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	NRC NEWS U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
	Office of Public Affairs	Telephone: 301/415-8200
	Washington, DC 20555-001	E-mail: opa@nrc.gov
	Web Site: http://www.nrc.gov/OPA

NRC TO SURVEY INDIVIDUALS WHO RAISE SAFETY CONCERNS TO THE AGENCY

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission plans to survey nuclear industry workers and others who raise safety concerns to the NRC to evaluate how well the agency responds to their safety concerns.

The NRC began a one-year pilot program October 1, to assess the effectiveness of its allegation program for receiving, investigating and responding to concerns. The pilot is part of an ongoing effort by NRC to improve its regulatory effectiveness.

As of October 1, those who report safety concerns to the NRC will be given a one-page questionnaire along with a letter that informs them of the results of NRC's review of the allegation. The questionnaire asks individuals to evaluate how they were treated by NRC staff, the timeliness of telephone contacts or letters with NRC employees, the timeliness of the resolution of their concerns, the adequacy of NRC's explanations for its actions, whether the agency adequately protected their identities if it was requested, and whether they would use the program again.

The agency's procedures for handling safety concerns are described in various parts of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the NRC enforcement policy, other agency guidelines and at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRC/PUBLIC/ALLEGATION/index.html on the NRC's web site. The overall objective of the employee protection regulations is to promote an atmosphere where employees feel comfortable raising safety concerns or engaging in other protected activity without fear of reprisal.

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