ML20236W664
| ML20236W664 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 03/18/1998 |
| From: | Cant G NRC |
| To: | Tremper L NRC |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20014B037 | List:
|
| References | |
| FRN-63FR16046, RULE-PR-140, RULE-PR-170, RULE-PR-171, RULE-PR-2 AF83-1-010, AF83-1-10, NUDOCS 9808060137 | |
| Download: ML20236W664 (16) | |
Text
_ _ _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - - _ _ - _ _ _
e- ,
From: Geoffrey Cant l To: TWD2.TWP9.LPT { '
ate: 3/18/981:06pm
Subject:
Followup Leah -l just discussed my proposal with Jim, and he likes it, so I am preparing a memo to that effect. Pls let me know if you see problems with it, so we can iron them out.
Thanks l i
l l
1 I
l l
l l
f p OOfE37900728 2 63FRlbo46 PDR ev IW[YO C1L
^ '
A (*~t"~)
/
[7590-01-P] J///98 19Pr3-/
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
{
10 CFR Parts 2,140,170 and 171 RIN: 3150-AF 83 Revision of Fee Schedules; 100% Fee Recovery, FY 1998 l
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
1 ACTION: Proposed rule.
l
SUMMARY
- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend the licensing,
. Inspection, and annual fees charged to its applicants and licensees. The proposed
! amendments are necessary to implement the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 L
(OBRA-90), which mandates that the NRC recover approximately 100 percent of its budget authority in Fiscal Year (FY) 1998, less amounts appropriated from the Nuclear Waste Fund
- (NWF). The amount to be recovered for FY 1998 is approximately $454.8 million. The NRC is i
j-W "%%i also proposing to provide additional payment methods forgivil penalties and indemnity fees.
l e a e DATES: The comment period expires (30 days after publication). Comments received after this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the NRC is able to ensure only that comments received on or before this date will be considered. Because OBRA-90 requires that NRC collect the FY 1998 fees by September 30,1998, requests for extensions of the comment j period will not be granted, s
I )
FY 1997 FY 1998 Class of Licensees Annual Fee Prooosed Annual Fee Power Reactors $2,978,000 $2,980,000 l Nonpower Reactors 57,300 57,300 High Enriched Uranium Fuel 2,606,000 2,607,000 )' b 09sM 1
Facility j f,07,f 66 '
'i
( Ap. g-l Low Enriched Uranium Fuel 1,279,000 1,280,000 Facility UF, Conversion Facility 648,000 649,000 Uranium Mills 61,800 61,800 i
Tvoical Materials Licenses Radiographer 14,100 14,100 '
I Well Loggers 8,200 8,200 Gauge Users 1,700 1,700 Broad Scope Medical 23,500 23,500
'/
Because the final FY 1998 fee rule will be a " major" final action as defined by the Small~
Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, the NRC's fees for FY 1998 would
- become effective 60 days after publication of the final rule in the Federal Register. The NRC will send an invoice for the amount of the annual fee upon publication of the FY 1998 final rule to reactors and major fuel cycle facilities. For these licensees, payment would be due on the effective date of the FY 1998 rule. Those materials licensees whose license anniversary date during FY 1998 falls before the effective date of the final FY 1998 final rule would be billed during the anniversary month of the license and continue to pay annual fees at the FY 1997 6
rate in FY 1998. Those materisis licensees whose license anniversary date falls on or after the effective date of the final FY 1998 final rule would be billed at the FY 1998 revised rates during the anniversary month of the license and payment would be due on the date of the invoice.
The NRC is announcing here that it plans to discontinue mailing the final rule to all licensees. In addition to publication in the FederaFRegister, the final rule will be available on the internet at http://ruleforum.lln .go Copies of the final rule wil! be mailed upon request. To obtain a copy of the final rule, J U I
q contact the License Fee and Acccunts Receivable Branch, Division of Accounting and Finance, 1 M Office of the Chief Financial Officer, at 301-415-7554. As a matter of courtesy, the NRC plans
.L' 7 to continue to send the proposed rule to all licensees.
[
The NRC is also announcing nere that it plans to reexamine the current annual fee exemption policy for licensees in decommissioning or holding possession only licenses and the annual fee policy for reactors' storage of spent fuel. Any changes to the current fee policies will be included in the FY 1999 fee rulemaking. One purpose of the study is to assure consistent fee treatment for both wet storage (i.e., spent fuel pool) and dry storage (i.e.,
independent spent fuel storage installations or ISFSis) of spent fuel. The Commission has previously determined that both storage options are considered safe and acceptable forms of storage for spent fuel. Under current fee regulations, Part 50 licensees in decommissioning who store spent fuel in the spent fuel pool are not assessed an annual fee, but licensees who store spent fuel in an ISFSI under Part 72 are assessed an annual fee. The NRC will review this policy as part of the overall study of the issues related to annual fees for licensees in 1
i decommissioning.
i 7
service.to a specific licensee, the NRC is proposing that all of the resident inspectors' official duty time (i.e., excluding leave) be billed to the specific licensee under Part 170.
This change would be applicable to all classes of licensees having resident inspectors.
(2) Costs expended within 30 days after the issuance of an inspection report.
10 CFR 170.12 (g) provides that costs will be assessed for completed inspections.
Currently, for fee recovery purposes, an inspection is considered to be completed when the inspection report is issued. The result is that costs expended after the report is sent are recovered through the annual fees imposed on all licensees in that class.
Activities that occur after the inspection report is issued, such as follow-up on the inspection findings, are identifiable services for specific licensees. Therefore, NRC proposes to assess Part 170 fees for these services. However, in order to establish a clear interval during which accumulated costs would be billed, the proposed change to l l
Part 170 would recover costs from the specific licensee for activities that occur within 30 days after the issuance of the inspection report. This change would result in recovery of 80 percent of these costs under Part 170, and would continue to provide applicants and licensees with a definitive point at which billing would cease.
Second, the NRC proposes to revise @170.12(h) to include credit cards as an additional
~
method of payment, and to provide additio alinformatiobn electronic payn'ents. Credit card j payments would be accepted for small dollar payments. Electronic payments may be made by l
Fedwire (a funds transfer system operated by the Federal Reserve System) or by Automated -
9
83, Stat. 444, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2201 (b), (i), (o),2236,2282); sec. 206,88 Stat.1246 (42 U.S.C. 5846). Section 2.2d5(j) also issued under Pub. L. 101-410,104 Stat. 890, as l
amended by section 31001(s), Pub. L.104-134,110 Stat.1321-373 (28 U.S.C. 2461 note). I Sections 2.600-2.606 also issued under sec.102, Pub. L.91-190,83 Stat. 853, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4332). Sections 2.700a,2.719 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 554. Sections 2.754, 2.760,2.770,2 780 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 557. Section 2.764 also issued under secs. 135,141, Pub. L.97-425,96 Stat. 2232,2241 (42 U.S.C.10155,10161). Section 2.790 also issued under sec.103,68 Stat. 936, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2133) and 5 U.S.C. 552. Sections .
2.800 and 2.808 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 553. Section 2.809 also issued under 5 U.S.C. )
l 553 and sec. 29, Pub. L.85-256,71 Stat. 579, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2039). Subpart K also !
l issued under sec.189,68 Stat. 955 (42 U.S.C. 2239); sec.134, Pub. L.97-425,96 Stat.
2230 (42 U.S.C.10154). Subpart L also issued under sec.189,68 Stat. 955 (42 U.S.C. 2239). J Appendix A also issued under sec. 6, Pub. L.91-560,84 Stat.1473 (42 U.S.C. 2135).
l Appendix B also issued under sec.10 Pub. L.99-240,99 Stat.1842 (42 U.S.C. 2021b et seq.).
- 2. In @2.205, paragraph (i) is revised to read as follows:
I 92.205 Civil Penalties l
l l
(i) Except when payment is made after compromise or mitigation by the Department of A
Justice or as ordered by a court of the United States, following reference of the matter to the d
37
+ .m-
~ C. .a J.
or a temporary license for less than full power and subsequently receives full power authority (by way of license amendment or otherwise), the total costs for the license will be determined through that period when authority is granted for full power operation. If a situation arises in which the Commission determines that full operating power for a particular facility should be )
less than 100 percent of full rated power, the total costs for the license will be at that j l
determined lower operating power level and not at the 100 oercent capacity.
l 8 Full cost fees will be determined based on the professional staff time and appropriate
]
contractual support services expended For applications currently on file and for which fees are determined based on the full cost expended for the review, the professional staff hours expended for ti,e review of the application up to the effective date of the final rule will be determined at the professional rates in effect at the time the service was provided. For those applications currently on file for which review costs have reached an applicable fee ceiling established by the June 20,1984, and July 2,1990, rules but are still pending completion of the
)
review, the cost incurred after any applicable ceiling was reached through January 29,1989, will not be billed to the applicant. Any professional staff-hours expended above those ceilings on or after January 30,1989, will be assessed at the applicable rates established by $170.20, as appropriate, except for topical reports whose costs exceed $50,000. Costs which exceed
$50,000 for any topical report, amendment, revision or supplement to a topical report completed or under review from January 30,1989, through August 8,1991, will not be billed to the applicant. Any professional hours expended on or after August 9,1991, will be assessed at the applicable rate established in $170.20. In no event will the total review costs be less than
)~ N twice the hourly rate shown in $170.20. [,) / ,?]
' dinV (:y.)
(
.f I l
(42 U.S.C. 2213); sec. 301, Pub. L.92-314,66 Stat. 222 (42 U.S.C. 2201(w));
sec. 201, 88 Stat.1242, as arnended (42 U.S.C. 5841); sec. 2903, Pub. L.102-486,106 Stat. 3125, (42 U.S.C. 2214 note).
- 11. Section 171.13 is revised to read as follows:
6171.13 Notice.
The annual fees applicable to an operating reactor and to a materials licensee, including a Govemment agency licensed by the NRC, subject to this part and calculated in accordance with @@171.17 and 171.16, will be published as a notice in the FEDERAL REGISTER as soon as is practicable but no later than the third qua' .er of the fiscal year. The annual fees will become due and payable to the NRC inaccordance with 171.19 e/ cept as provided in $171.17.
Quarterly payments of the annual fees f $1000,000 or ore will continue during /dd j the fiscal year and be based on the applicable annual fees as shown in @@171.15 and 171.16 of the regulations until a notice concerning the revised amount of the fees for the fiscal year is published by the NRC. If the NRC is unable to publish a final fee rule that becomes effective during the current fiscal year, then fees would be assessed based on the rates in effect for the previous fiscal year.
1
- 12. In $171.15, paragraphs (b), (c) introductory text, (c)(1), (c)(2), (e),
and (f) are revised to read as follows:
72
6171.15 Annua! Fees: Reactor coeratina licenses.
i (b) The FY 1998 annual fee for each operating power reactor which must be collected by September 30,1998, is $2,980,000. This fee has been determined by adjusting the FY 1997 annual fee, (prior to rounding) upward by 0.1 percent. In the FY 1995 final rule, the NRC stated it would stabilize annual fees by adjusting the annual fees only by the percentage change (plus or minus) in NRC's total budget authority and adjustments based on changes in 10 CFR Part 170 fees as well as on the number of licensees paying the fees. The first adjustment to the annual fees using this method occurred in FY 1996 when all annual fees were decreased 6.5 percent below the FY 1995 annual fees. The FY 1997 annual fees were also determined by using this method, the FY 1997 ,
annual fees increased 8.4 percent above the FY 1996 annual fees. The FY 1995 annual fee was comprised of a base tanual fee and an additional charge (surcharge). The activities comprising the base FY 1995 annual fee are as follows:
(1) Power reactor safety and safeguards regulation except licensing and inspection activities recovered under 10 CFR Part 170 of this chapter.
(2) Research activities directly related to the regula" >n of power reactors.
i l
(3) Generic activities required largely for NRC to regulate power 73
reactors, e.g., updating Part 50 of this chapter, or operating the incident Response Center.
l (c) The activities comprising the FY 1995 surcharge are as follows:
(1) Activities not attributable to an existing NRC licensee or class of licensees; e.g., reviews submitted by other government agencies (e.g., DOE) ,
that do not result in a license or are not associated with a license; international cooperative safety program and international safeguards activities; low-level -
waste disposal generic activities; uranium enrichment generic activities; and (2) Activities not currently assessed under 10 CFR Part 170 licensing and inspection fees based on existing Commission policy, e g., reviews and -
inspections conducted of nonprofit educationalinstitutions, and costs that would not be collected from small entities based on Commission policy in accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act.
(e) The FY 1998 annual fees for licensees authorized to operate a nonpower (test and research) reactor licensed under Part 50 of this chapter, except for those reactors exempted from fees under $171.11(a), are as follows:
Research reactor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $57,300 74
)
i Test reactor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $57,300 I
)
(f) For each fiscal year, annual fees for operating reactors will be ;
calculated and assessed in accordance with 6171.13.
I
- 13. In $171.1F, the introductory text of paragraph (c) and paragraphs (c)(1), (c)(4), (d), and (e) are revised to read as follows:
$171.16 Annual Fees: ' Materials Licens;;;. Holders of Certificates of Comoliance. Holders of Sealed Source and Device Registrations. Holders of Quality Assurance Prooram Anorovals and Govemment agencies licensed by the NRC l
i (c) A licensee who is required to pay an annual fee under this r,ection J
may qualify as a small entity, if a licensee qualifies as a small entity and provides the Commission with the proper certification, the licensee may pay reduced annual fees for FY 1998 as follows:
.i l
l Small Businesses Not Engaged Maximum Annual Fee 1 in Manufacturing and Small Per Licensed Cateoorv Not-For-Profit Organizations (Gross Annual Receipts) l
$350,000 to $5 million . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,800 l l
75
Less than $350,000 ........................ ........................ $400 Manufacturing entities that have an averince of 500 employees or less 35 to S00 employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,800 Less than 35 employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $400 Small Govemmental Jurisdictions (includina oubliciv sunoorted educational institutions) I (Population) 20,000 to 50,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,800
)
Less than 20,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........................ ........ $400 Educational Institutions that are not State or Publiciv Suonorted. and have 500 Emolovees or Less.
35 to 500 employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,800 i Less than 35 employees . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $400 (1) A licensee qualifies as a small entity if it meets the size standards l established by the NRC (See 10 CFR 2.810).
t i
l (4) For FY 1998, the maximum annual fee a small entity is required to 1
pay is $1,800 for each category applicable to the license (s). j!
I L
i (d) The FY 1998 annual fees for materials licensees and holders of 76 !
certificates, registrations or approvais subject to fees under this section are shown below. The FY 1998 annual fees, which must be collected by September 30,1998, have been determined b'y adjusting upward the FY 1997 exact annual fees (prior.to rounding), by 0.1 percent. As a result of rounding, the FY 1998 annual fee for some fee categories is the same as the FY 1997 annual fee. In the FY 1995 final rule, the NRC stated it would stabilize annual fees by adjusting the annual fees only by the percentage change (plus or minus) in NRC's total budget authority and adjustments based on changes in 10 CFR Part 170 fees as well as on the number of licensees paying the fees. The first adjustment to the annual fees using this method occurred in FY 1996 when all annual fees were decreased 6.5 percent below the FY 1995 annual fees. The FY 1997 annual fees were also determined by using this method. The FY 1997 annual fees were increased 8.4 percent above the FY 1996 annual fees. The FY 1995 annual fee was comprised of a base annual fee and an additional charge (surcharge). The activities comprising the FY 1995 surcharge are shown for convenience in paragraph (e) of this section.
SCHEDULE OF MATERIALS ANNUAL FEES AND FEES FOR GOVERNMENT AGENCIES LICENSED BY NRC (See footnotes at end of table) i Cateoorv of materials licenses Annual Feest 2. s i
- 1. Special nuclear material:
77 l
t _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ -
A.(1) Licenses for possession and use of U-235 or plutonium for fuel abrication activities.
(a) Strategic Special Nuclear Material:
Babcock & Wilcox SNM-42 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,607,000 f
Nuclear Fuel Services SNM-124 . . . . . . . . . . . ..... $2,607,000 0 )
(b) Low Enriched Uranium in Dispersible Form Used for l
Fabrication of Power Reactor Fuel:
Combustion Engheering (Hematite) SNM-33 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,280,000 General Electric Company SNM-1097 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,280,000 j l
Siemens Nuclear Power SNM-1227 ...... ... . $1,280,000 '
! Westinghouse Electric SNM-1107 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,280,000 Company j i
(2) All other special nuclear materials licenses not included in Category 1.A.(1) which are licensed for fuel cycle activities.
b (a) Facilities with limited operations: (j B&W Fuel Company SNM-1168 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5509,000 A. l 78 s 4 <- !
(,
,)C o t .v '
. 0 s, i
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _ . _ _ _ _ _ . _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ . _ _ __________________________________d
(b) All Others:
General Electric SNM-960 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $346,000 B. Licenses for receipt and storage of spent fuel at an independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI). . . . . . $283,000 C. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in devices used in industrial measuring systems, including x-ray fluorescence analyzers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,300 D. All other special nuclear material licenses, except licenses authorizing special nuclear material in unsealed form in combination that would constitute a critical quantity, as defined in $150.11 of this chapter, for which the licensee shall pay the same fees as those for Category 1.A.(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53,100 E. Licenses or certificates for the operation of a uranium i
enrichment facility. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,607,000
}(phtb
- 2. Source material:
'l<
4 1
79
A.(1) Licenses for possession and use of source material
! for refining uranium mill concentrates to uranium i
! hexafluoride. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $649,000 l
(2) Licenses for possession and use of source materialin recovery operations such as milling, in-situ leaching, heap-leaching, ore buying stations, ion exchange facilities and in processing of ores containing source material for extraction of metals other than uranium or thorium, including licenses authorizing the possession of byproduct waste material (tailings) from
. source material recovery operations, as well as licenses 1
! authorizing the possession and maintenance of a facility l
l in a standby mode.
Class I facilities' . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $61,800
[(/
1 Class ll facilities * . . . . . . . . . . . . l. . . . . W .C . . . . . $34,900 b &
Other facilities' . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $22,300 j (3) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal, except 80 i o________ _ _ _ _ _ . - _ _ . _ _ i