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IN RESPONSE, PLEASE
REFER TO: M000331A

April 18, 2000

The Commission was briefed by the NRC staff and representatives from the Government Accounting Office, the State of Illinois, the Nuclear Energy Institute, and the Union of Concerned Scientists on the Risk-Informed Regulation Implementation Plan.

The staff should provide its recommendations to the Commission for addressing the issue of PRA quality until the ASME and ANS standards have been completed, including the potential role of an industry PRA certification process.

Management should continue its efforts to communicate effectively with the staff on the implementation of risk-informed regulatory initiatives, and should ensure that mechanisms exist to solicit and consider staff input and feedback on the agency's plans and progress on these initiatives. The next update of the Implementation Plan should include as complete a description as possible of an internal communications plan and training requirements for the staff.

In the next update of the plan, the staff should clearly indicate the internal and external factors that may adversely affect the planning process, including uncertainties such as dependence on the timely completion of industry guidance, the availability of pilot plants, and the completion of the ASME PRA standard.