NRC ISSUES FINAL RULE TO EXPEDITE REVIEW OF ACCESS
DETERMINATIONS FOR CERTAIN INFORMATION FOR HEARINGS
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The Nuclear Regulatory Commission today approved a new rule amending its regulations governing when expedited appellate review by the Commission is permitted in NRC adjudicatory proceedings. The rule makes an important difference in how quickly certain petitioners can seek redress if they believe they’ve been unjustly denied access to sensitive information necessary to participate in a hearing.

The protected information covered in this new rule is both sensitive unclassified non-safeguards information (SUNSI) and Safeguards Information (SGI).

Potential parties who request a hearing or petition to intervene in a hearing under 10 CFR Part 2 may need access to SUNSI and/or SGI to meet Commission requirements for hearing requests or for intervention. The new rule would permit a petitioner denied access to the sensitive information to appeal that denial to the Commission without waiting for a ruling on its entire hearing request or a ruling completing a hearing.

This new proposed rule could enhance both public involvement in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, and the effectiveness and efficiency of these proceedings.

The rule will go into effect 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.

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Tuesday, April 08, 2008