 17, 2023 (time overdue: 7 months).
Miscellaneous Corrections, 10 CFR Parts 1, 2, 19, 20, 21, 30, 34, 35, 40, 50, 51, 52, 60, 61, 62, 63, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 110, and 140, that was due for Agreement State adoption on November 16, 2023 (time overdue: 4 months).
Four of the overdue regulation amendments were minor in nature (i.e., Miscellaneous Corrections and Organizational Changes and Conforming Amendments), and did not impact the health and safety of Texas licensees. Although, not considered minor in nature, the regulation amendments, Individual Monitoring Devices, and Social Security Number Fraud did not impact the health and safety of Texas licensees since the last IMPEP review.
Texas Periodic Meeting Summary 6
The Rules Coordination Office rulemaking process occurs over a 10 to 18-month process that includes a public review of a draft, proposed and final version. A recent policy to publish department rules in plain language has caused a significant delay in this process.
Texas DSHS does have sunset requirements every 10 years. The next sunset review of the program is set for June 2025. Texas has already started the process.
3.2 SS&D Evaluation Program Texas has 3 fully qualified SS&D Evaluation Program reviewers including the manager. Two additional staff members attended the SS&D workshop in September 2023. They need to perform more casework reviews before they are fully qualified. There are no current vacancies and there has not been any staff turnover since the last IMPEP review.
Texas has completed 44 SS&D cases since the last IMPEP review with the majority of them being inactivation of SS&D sheets. There have been no transfers of SS&Ds to other agencies.
There have been no known manufacturing defects regarding Texas issued SS&Ds.
4.0
SUMMARY
Texass current program initiatives include allowing on-line application submittal, hiring staff, and training for hired staff.
Texas has one major licensee who is undergoing decommissioning. The final status survey is expected by the end of the year (December 2024). Also, Texas has one licensee who is undergoing license termination actions which are at 70% completion.
The inspection, licensing, and operations branches perform a self-audit of their branches.
This Fall, Texas plans to redo their incident and allegation database and decommission their access database.
ML25057A276 OFFICE R-IV/DNMS/MIB NAME JCook DATE Mar 4, 2025