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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

No. 98-164

September 14, 1998

NRC PROPOSES TO DELETE REPORTING REQUIREMENT
ON LOADING OF SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL STORAGE INSTALLATIONS

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering amending its regulations to eliminate what has been determined to be an unnecessary reporting requirement related to the loading of spent nuclear fuel into independent storage installations.

Current regulations require the licensees to submit a report summarizing the results of preoperational testing 30 days before loading. The purpose of this requirement was to give the NRC sufficient time to inspect a licensee's preparations for a new facility and, if necessary, to require changes or other actions before the loading of spent fuel. The regulations do not require NRC approval of the 30-day report.

But experience has shown that the NRC does not need the report because NRC staff representatives are on site during the preoperational testing and evaluate it as it occurs. Agency inspectors review licensees' normal, abnormal and emergency operating procedures and observe their implementation during preoperational testing. The agency has therefore not needed either a preoperational test report or a 30-day hold period in order to complete its inspection activities.

Interested persons are invited to submit comments on the proposed changes within 75 days after publication in the September 14 edition of the Federal Register. Written comments should be mailed to the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff. Comments may also be submitted electronically via the NRC's interactive rulemaking web site at http://www.nrc.gov/NRC/rule.html.