Reorganization of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
UNITED STATES
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001
April 9, 1999
| NRC ADMINISTRATIVE LETTER 99-01: |
REORGANIZATION OF THE OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION |
Addressees
All holders of operating licenses or construction permits for reactor facilities.
Purpose
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (
NRC) is issuing this administrative letter to inform addresses of a reorganization of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation. This administrative letter does not transmit or imply any new or changed requirements or staff positions. No specific action or written response is required.
Discussion
Effective March 28, 1999, the NRC reorganized the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR). The attached NRC announcement contains branch level functional statements and an organization chart showing the new NRR structure.
If you have any questions about this letter, please contact the appropriate NRR project manager.
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Original signed by
S. F. Newberry For
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David B. Matthews, Director
Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| Contact: |
T. J. Carter, NRR
301-415-1153 |
(NUDOCS Accession Number 9904190031)
ATTACHMENT 1
UNITED STATES
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Announcement No. 029
Date: March 29, 1999
| To: |
All NRC Employees |
| SUBJECT: |
REORGANIZATION OF NRR |
I am pleased to announce that the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation has reorganized effective March 28, 1999. This reorganization is the result of the successful partnership efforts of the NRR Labor Management Partnership Committee and is intended to consolidate and realign office functions along clear lines of responsibility while achieving agency supervisory ratio goals. An organization chart illustrating the new structure and branch level functional statements for the office are attached.
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/s/
Samuel J. Collins, Director
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
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| Attachments: |
1. Organizational Chart
2. Functional Descriptions |
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Sam Collins, Director
Roy Zimmerman, Deputy Director
Responsible for ensuring the public health and safety through licensing and inspection activities at all nuclear power reactor facilities in the United States. Responsible for the oversight of all aspects of licensing and inspection of manufacturing, production, and utilization facilities (except for facilities reprocessing fuel and performing isotopic fuel enrichment), and receipt, possession, and ownership of source, byproduct, and special nuclear material used or produced at facilities licensed under 10 CFR Part 50. Develops policy and inspection guidance for programs assigned to the regional offices and assesses the effectiveness and uniformity of the region's implementation of those programs. Identifies and takes action in coordination with the regional offices regarding conditions and licensee performance at such facilities that may adversely affect public health and safety, the environment, or the safeguarding of nuclear facilities and assesses and recommends or takes action in response to incidents or accidents. Responsible for licensing issues and regulatory policy concerning reactor operators, including the initial licensing examination and requalification examinations; emergency preparedness, including participation in emergency drills with federal, state, and local agencies; radiation protection; security and safeguards at such facilities, including fitness for duty; and the inspection of nuclear component supplier facilities. NRR responsibilities include the technical review, certification, and licensing of advanced nuclear reactor facilities and the renewal of current power reactor operating licenses.
Program Management, Policy Development and Analysis Staff
Jackie Silber, Director
Provides leadership and manages strategic and programmatic planning, short-range program planning, resource forecasting and allocation, and budgeting. Manages, controls and coordinates the execution of the office's financial resources and associated contracting activities. Provides independent review of office policy papers and issues to ensure completeness, promptness, accuracy, and adherence to agency and office policy. Develops congressional testimony. Provides oversight and support of information management and technology. Provides administrative and management support in areas including human resource management, facility management, training, FOIA coordination, and management of principal correspondence.
Resource Management Branch
Provides direction and coordination of financial support functions involving: strategic long-and short-range program planning and resource forecasting, budget development and coordination of the NRR program (Headquarters and regions), financial management, internal control reviews, and resource/program control of technical assistance, license fees, and travel funds. Formulates coordinated responses to Commission, ACRS, OMB and congressional inquiries and addresses concerns as to the adequacy of the NRR programs and budget. Provides support and oversight in the administration of human resource planning, staffing, organizational planning and analysis, affirmative action/EEO, personnel action processing, and training.
Information Management Branch
Provides support and oversight of information technology and information management activities throughout the office to include: development and operation of automated systems supporting NRR programs in Headquarters and regions, conducting SIRMO reviews and developing associated guidance, FIP acquisitions, RITS/TACS program and policy oversight, information collections, Office Letter Program, LAN and ADP equipment management and administration, and FOIA coordination. Provides administrative and management support, space management, document and records management, conferences, security, and control of principal correspondence.
Associate Director For Projects And Technical Analysis
Brian Sheron, Associate Director
Provides overall project management activities related to licensing activities associated with power reactors. Provides management direction of technical evaluations and assessment of technical issues including: systems safety, engineering, and risk assessment. Interacts with the other directors to resolve or recommend resolution of policy on major office-level programmatic issues.
Division of Systems Safety & Analysis
Gary Holahan, Director
Timothy Collins, Deputy
Performs systems-related safety evaluations of licensee implementation of NRC requirements, changes to existing licenses, and applications for new facilities or designs and provides technical expertise for special inspections, projects, programs and policy activities. Office lead for implementation of risk informed regulation. Performs and evaluates probabilistic safety assessments for nuclear power plants and evaluates DBA and severe accident issues as they relate to advanced plant designs and current generation plants.
Probabilistic Safety Assessment Branch
Richard Barrett, Chief
Coordinates and provides a leadership role in the use of PRA and associated analyses within the regulatory programs. Develops approaches and guidance for the use of PRA by NRR technical review branches and the regions. Supports risk informed rulemaking activities. Applies PRA insights to decisions on event assessments, and licensing actions. Reviews PRAs submitted as part of a design certification for standard designs. Maintains oversight of Severe Accident implementation including accident management. Conducts reviews of all severe accident issues for operating reactors and advanced reactor designs. Responsible for impact of revised "source terms" on design, offsite and control room radiological consequences of a DBA, and meteorology. Reviews the severe accident characteristics of advanced reactor designs. Assesses the severe accident implications of design and operational issues for operating reactors. Maintains the ability to perform analyses of operating reactor events on short notice, including use of computer code models of operating reactors, together with the necessary staff technical expertise to run the models.
Plant Systems Branch
John Hannon, Chief
Reviews and evaluates functional performance requirements, design, and performance of essential auxiliary, support and balance of plant systems, and design features provided to ensure operator protection from releases of toxic and radioactive gases. Reviews the design of new- and spent-fuel storage and load handling systems. Reviews and evaluates plant-specific and generic issues related to reactor fire protection including fire hazards analyses and post-fire safe shutdown analyses. Reviews and evaluates the design and performance of features provided to prevent the communication of potentially radioactive systems with other plant systems. Evaluates the overall acceptability of containment response and fission product releases. Conducts design basis reviews of containment issues including containment pressure/temperature response to design basis accidents, containment isolation, leak testing, combustible gas control and suppression pool dynamic loads. Provides technical expertise for special inspections, projects, programs and policy activities. Maintains the ability to perform analyses of operating reactor events on short notice. Maintains computer code models of operating reactors, together with the necessary staff technical expertise to run the models. Performs containment systems computer-related analyses for licensing review.
Reactor Systems Branch
Jared Wermiel, Chief
Reviews and evaluates design, process design parameters, and performance of reactor thermal-hydraulic systems (reactor coolant system, normal and emergency core cooling systems under steady-state, transient and accident conditions). Reviews analysis of anticipated operational occurrences, postulated accidents, and actual operating experience from the viewpoint of systems operation and transient dynamics. Reviews and evaluates nuclear and thermal-hydraulic aspects of the reactor core under steady-state, transient, and accident conditions. Responsible for issues pertaining to core physics, fuel behavior, and core thermal-hydraulic performance. Performs reactor systems computer-related analyses for licensing review. Maintains the ability to perform analyses of operating reactor events on short notice. Maintains computer code models of operating reactors, together with the necessary staff technical expertise to run the models.
Division of Engineering
Jack Strosnider, Director
Richard Wessman, Deputy Director
Performs electrical, instrumentation and control, materials/metallurgy, mechanical, and structural engineering-related safety evaluations for licensee's implementation of NRC requirements, changes to existing licenses, and applications for permits to construct or licenses to operate new facilities and certified designs. Performs reviews of license renewal submittals, industry technical reports, and advanced plant designs. Provides technical expertise for special inspections, projects, programs, and policy activities. Assists regions in the resolution of engineering problems. Reviews and evaluates the design and operation of onsite and offsite power systems. Reviews and evaluates the functional performance requirements, design, and performance of nuclear power plant instrumentation and control systems.
Materials and Chemical Engineering Branch
William Bateman, Chief
Reviews and evaluates materials engineering, in-service inspection (including development of guidelines and criteria for risk informed in-service inspection), and materials integrity related aspects of design and performance of reactor components and systems. Reviews special fabrication techniques, monitors component metallurgical behavior, and performs failure analysis. Reviews and evaluates issues related to chemical engineering including hydrogen generation, post accident sampling, water chemistry, corrosion, decontamination, and decommissioning.
Mechanical and Civil Engineering Branch
Eugene Imbro, Chief
Reviews design criteria and loads, static and dynamic analysis methods for mechanical systems and components. Reviews and evaluates seismic and dynamic qualifications of equipment. Verifies integrity, capacity, and margins associated with mechanical equipment. Reviews and evaluates conditions associated with various postulated events such as earthquakes, man-related hazards, floods, pipe breaks, and their threat to the functional integrity of components and systems. Reviews requests for relief from ASME Code requirements for in-service testing of pumps and valves and containment in-service inspection. Reviews and evaluates geologic, geophysical, seismologic, hydrologic, and geotechnical engineering issues for operating reactors and for the design certification of advanced reactors.
Electrical and Instrumentation and Controls Branch
Jose Calvo, Chief
Reviews design and operation of offsite power grid systems with regard to interrelationships between the nuclear unit, the utility grid, and interconnecting grids. Reviews and evaluates functional performance requirements, design, and operation of onsite power systems and the interface between the offsite and onsite power systems under the full range of normal operation, transient and accident conditions. Reviews and evaluates functional performance requirements, design, and performance of reactor trip systems, engineered safety features actuation systems, actuation instrumentation for essential auxiliary support systems, and instrumentation and control systems provided to initiate and regulate the operation of safe shutdown systems. Reviews and evaluates functional performance requirements, design, and performance of plant instrumentation providing information regarding manually initiated and controlled safety functions. Reviews environmental qualification of electrical equipment important to safety.
Division of Licensing Project Management
John Zwolinski, Director
Suzanne Black, Deputy Director
Implements the policy, programs, and activities, including coordinating licensing and technical reviews associated with the overall safety and environmental project management for individual power reactors located in the Regions.
Operating Plant Project Directorates
Performs the overall safety and environmental project management and monitors routine operations of power reactors in the Regions. (Reactors owned by one utility or related utilities will be generally assigned to the same project directorate.) Manages the review and processing of license amendments and other requests requiring NRC approval. Serves as headquarters contact with licensees, the Regions, and other stakeholders in matters pertaining to assigned facilities. Coordinates other licensing tasks such as evaluating information received from licensees in response to NRC requests, preparing responses to public petitions and correspondence, and providing assistance to the Regions or other NRC organizations. Coordinates and provides presentations to the Commission, ACRS, industry groups, and other government offices on specific projects and subjects.
Decommissioning Project Directorate
Develops and implements decommissioning policy; and provides project management and technical review of reactor projects being decommissioned in NRR (similar to functions described above for project directorates for operating plants).
Associate Director for Inspection & Programs
William Kane, Associate Director
Provides overall policy, planning, and management direction for the project management and technical review of plant license renewals, next-generation reactor designs, non-power reactor licensees, non-radiological environmental issues and the reactor inspection and performance assessment programs. Provides management direction of technical evaluations and assessment of technical issues involving: operator licensing, human factors, safeguards, financial qualifications, emergency preparedness, radiation protection, and licensee and vendor quality programs. Responsible for the NRR allegations program. Provides overall direction for NRR generic issues program including event evaluation, generic communications and rulemaking. Interacts with the other directors to resolve or recommend resolution of policy and office-level programmatic issues.
Division of Inspection Program Management
Bruce Boger, Director
Frank Gillespie, Deputy Director
Develops policy and provides overall program management and planning for the reactor inspection and performance assessment programs, including the Senior Management Meeting Process, and the Plant Performance Review Process. Develops programs and conducts reviews to ensure the effective consideration of human factors engineering in nuclear power plant design and operation and the adequacy of facility training programs and emergency operating procedures. Develops policies and guidance and implements the national program for the licensing of nuclear reactor operators. Performs vendor inspections. Develops and oversees the reactor safeguards, emergency preparedness, and radiation protection inspection and licensing programs. Responsible for the development, maintenance, implementation and oversight of the NRR allegations management programs.
Inspection Program Branch
William Dean, Chief
Provides overall management for the reactor inspection and performance assessment programs. Develops policies, practices, procedures, and necessary infrastructure to support implementation and continuous enhancement of the inspection and performance assessment programs. Analyzes and evaluates program effectiveness and implementation. Participates in inspections and assessment activities as necessary to coordinate policy, procedures, guidance, and programs. Responds to external policy related inquiries and requests. Manages establishment of Regional Operating Plans for NRR regulatory programs and reports to the Executive Director for Operations on regional performance against the plans. Provides overall coordination of senior reactor analysts activities and use of risk information in the inspection program.
Quality Assurance, Vendor Inspection, Maintenance and Allegations Branch
Theodore Quay, Chief
Monitors and evaluates industry maintenance initiatives and performance. Coordinates agency activities associated with the implementation of the Maintenance Rule. Evaluates the results from maintenance inspections. Develops policy and guidance for future reactor reliability assurance programs. Reviews and evaluates quality assurance programs for licensees, applicants, and vendors. Reviews and evaluates nuclear power plant administrative controls for safety committees, audits, independent engineering group, procedures and records. Provides programmatic support on issues related to Part 21 and commercial grade item dedication. Reviews and evaluates initial/preoperational/restart test programs for nuclear power plants. Processes, controls, reviews, manages and resolves allegations and takes or recommends appropriate actions to address safety concerns. Coordinates with OI on issues involving discrimination and wrongdoing. Performs inspection of vendors and licensee contractors in response to allegations and reports of defective or substandard components, equipment and services. Coordinates with other Federal agencies on misrepresented and substandard vendor products.
Operator Licensing, Human Performance, and Plant Support Branch
Robert Gallo, Chief
Develops overall licensing and regulatory policy pertaining to licensing of operators pursuant to 10 CFR Part 55, including the initial examination, licensing, and requalification programs for power reactor operator applicants and operators, and oversight for regional implementation of power reactor operator examinations nationwide. Provides assessments of management effectiveness, procedures, training, staffing, and human machine interfaces; reviews and evaluates human factors engineering design of the control room and control centers outside of the main control room; reviews organizational issues and management concerns at operating reactors. Develops policy, programs, and guidelines for health physics and emergency preparedness areas; provides technical expertise for health physics and emergency preparedness issues, interpretations, and regional assistance; and conducts technical and regulatory reviews of applications and amendments for these areas. Coordinates with FEMA on emergency preparedness matters, and reviews and evaluates FEMA findings and determinations relating to off-site preparedness of state and local governments. Conducts safeguards technical and regulatory reviews related to power and non-power reactors; reviews physical security programs and approves licensee requests for changes in those programs; and develops and oversees the reactor safeguards inspection program carried out by regional offices.
Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs
David Matthews, Director
Scott Newberry, Deputy Director
Provides overall policy, planning, and management direction for the project management and technical review of plant license renewals, next-generation reactor designs, non-power reactor licensees, and non-radiological environmental issues. Implements programs and procedures to systematically assess and screen daily reactor events, recommend immediate corrective plant-specific and generic actions, and coordinate the followup of events. Manages NRR's generic issues management program including the development of rules and associated regulatory guidance to address these issues. Issues NRC correspondence such as generic letters, bulletins, and information notices to address generic concerns. Develops programs and guidelines to improve generic technical specifications and provides NRR interpretations of technical specification requirements. Responsible for policy and program implementation in licensee financial, insurance, indemnity, and antitrust matters. Provides project management for NSSS Owners' Group and NEI activities.
Technical Specifications Branch
William Beckner, Chief
Develops, maintains and updates standard technical specifications based on new regulatory requirements, new technical considerations, and operating experience; develops technical specification implementation guidance; develops and evaluates technical specification for plants under license review and plants implementing major technical specification upgrade programs; provides NRR interpretation of specific technical specification requirements; and provides assistance in screening incoming change requests.
License Renewal and Standardization Branch
Christopher Grimes, Chief
Provides centralized project management and technical reviews associated with license renewal activities. Develops a license renewal Standard Review Plan; coordinates and performs technical reviews of plant specific and generic technical reports related to license renewal; coordinates with licensees and NSSS owners groups; coordinates and reviews rules and guidance documents related to license renewal; and develops implementation and inspection programs for license renewal applicants. Provides overall project management for design certification of next-generation reactor designs including Preliminary Design Approvals, Final Design Approvals, and Design Certification rulemaking. Coordinates and communicates to the Commission, ACRS, industry groups, and other government offices on matters related to license renewal, next-generation reactor design projects, and issues affecting future reactor license applicants. Develops policy guidance, including rules and regulatory guides as appropriate, and serves as NRR focal point and interface with industry for issues associated with license renewal, design certification, early site permits, and the licensing of future reactor applicants.
Events Assessment, Generic Communications and Non-Power Reactors Branch
Ledyard Marsh, Chief
Systematically assesses and screens all nuclear power reactor related events, reports, and data to determine their significance and need for additional evaluation (generic communications and compliance activities) or plant-specific actions. Develops, coordinates, and issues operational feedback to licensees in the form of information notices, bulletins, generic letters and administrative letters for generic safety concerns identified from power reactor events and conditions. Identifies the need for an Augmented Inspection Team or Incident Investigation Team response and coordinates NRR involvement in establishing the scope and composition of these teams. Coordinates operating events briefings and serves as the NRR focal point for interface with the regions, other offices, and industry for event and other incoming reports. Maintains and administers on-call emergency officer roster and staffs the daytime emergency officer functions. Provides centralized project management and technical review of non-power reactor licensing activities including license amendments for operating, shutdown, and decommissioning facilities, and license renewals. Develops inspection program policy and guidance and implements direct inspections at all of these non-power reactor facilities. Writes and administers non-power reactor operator examinations and is responsible for developing and maintaining program policy and guidance for licensing non-power rector operators. Also provides requested evaluations of DOE and DOD facilities exempt from NRC licensing.
Generic Issues, Environmental, Financial and Rulemaking Branch
Cynthia Carpenter, Chief
Provides project management for emergent generic issues within NRR (task action plans, topical reports, rulemakings, performance measures and management reports on timeliness of NRR generic activities). Provides project management for topical reports or other regulatory initiatives associated with owners groups, reactor vendors, the Nuclear Energy Institute, or other industry groups. Maintains the NRR generic issue tracking system. Provides policy guidance and project management for environmental issues and reviews. Responsible for policy and program implementation in licensee financial, insurance, indemnity, and antitrust matters. Manages the development and conduct of the NRR Direct Assistance program for Russia and the Ukraine. Provides project management for NSSS Owners' Groups and NEI activities. Provides project management for development of rules within NRR and for the documentation and implementation of policies and procedures for effective, consistent, and understandable regulations. This support includes development of regulatory analysis, including cost analysis on the impact of proposed regulatory activities.
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