Society News Archive

30 October 2014
NEI Petitions NRC on 10 CFR 37

The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) has submitted a rulemaking petition requesting that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) amend its regulations in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 37, specifically regarding category 1 and 2 quantities of radioactive materials to remove "unnecessary and burdensome requirements on licensees with established physical security systems."

10 CFR 37 was promulgated by NRC to regulate byproduct material that could by used to make a dirty bomb. The NRC has determined that the petition meets the threshold sufficiency requirements for a petition for rulemaking under § 2.802 of Title 10, "Petition for rulemaking," and the petition has been docketed as PRM–37–1.

The main areas of 10 CFR 37 include:

  • Background investigations and access control programs, setting trustworthiness and reliability (T&R) requirements for persons granted unescorted access to radioactive material in quantities of concern.

  • Physical protection requirements during use, requiring licensees to establish a written security program, coordinate with local law enforcement, and be able to monitor, detect, and assess theft of radioactive material.

  • Physical protection in transit, requiring transporters of radioactive material to follow certain procedures.

    The petition may be viewed at regulations.gov—search for Docket ID NRC–2014–0172.