ML25212A210
| ML25212A210 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | National Bureau of Standards Reactor |
| Issue date: | 08/27/2025 |
| From: | Jon Greives NRC/NRR/DANU |
| To: | Adams J US Dept of Commerce, National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) |
| Hudson J | |
| References | |
| EPID L-2025-LLE-0019 | |
| Download: ML25212A210 (1) | |
Text
Dr. James Adams, Director National Institute of Standards and Technology NIST Center for Neutron Research U.S. Department of Commerce 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 8461 Gaithersburg, MD 20899-8461
SUBJECT:
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY - APPROVAL OF EXEMPTION FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF 10 CFR PART 55, OPERATORS LICENSES (EPID L-2025-LLE-0019)
Dear Dr. Adams:
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has granted the requested exemption from Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 55, Operators Licenses, paragraph 55.53(e) for two licensed senior reactor operators (SROs) at the National Bureau of Standards Reactor (NBSR). This letter is in response to the National Institute of Standards and Technologys application dated June 5, 2025 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System Accession No. ML25162A200), that requested an exemption to 10 CFR 55.53(e) in order to provide instruction and oversight to the upcoming reactor core refueling and subsequent training startups and surveillances.
10 CFR 55.53(e) Exemption The exemption is granted from the below listed regulation for the following SROs:
Name License No.
Jeffrey Burmeister SOP-505789 Andrew Vodopija SOP-505791 Exempted regulation:
Paragraph 55.53(e), which requires a licensee to actively perform the functions of an operator or senior operator. To maintain active status, the licensee at a test or research reactor shall actively perform the functions of an operator or senior operator for a minimum of four hours per calendar quarter. If an active status is not maintained, the licensee may not resume activities authorized by a license issued under 10 CFR Part 55 except as permitted by 10 CFR 55.53(f).
The exemption is enclosed with this letter and grants the two SROs an exemption from the NRCs active performance requirements at 10 CFR 55.53(e).
August 25, 2025
J. Adams The exemption is effective immediately and expires January 1, 2026.
If you have any questions, please contact Justin Hudson at (301) 287-0538, or via email at Justin.Hudson@nrc.gov.
Sincerely, Jonathan Greives, Acting Director Division of Advanced Reactors and Non-Power Production and Utilization Facilities Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-184 License No. TR-5
Enclosure:
Exemption cc: GovDelivery Subscribers Signed by Greives, Jon on 08/25/25
ML25212A210 NRR-048 OFFICE NRR/DANU/UNPL/PM NRR/DANU/NPL/LA OGC (NLO)
NRR/DANU/UNPO/BC NAME JHudson NParker MWoods TBrown DATE 8/5/2025 8/5/2025 8/18/2025 8/18/2025 OFFICE NMSS/REFS/EPMB2 NRR/DANU/UNPL/BC NRR/DANU/D NAME RSun JRady JGreives DATE 8/24/2025 8/25/2025 8/25/2025
Enclosure NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION License Nos. SOP-505789; SOP-505791 National Bureau of Standards Reactor Exemption I. Background.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST, the facility) holds the U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission) Renewed Facility Operating License No. TR-5 for the National Bureau of Standards Reactor (NBSR), which is a testing facility located in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Under this license, NIST is authorized to operate the facility up to a steady-state power level of 20 megawatts-thermal. The license is subject to the rules, regulations, and orders of the NRC. Pursuant to 10 CFR 55.53, § 55.53 Conditions of licenses, each license contains and is subject to the conditions of 55.53(a)-(l) whether stated in the license or not.
II. Request/Action.
The Commissions regulation at 10 CFR 55.53(e) requires that in order to maintain active status for non-power reactors, an operator (RO) or senior operator (SRO) shall actively perform the functions of an operator or senior operator for a minimum of four hours per calendar quarter, and states that if an operator has not been actively performing the functions of an RO or SRO, then the operator may not resume activities authorized by their license except as permitted by 10 CFR 55.53(f) (requiring in part that the operator must complete a minimum number of hours of shift functions under the direction of another operator prior to resuming performing functions by their license). Due to an extended outage at the NBSR, operators have not been able to maintain active status and there are no active operators who could direct the inactive operators for the requisite minimum number of hours under 10 CFR 55.53(f)(2). As a
2 result, on June 5, 2025 (ML25162A200), on behalf of two senior operators, NIST requested an exemption from the 10 CFR 55.53(e) requirement that the licensees actively perform the functions of an operator or senior operator for a minimum of four hours per calendar quarter until January 1, 2026.
For the reasons described below, the NRC grants the exemption to 10 CFR 55.53(e) for both SRO licensees, with the result that the SROs are no longer required by 10 CFR 55.53(e) to actively perform the functions of a senior operator. The exemption from 10 CFR 55.53(e) expires on January 1, 2026.
III. Discussion.
In rulemaking, the Commission discussed the background of the license conditions provided via 10 CFR 55.53(e) and (f) and how those regulations are to assure that a licensee has current knowledge of the facility before performing licensed duties. The Commission published its final rule called Operators Licenses and Conforming Amendments, 52 FR 9453, March 25, 1987, to (1) clarify the regulations for issuing licenses to operators and senior operators; (2) revise the requirements and scope of written examinations and operating tests for operators and senior operators, including a requirement for a simulation facility; (3) codify procedures for administering requalification examinations; and (4) describe the form and content for operator license applications. The Commission stated in 52 FR 9454 that although special consideration had been given to the smaller size and scope of test and research reactors, the requirements in the final rule notice apply to all utilization facilities licensed under 10 CFR Part 50, including test and research reactors; except where specific wording has been used to note different requirements, the rules apply to test and research reactors. One such rule with different requirements is 10 CFR 55.53 (which states that each license contains and is subject to the conditions in 10 CFR 55.53(a) - (l) whether stated in the license or not). As discussed by the Commission at 52 FR 9458, the purposes of 10 CFR 55.53(e) and (f) are to assure that a
3 licensee has current knowledge of the facility before performing licensed duties. The license condition in 10 CFR 55.53(e) states in part:
If a licensee has not been actively performing the functions of an operator or senior operator, the licensee may not resume activities authorized by a license issued under this part except as permitted by [10 CFR 55.53(f)]. To maintain active status, the licensee shall actively perform the functions of an operator or senior operator on a minimum of seven 8-hour or five 12-hour shifts per calendar quarter. [To maintain active status for non-power reactors], the licensee shall actively perform the functions of an operator or senior operator for a minimum of four hours per calendar quarter.
The license condition in 10 CFR 55.53(f) states in part:
(f) If [10 CFR 55.53(e)] is not met, before resumption of functions authorized by a license issued under this part, an authorized representative of the facility licensee shall certify the following:
(1) That the qualifications and status of the licensee are current and valid; and (2) That the licensee has completed a minimum of 40 hours4.62963e-4 days <br />0.0111 hours <br />6.613757e-5 weeks <br />1.522e-5 months <br /> of shift functions under the direction of an operator or senior operator as appropriate and in the position to which the individual will be assigned. The 40 hours4.62963e-4 days <br />0.0111 hours <br />6.613757e-5 weeks <br />1.522e-5 months <br /> must have included a complete tour of the plant and all required shift turnover procedures. For senior operators limited to fuel handling under [10 CFR 55.53(c)], one shift must have been completed. For
[non-power reactors], a minimum of six hours must have been completed.
The Commissions regulations do not address the situation where 10 CFR 55.53(f)(2) cannot be met because there is not an operator or senior operator to provide the direction needed to meet the under direction aspect of 10 CFR 55.53(f)(2). A facility licensee may request an exemption via 10 CFR 55.11 for the requirements in 10 CFR 55.53(e). The regulation at 10 CFR 55.11 allows the Commission, upon application by an interested person, or upon its own initiative, to grant such exemptions from the requirements of the regulations in this 10 CFR Part 55 as it determines (1) are authorized by law, (2) will not endanger life or property, and (3) are otherwise in the public interest. Those three factors are analyzed below.
A.
The Exemption is Authorized by Law.
Exemptions are authorized by law where they are not expressly prohibited by statute or regulation. A proposed exemption is implicitly authorized by law if it will not endanger life or
4 property and is otherwise in the public interest and no other provisions in law prohibit, or otherwise restrict, its application. The NRC staff has determined, as explained next, that no provisions in law expressly prohibit or otherwise restrict the requested exemption. As explained later in Sections B and C below, the NRC staff has also determined that the requested exemption will not endanger life or property and is otherwise in the public interest.
As described at 52 FR 9454, the regulations in 10 CFR Part 55 implement Section 107, Operators Licenses, of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (AEA), which states, in part, that the Commission shall: (1) prescribe uniform conditions for licensing individuals as operators of any of the various classes of utilization facilities licensed by the NRC and (2) determine the qualifications of such individuals. Under 10 CFR 55.53, each license contains and is subject to the conditions in 10 CFR 55.53(a) - (l) whether stated in the license or not.
However, the requirements in the AEA do not expressly prohibit exemptions from 10 CFR 55.53(e). Although a temporary exemption from 55.53(e) would make that licensee subject to one fewer license condition, it would not significantly impact overall uniformity in as much as all other license conditions remain. Accordingly, the staff concluded that the time-limited exemptions to the license condition in 10 CFR 55.53(e) would not impact overall uniformity of reactor operators licenses.
Because no provisions in law expressly prohibit the requested exemption and because, as explained in subsequent sections of this document, the requested exemption will not endanger life or property and is otherwise in the public interest, the NRC staff has determined that the exemption is authorized by law.
B.
The Exemption Will Not Endanger Life or Property.
The exemption would allow two senior operators at the facility who do not satisfy the active performance requirements of 10 CFR 55.53(e) to continue to perform the functions of an active senior operator. As stated above, 10 CFR 55.11 allows the Commission to grant
5 exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR Part 55, including 10 CFR 55.53(e), when they will not endanger life or property.
In its letter dated June 5, 2025, the facility licensee explained that the NBSR is currently in a shutdown/secured state pending necessary maintenance work to clean the reactor vessel of debris remaining from the February 3, 2021, safety limit violation. Addressing 10 CFR 55.53(e) and the requirement therein for licensees to actively perform the functions of an operator or senior operator for a minimum of four hours per calendar quarter, the facility licensee explained that the operations staff have been unable to perform licensed duties defined by the facility technical specifications due to the reactor core being offloaded for maintenance.
The facility licensees application did not explicitly address why the facility licensee is unable to comply with the requirements of 10 CFR 55.53(f)(2). The facility licensee indicated that the reactor fuel was unloaded from the reactor vessel in August of 2024. Since the reactor fuel has been unloaded since August 2024 due to the maintenance occurring in the reactor vessel, the licensees are not able to perform licensed duties as described in the facility technical specifications.
As discussed by the Commission at 52 FR 9458, the purposes of 10 CFR 55.53(e) and (f) are to assure that a licensee has current knowledge of the facility before performing licensed duties. The additional training (ML25177D077) described in the exemption request also provides various methods to provide that knowledge for restarting the reactor and returning it to critical operation. For example, the facility operators will complete classroom training and examinations as well as on-the-job training that includes structured watch standing, crew drills and operational scenarios, refueling proficiency training, and facility walkthrough examinations.
This training will reinforce the major principles of safe operation.
For the reasons above, the requested exemption will not endanger life or property because the licensed operators would, prior to performing licensed duties, have current
6 knowledge of the facility at a level at least equivalent to the knowledge they would have if the facility licensee were able to meet 10 CFR 55.53(e).
C.
The Exemption is Otherwise in the Publics Interest.
The NRC protects public health and safety and advances the nations common defense and security by enabling the safe and secure use and deployment of civilian nuclear energy technologies and radioactive materials through efficient and reliable licensing, oversight, and regulation for the benefit of society and the environment. As stated above, 10 CFR 55.11 allows the Commission to grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR Part 55, including 10 CFR 55.53(e), when they are otherwise in the publics interest. The exemption would allow two senior operators at the facility to be exempt from fulfilling the active performance requirements of 10 CFR 55.53(e) during a period when the reactor facility is undergoing maintenance. Absent the exemptions, the regulations do not provide a path to reactivate the operators because the existing provision in 10 CFR 55.53(f) cannot be performed. Through the exemption, the NRC can reenable the safe and secure use of the NBSR in an orderly fashion.
The two senior operators would be allowed to provide instruction and oversight for fuel handling activities and other licensed duties upon the issuance of the exemption, which would support the restart of the NBSR. As discussed above, the operators will have the requisite current knowledge of the facility. Moreover, the exemption would expire on January 1, 2026, and after this time, the senior operators would again be fully subject to the regulations related to the NRCs active performance requirements in 10 CFR 55.53(e). Thus, the exemption is narrowly tailored and does not make any permanent changes to the senior operator licenses, the facility license, or NBSR/NIST programs. This approach provides for an efficient and clear resolution to a situation that is outside of the considerations of the applicable regulations. The exemption enables the use of nuclear technologies and thereby helps the NRC achieve its mission.
Therefore, the NRC staff has determined that the exemption is otherwise in the publics interest.
7 D.
Environmental Considerations.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(a) and (b), regulatory actions that belong to a category of actions which the Commission, by rule or regulation, has declared to be a categorical exclusion, do not, except in special circumstances not present for the fact of the 55.53(e) exemptions, require an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement. Among the categorical exclusions in 10 CFR 51.22(c) is (25), addressing granting of an exemption from the requirements of any of the Commissions regulations provided that (i) there is no significant hazards consideration; (ii) there is no significant change in the types or significant increase in the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite; (iii) there is no significant increase in individual or cumulative public or occupational radiation exposure; (iv) there is no significant construction impact; (v) there is no significant increase in the potential for or consequences from radiological accidents; and (vi) the requirements from which an exemption is sought involve (E) education, training, experience, qualification, requalification or other employment suitability requirements. As explained below, those criteria are met.
The exemption would exempt two senior operators from active watch-standing requirements in 10 CFR 55.53(e), which plainly fits with the training, experience, and requalification requirements in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(E). As described in 10 CFR 50.92(c), an action involves no significant hazards consideration, if operation of the facility in accordance with the proposed action does not (1) Involve a significant increase in the probability or consequences of an accident previously evaluated; or (2) Create the possibility of a new or different kind of accident from any accident previously evaluated; or (3) Involve a significant reduction in a margin of safety. The change to the active license requirement in 10 CFR 55.53(e) does not alter any aspect of the NBSR and does not amend the NBSR license.
Accordingly, the three factors for no significant hazards consideration are plainly satisfied.
Similarly, the removal of a requirement for watch-standing does not result in: a significant
8 change in the types or significant increase in the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite; a significant increase in individual or cumulative public or occupational radiation exposure; a significant construction impact; or a significant increase in the potential for or consequences from radiological accidents. The steps being taken by the licensee to assure that the operators have current knowledge of the facility commensurate with 55.53(e) should preclude the usage of those operators from causing a significant increase in accident probability or radiation exposure. Therefore this action is subject to a categorical exclusion to 10 CFR 51.22(b) under 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25), and thus no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need to be prepared in connection with the granting of the exemption.
IV. Conclusions.
Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 55.11, the exemption is authorized by law, will not endanger life or property, and is otherwise in the publics interest. Therefore, the Commission hereby grants, with respect to the two senior operators named in the exemption request, an exemption from the NRCs active performance requirement at 10 CFR 55.53(e). This exemption is effective upon issuance and expires January 1, 2026.
9 V. Availability of Documents.
The documents identified in the following table are related to the requested exemption and are available to interested persons through the NRCs ADAMS at https://adams.nrc.gov/wba/.
DOCUMENT ADAMS ACCESSION NO.
NIST letter, Request for Exemption From 10 CFR 55.53(e) Requirements for the NIST TR-5 Test Reactor, dated June 5, 2025.
ML25162A200 NIST letter, NIST Submission of Training Plan to Reinstate Licensed Operators to Active Status per 10 CFR 55.59(b), dated June 18, 2025 ML25177D077 NIST email, Clarifications from Training Plan Discussion, dated July 11, 2025 ML25205A080 Dated: AUGUST 25, 2025 For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jonathan Greives, Acting Director Division of Advanced Reactors and Non-Power Production and Utilization Facilities Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Signed by Greives, Jon on 08/25/25