[DOE LETTERHEAD]

National Nuclear Security Administration

November 3, 2006

The Honorable A. J. Eggenberger

Chairman

Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board

625 Indiana Avenue, NW, Suite 700

Washington, D.C. 20004-2901

Dear Mr. Chairman:

This letter is to provide you an update to my February 14, 2006, letter regarding the status of Commitment 4.3.3 of the Implementation Plan for Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board Recommendation 2002-1, Quality Assurance for Safety Software at Department of Energy Defense Nuclear Facilities. Commitment 4.3.3 required the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and Site Offices to review safety Software Quality Assurance directives and determine the actions necessary to implement the requirements.

The Department of Energy (DOE) Order 414.1C, Quality Assurance, has now been added to the new contract for the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). As mentioned in my letter of February 14, 2006, our other contracts already included this requirement, except for the contract for the Kansas City Plant, which does not use any safety software. With the addition of this requirement in the LANL contract, NNSA considers Commitment 4.3.3 to be complete.

With the completion of this commitment, we consider all NNSA commitments in the Department's 2002-1 Implementation Plan to be complete. The requirements of DOE Order 414.1 C are being implemented as part of the NNSA Roadmap for Quality Assurance Excellence.

Should you have any questions about this matter, please contact Rabi Singh at (301) 903-5864.

Sincerely,

Thomas P. D'Agostino

Deputy Administrator

for Defense Programs

cc:

M. Whitaker, HS-1.1

L. Brooks, NA-1

T. Przybylek, NA-2