2020-03054. Revision of Fee Schedules; Fee Recovery for Fiscal Year 2020  

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    AGENCY:

    Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

    ACTION:

    Proposed rule.

    SUMMARY:

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend the licensing, inspection, special project, and annual fees charged to its applicants and licensees. These proposed amendments are necessary to implement the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990, as amended (OBRA-90), which requires the NRC to recover approximately 90 percent of its annual budget through fees less certain amounts excluded from this fee-recovery requirement.

    DATES:

    Submit comments by March 19, 2020. Comments received after this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the NRC is able to ensure consideration only for comments received before this date. Because OBRA-90 requires the NRC to collect the FY 2020 fees by September 30, 2020, the NRC must finalize any revisions to its fee schedules promptly, and thus be unable to grant any request for an extension of the comment period.

    ADDRESSES:

    You may submit comments by any of the following methods (unless this document describes a different method for submitting comments on a specific subject):

    • Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2017-0228. Address questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-3463; email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this proposed rule.
    • Email comments to: Rulemaking.Comments@nrc.gov. If you do not receive an automatic email reply confirming receipt, then contact us at 301-415-1677.
    • Fax comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission at 301-415-1101.
    • Mail comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff.
    • Hand deliver comments to: 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. (Eastern Time) Federal workdays; telephone: 301-415-1677.

    For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting comments, see “Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments” in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

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    FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

    Anthony Rossi, Office of the Chief Financial Officer, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone: 301-415-7341; email: Anthony.Rossi@nrc.gov.

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    SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

    Table of Contents

    I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

    II. Background; Statutory Authority

    III. Petition for Rulemaking: (PRM-171-1; NRC-2019-0084)

    IV. Discussion

    V. Regulatory Flexibility Certification

    VI. Regulatory Analysis

    VII. Backfitting and Issue Finality

    VIII. Plain Writing

    IX. National Environmental Policy Act

    X. Paperwork Reduction Act Public Protection Notification

    XI. Voluntary Consensus Standards

    XII. Availability of Guidance

    XIII. Public Meeting

    XIV. Availability of Documents

    I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

    A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2017-0228 when contacting the NRC about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain publicly-available information related to this action by any of the following methods:

    • Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2017-0228.
    • NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/​reading-rm/​adams.html. To begin the search, select “Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.” For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. The ADAMS accession number for each document referenced in this document (if that document is available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is referenced. For the convenience of the reader, the ADAMS accession numbers are also provided in a table in the “Availability of Documents” section of this document.
    • NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

    B. Submitting Comments

    Please include Docket ID NRC-2017-0228 in the subject line of your comment submission in order to ensure that the NRC is able to make your comment submission publicly available in this docket.

    The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your comment submission. The NRC posts all comment submissions at https://www.regulations.gov as well as entering the comment submissions into ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove identifying or contact information.

    If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be publicly disclosed in their comment submissions. Your request should state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove such information before making the comment submissions available to the public or entering the comment submissions into ADAMS.

    II. Background; Statutory Authority

    The NRC's fee regulations are primarily governed by two laws: (1) The Independent Offices Appropriation Act, 1952 (IOAA) (31 U.S.C. 9701), and (2) OBRA-90 (42 U.S.C. 2214). The IOAA generally authorizes and encourages Federal regulatory agencies to recover—to the fullest extent possible—costs attributable to services provided to identifiable recipients. Under OBRA-90, the NRC must recover approximately 90 percent of its budget authority for the fiscal year through fees. In FY 2020, the following appropriated amounts are excluded from the fee-recovery requirement: The development of a regulatory infrastructure for advanced nuclear reactor technologies, international activities, generic homeland security activities, Waste Incidental to Reprocessing, and Inspector General services for the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. Under OBRA-90, the NRC must use its IOAA authority first to collect service fees for NRC work that provides specific benefits to identifiable applicants and licensees (such as licensing work, inspections, and special projects).Start Printed Page 9329

    The NRC's regulations in part 170 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), “Fees for Facilities, Materials, Import and Export Licenses, and Other Regulatory Services Under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended,” authorize the fees the agency is required to collect from specific beneficiaries. But, because the NRC's fee recovery under the IOAA (10 CFR part 170) will not equal 90 percent of the agency's budget authority for the fiscal year, the NRC also assesses “annual fees” under 10 CFR part 171, “Annual Fees for Reactor Licenses and Fuel Cycle Licenses and Materials Licenses, Including Holders of Certificates of Compliance, Registrations, and Quality Assurance Program Approvals and Government Agencies Licensed by the NRC,” to recover the remaining amount necessary to meet OBRA-90's fee-recovery requirement.

    III. Petition for Rulemaking: (PRM-171-1; NRC-2019-0084)

    On February 28, 2019, the NRC received a petition for rulemaking (ADAMS Accession No. ML19081A015) from Dr. Michael D. Meier, on behalf of the Southern Nuclear Operating Company (the petitioner). The petitioner requested that the NRC revise its regulations in 10 CFR part 171 related to the start of the assessment of annual fees for combined license (COL) holders licensed under 10 CFR part 52, “Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants,” to align with the commencement of “commercial operation,” of a licensed nuclear power plant. Specifically, the petitioner requested that the NRC revise the timing of when annual fees commence for COL holders to coincide when a reactor achieves “commercial operation,” rather than when the NRC finds (under § 52.103(g)) that the acceptance criteria in the COL are met, after which the licensee can operate the facility. The NRC regulations at § 171.15 currently require a 10 CFR part 52 COL holder to pay the annual fee upon the Commission's finding under § 52.103(g). The NRC published a notice of docketing in the Federal Register (84 FR 26774; June 10, 2019), and requested public comment on the issues raised in PRM-171-1.

    The NRC received five public comment submissions, containing seven comments, during the 30-day public comment period, from the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), several industry stakeholders, and one non-government organization. All comments supported the petitioner's request raised in the PRM. The petitioner requested the NRC consider this rule change within the context of its annual fee rulemaking to amend 10 CFR parts 170 and 171 to collect FY 2020 fees. The NRC published a notice in the Federal Register (84 FR 65032; November 26, 2019) that granted partial consideration by modifying the timing regarding the assessment of annual fees for 10 CFR part 52 COL holders in the FY 2020 proposed fee rule. In addition, two of the seven comments requested that the NRC expand the scope of any rulemaking associated with the PRM to include certain licensees under 10 CFR part 50. All responses to comments received on the petition will be addressed in the final fee rule.

    Based on its review of PRM-171-1 and the public comments, the NRC is proposing to amend § 171.15(a) to modify the timing regarding the assessment of annual fees for 10 CFR part 52 COL holders. In addition, the NRC is proposing to amend the timing regarding the assessment of annual fees to apply to future 10 CFR part 50 power reactor licensees. See the FY 2020 Policy Changes section of this proposed rule for additional information on the proposed amendment resulting from PRM-171-1.

    IV. Discussion

    FY 2020 Fee Collection—Overview

    The NRC is issuing this FY 2020 proposed fee rule based on Public Law (Pub. L.) 116-93—Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, (the enacted budget). The proposed fee rule reflects a budget authority in the amount of $855.6 million, a decrease of $55.4 million from FY 2019. As explained previously, certain portions of the NRC's total budget are excluded from OBRA-90's fee-recovery requirement. Based on the FY 2020 enacted budget, these exclusions total $46.6 million, consisting of $15.5 million for the development of a regulatory infrastructure for advanced nuclear reactor technologies; $14.5 million for international activities; $14.1 million for generic homeland security activities; $1.3 million for Waste Incidental to Reprocessing activities; and $1.2 million for Inspector General services for the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. Additionally, OBRA-90 requires the NRC to recover only approximately 90 percent of the remaining budget authority for the fiscal year—10 percent of the remaining budget authority need not be recovered through fees. The NRC refers to the activities included in this 10-percent as “fee-relief” activities.

    After accounting for the fee-recovery exclusions, the fee-relief activities, and net billing adjustments (i.e., the sum of unpaid current year invoices (estimated) minus payments for prior year invoices, and current year collections made for the termination of one operating power reactor), the NRC must recover approximately $728.5 million in fees in FY 2020. Of this amount, the NRC estimates that $230.6 million will be recovered through 10 CFR part 170 service fees and approximately $497.9 million will recovered through 10 CFR part 171 annual fees. Table I summarizes the fee-recovery amounts for the FY 2020 proposed fee rule using the enacted budget, and taking into account excluded activities, fee-relief activities, and net billing adjustments. For all information presented in the following tables, individual values may not sum to totals due to rounding. Please see the work papers (ADAMS Accession No. ML19343A735) for actual amounts.

    Public Law 116-93—Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, also includes direction for the NRC to use $40.0 million in prior year unobligated carryover funds. The use of carryover funds allows the NRC to accomplish the work needed without additional costs to licensees because, consistent with the requirements of OBRA-90, fees are calculated based on the budget authority enacted for the current fiscal year and not carryover funds.

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    Table I—Budget and Fee Recovery Amounts 1

    [Dollars in millions]

    FY 2019 final ruleFY 2020 proposed rulePercentage change
    Total Budget Authority$911.0$855.6−6.1
    Less Excluded Fee Items−43.4−46.67.4
    Balance867.6808.9−6.8
    Fee Recovery Percent90900.0
    Total Amount to be Recovered:780.8728.1−6.8
    10 CFR Part 171 Billing Adjustments:
    Unpaid Current Year Invoices (estimated)4.54.50.0
    Less Current Year Collections from a Terminated Reactor—Indian Point Nuclear Generating, Unit 20.0−2.4100.00
    Less Payments Received in Current Year for Previous Year Invoices (estimated)−2.8−1.7−39.3
    Subtotal1.70.4−76.5
    Amount to be Recovered through 10 CFR Parts 170 and 171 Fees782.5728.5−6.9
    Less Estimated 10 CFR Part 170 Fees−252.1−230.6−8.5
    10 CFR Part 171 Fee Collections Required$530.5$497.9−6.2

    FY 2020 Fee Collection—Professional Hourly Rate

    The NRC uses a professional hourly rate to assess fees under 10 CFR part 170 for specific services it provides. The professional hourly rate also helps determine flat fees (which are used for the review of certain types of license applications). This rate would be applicable to all activities for which fees are assessed under §§ 170.21 and 170.31.

    The NRC's professional hourly rate is derived by adding budgeted resources for: (1) Mission-direct program salaries and benefits, (2) mission-indirect program support, and (3) agency support (corporate support and the Inspector General). The NRC then subtracts certain offsetting receipts and divides this total by the mission-direct full-time equivalents (FTE) converted to hours (the mission-direct FTE converted to hours is the product of the mission-direct FTE multiplied by the estimated annual mission-direct FTE productive hours). The only budgeted resources excluded from the professional hourly rate are those for mission-direct contract resources, which are generally billed to licensees separately. The following shows the professional hourly rate calculation:

    For FY 2020, the NRC is proposing to increase the professional hourly rate from $275 to $279. The 0.4 percent increase in the FY 2020 professional hourly rate is due primarily to the anticipated decline in the number of mission-direct FTE compared to FY 2019. The number of mission-direct FTE is expected to decline by 109, primarily due to (1) the anticipated completion of the NuScale small modular reactor (SMR) design certification review; (2) a reduction in workload associated with the Clinch River Nuclear Site (Clinch River) early site permit; (3) the power reactor plant closures of Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station (Oyster Creek), Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station (Pilgrim), Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station, Unit 1 (TMI 1); and (4) the expected decline in submissions for fuel facility license renewal applications, the decrease in the number of license amendments, the termination of the Mixed-Oxide (MOX) Fuel Fabrication Facility construction authorization, and efficiencies gained within the fuel facilities inspection program. The FY 2020 estimate for annual mission-direct FTE productive hours is 1,510 hours, which is unchanged from FY 2019. This estimate, also referred to as the productive hours assumption, reflects the average number of hours that a mission-direct employee spends on mission-direct work in a given year. This estimate therefore excludes hours charged to annual leave, sick leave, holidays, training, and general administrative tasks. Table II shows the professional hourly rate calculation methodology. The FY 2019 amounts are provided for comparison purposes.

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    TABLE II—Professional Hourly Rate Calculation

    [Dollars in millions, except as noted]

    FY 2019 final ruleFY 2020 proposed rulePercentage change
    Mission-Direct Program Salaries & Benefits$334.7$314.6−6.0
    Mission-Indirect Program Support$120.6$110.8−8.1
    Agency Support (Corporate Support and the IG)$304.5$291.5−4.3
    Subtotal$759.8$716.9−5.6
    Less Offsetting Receipts 2$0.0$0.00.0
    Total Budgeted Resources Included in Professional Hourly Rate$759.8$716.9−5.6
    Mission-Direct FTE (Whole numbers)1,8101,701−6.0
    Annual Mission-Direct FTE Productive Hours (Whole numbers)1,5101,5100.0
    Mission-Direct FTE Converted to Hours (Mission-Direct FTE multiplied by Annual Mission-Direct FTE Productive Hours) (In Millions)2,733,1002,568,510−6.0
    Professional Hourly Rate (Total Budgeted Resources Included in Professional Hourly Rate Divided by Mission-Direct FTE Converted to Hours) (Whole Numbers)$278$2790.4

    FY 2020 Fee Collection—Flat Application Fee Changes

    The NRC proposes to amend the flat application fees that it charges in its schedule of fees in §§ 170.21 and 170.31 to reflect the revised professional hourly rate of $279. The NRC charges these fees to applicants for materials licenses and other regulatory services, as well as holders of materials licenses. The NRC calculates these flat fees by multiplying the average professional staff hours needed to process the licensing actions by the proposed professional hourly rate for FY 2020. As part of its calculations, the NRC analyzes the actual hours spent performing licensing actions and estimates the five-year average professional staff hours that are needed to process licensing actions as part of its biennial review of fees, which is required by Section 205(a) of the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 (31 U.S.C. 902(a)(8)). The NRC performed this review in FY 2019 and will perform this review again in FY 2021. The higher professional hourly rate of $279 is the primary reason for the increase in application fees. Please see the work papers for more detail.

    The NRC rounds these flat fees in such a way that ensures both convenience for its stakeholders and that any rounding effects are minimal. Accordingly, fees under $1,000 are rounded to the nearest $10, fees between $1,000 and $100,000 are rounded to the nearest $100, and fees greater than $100,000 are rounded to the nearest $1,000.

    The proposed licensing flat fees are applicable for certain materials licensing actions (see fee categories 1.C. through 1.D., 2.B. through 2.F., 3.A. through 3.S., 4.B. through 5.A., 6.A. through 9.D., 10.B., 15.A. through 15.L., 15.R., and 16 of § 170.31). Because the enacted budget excludes international activities from the fee-recoverable budget, the NRC is not proposing to charge flat fees for import and export licensing actions described in § 170.21. Applications filed on or after the effective date of the FY 2020 final fee rule will be subject to the revised fees in the final rule.

    FY 2020 Fee Collection—Fee-Relief and Low-Level Waste Surcharge

    As previously noted, OBRA-90 requires the NRC to recover approximately 90 percent of its annual budget authority for the fiscal year. The NRC applies the remaining 10 percent that is not recovered to offset certain budgeted activities—see Table III for a full listing of these “fee-relief” activities. If the amount budgeted for these fee-relief activities is greater or less than 10 percent of the NRC's annual budget authority (less the fee-recovery exclusions), then the NRC applies a fee adjustment (either an increase or decrease) to all licensees' annual fees, based on the percentage of the NRC's budgeted resources allocated to each fee class.

    In FY 2020, the amount budgeted for fee-relief activities is less than the 10 percent threshold. Therefore, the NRC proposes to assess a fee-relief credit that decreases all licensees' annual fees. Table III summarizes the fee-relief activities budgeted for FY 2020. The FY 2019 amounts are provided for comparison purposes.

    Table III—Fee-Relief Activities

    [Dollars in millions]

    Fee-relief activitiesFY 2019 budgeted resources final ruleFY 2020 budgeted resources proposed rulePercentage change
    1. Activities not attributable to an existing NRC licensee or class of licensees:
    a. Agreement State oversight$11.5$11.93.8
    b. Scholarships and Fellowships15.016.06.7
    c. Medical Isotope Production Infrastructure5.42.7−50.0
    2. Activities not assessed under 10 CFR part 170 service fees or 10 CFR part 171 annual fees based on existing law or Commission policy:
    a. Fee exemption for nonprofit educational institutions9.19.0−1.1
    b. Costs not recovered from small entities under 10 CFR 171.16(c)8.07.6−4.9
    c. Regulatory support to Agreement States14.712.2−17.3
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    d. Generic decommissioning/reclamation (not related to the power reactor and spent fuel storage fee classes)12.912.0−7.0
    e. Uranium recovery program and unregistered general licensees7.25.2−27.8
    f. Potential Department of Defense remediation program Memorandum of Understanding activities2.11.7−16.7
    g. Non-military radium sites1.10.8−23.4
    Total fee-relief activities87.079.2−9.0
    Less 10 percent of the NRC's total FY budget (less the fee recovery exclusions)−86.8−80.9−6.8
    Fee-Relief Adjustment to be Allocated to All Licensees' Annual Fees$0.3−1.7−673.0

    Table IV shows how the NRC proposes to allocate the $1.7 million fee-relief credit to each licensee fee class. In addition to the fee-relief credit, the NRC proposes assessing a generic low-level waste (LLW) surcharge of $3.4 million. Disposal of LLW occurs at commercially operated LLW disposal facilities that are licensed by either the NRC or an Agreement State. Four existing LLW disposal facilities in the United States accept various types of LLW. All are located in Agreement States and, therefore, are regulated by an Agreement State, rather than the NRC. The NRC proposes to allocate this surcharge to its licensees based on data available in the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Manifest Information Management System. This database contains information on total LLW volumes and NRC usage information from four generator classes: Academic, industrial, medical, and utility. The ratio of utility waste volumes to total LLW volumes over a period of time is used to estimate the portion of this surcharge that will be allocated to the power reactors, fuel facilities, and materials fee classes. The materials portion is adjusted to account for the fact that a large percentage of materials licensees are licensed by the Agreement States rather than the NRC.

    Table IV shows the LLW surcharge and fee-relief credit, and its proposed allocation across the various fee classes.

    Table IV—Allocation of Fee-Relief Adjustment and LLW Surcharge FY 2020

    [Dollars in millions]

    LLW surchargeFee-relief adjustmentTotal
    Percent$Percent$$
    Operating Power Reactors84.02.88186.4−1.4851.396
    Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning0.00.0005.4−0.092−0.092
    Research and Test Reactors0.00.0000.5−0.009−0.009
    Fuel Facilities12.70.4363.4−0.0580.378
    Materials Users3.30.1133.8−0.0650.048
    Transportation0.00.0000.5−0.009−0.009
    Rare Earth Facilities0.00.0000.00.00.0
    Uranium Recovery0.00.0000.1−0.001−0.001
    Total100.03.430100.0−1.7191.711

    FY 2020 Fee Collection—Revised Annual Fees

    In accordance with SECY-05-0164, “Annual Fee Calculation Method” (ADAMS Accession No. ML052580332), the NRC rebaselines its annual fees every year. “Rebaselining” entails analyzing the budget in detail and then allocating the budgeted costs to various classes or subclasses of licensees. It also includes updating the number of NRC licensees in its fee calculation methodology.

    The NRC proposes to revise its annual fees in §§ 171.15 and 171.16 to recover approximately 90 percent of the NRC's FY 2020 enacted budget (less the fee-recovery exclusions and the estimated amount to be recovered through 10 CFR part 170 fees). The total estimated 10 CFR part 170 collections for this proposed rule are $230.6 million, a decrease of $21.5 million from the FY 2019 final rule (see the specific fee class sections for a discussion of this decrease). The NRC, therefore, proposes to recover $497.9 million through annual fees from its licensees, which is a decrease of $32.6 million from the FY 2019 final rule.

    Table V shows the proposed rebaselined fees for FY 2020 for a representative list of licensee categories. The FY 2019 amounts are provided for comparison purposes.Start Printed Page 9333

    Table V—Rebaselined Annual Fees

    [Actual dollars]

    Class/category of licensesFY 2019 final annual feeFY 2020 proposed annual feePercentage change
    Operating Power Reactors$4,669,000$4,534,000−2.9
    + Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning152,000172,00013.2
    Total, Combined Fee$4,821,000$4,706,000−2.4
    Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning152,000172,00013.2
    Research and Test Reactors (Non-power Reactors)82,40079,200−3.9
    High Enriched Uranium Fuel Facility$6,675,000$4,944,000−25.9
    Low Enriched Uranium Fuel Facility$2,262,000$1,675,000−26.0
    UF6 Conversion and Deconversion Facility$1,417,000$1,049,000−26.0
    Basic In Situ Recovery Facilities (Category 2.A.(2)(b))$49,200$49,2000.0
    Typical Users:
    Radiographers (Category 3O)$30,200$29,800−1.3
    All Other Specific Byproduct Material Licensees (Category 3P)$10,000$9,700−3.0
    Medical Other (Category 7C)$15,300$14,800−3.3
    Device/Product Safety Evaluation—Broad (Category 9A)$14,300$13,800−3.5

    The work papers that support this proposed rule show in detail how the NRC proposes to allocate the budgeted resources for each class of licensees and calculate the fees.

    Paragraphs a. through h. of this section describe budgeted resources allocated to each class of licensees and the calculations of the rebaselined fees. For more information about detailed fee calculations for each class, please consult the accompanying work papers.

    a. Operating Power Reactors

    The NRC proposes to collect $430.7 million in annual fees from the operating power reactors fee class in FY 2020, as shown in Table VI. The FY 2019 fees and percentage changes are shown for comparison purposes.

    Table VI—Annual Fee Summary Calculations for Operating Power Reactors

    [Dollars in millions]

    Summary fee calculationsFY 2019 finalFY 2020 proposedPercentage change
    Total budgeted resources$670.2$623.9−6.9
    Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts−217.7−194.8−10.5
    Net 10 CFR part 171 resources452.5429.1−5.2
    Allocated generic transportation0.20.21.3
    Fee-relief adjustment/LLW surcharge3.41.4−59.1
    Billing adjustment1.52.464.5
    Adjustment: Estimated current year collections from terminated reactor (Indian Point Nuclear Generating, Unit 2)0.0−2.4100.0
    Total required annual fee recovery457.6430.7−5.9
    Total operating reactors9895−3.1
    Annual fee per reactor$4.669$4.534−2.9

    In comparison to FY 2019, the resources budgeted for the operating power reactors fee class decreased by $46.3 million due to a decline in FTEs as a result of the following: (1) The closures of Oyster Creek, Pilgrim, and TMI 1; (2) the delay in receipt of the Utah Associated Municipal Power System SMR application; (3) withdrawal of the Blue Castle large light-water reactor application; (4) delay in the submittal of the Advanced Passive 1000 design certification renewal application; (5) the near completion of the NuScale SMR design certification review; (6) the completion of the Clinch River early site permit technical review; (7) a reduction in license amendment requests for the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant; (8) expected delays in construction and operating license application review activities for Bellefonte Nuclear Station, Units 1 and 2; (9) efficiencies gained from the merger of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation and the Office of New Reactors; and (10) the completion of flooding and integrated assessment work related to lessons learned from the accident at Fukushima Dai-ichi in Japan. In addition, the total budgeted resources decreased due to the utilization of prior year unobligated carryover funding.

    The 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings declined primarily due to decreases in both licensing actions and inspections resulting from the shutdown of the Pilgrim and TMI-1 reactors at the end of FY 2019; the planned shutdown of Indian Point Nuclear Generating, Unit 2 (Indian Point 2) during FY 2020; and the completion of the Advanced Power Reactor-1400 design certification, which was issued in FY 2019, for Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co., LTD. Additionally, estimated billings under 10 CFR part 170 are expected to decline due to the completion of the NuScale SMR design certification review and the completion of the Clinch River early site permit technical review.

    The recoverable budgeted costs are divided equally among the 95 licensed operating power reactors, resulting in a Start Printed Page 9334proposed annual fee of $4,534,000 per reactor. As part of the proposed annual fee, an approximate $2,442,000 current year collection adjustment was included in the operating power reactors calculation due to the planned shutdown of Indian Point 2 as shown in Table VI. Additionally, each licensed operating power reactor is assessed the FY 2020 spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning proposed annual fee of $172,000 (see Table VII and the discussion that follows). The combined proposed FY 2020 annual fee for each operating power reactor is, therefore, $4,706,000.

    In 2016, the NRC amended its licensing, inspection, and annual fee regulations to establish a variable annual fee structure for light-water SMRs (81 FR 32617). Under the variable annual fee structure, an SMR's annual fee would be calculated as a function of its licensed thermal power rating. Currently, there are no operating SMRs; therefore, the NRC is not proposing an annual fee in FY 2020 for this type of licensee.

    b. Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning

    The NRC proposes to collect $21.0 million in annual fees from 10 CFR part 50 power reactors, and from 10 CFR part 72 licensees that do not hold a 10 CFR part 50 license, to recover the budgeted costs for the spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning fee class, as shown in Table VII. The FY 2019 fees and percentage changes are shown for comparison purposes.

    Table VII—Annual Fee Summary Calculations for Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning

    [Dollars in millions]

    Summary fee calculationsFY 2019 finalFY 2020 proposedPercentage change
    Total budgeted resources$35.6$37.96.6
    Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts−17.8−17.8−0.2
    Net 10 CFR part 171 resources17.820.213.4
    Allocated generic transportation costs0.70.815.7
    Fee-relief adjustment0.0−0.1−874.5
    Billing adjustments0.10.288.2
    Total required annual fee recovery18.621.013.2
    Total spent fuel storage facilities1221220.0
    Annual fee per facility$0.152$0.17213.2

    In comparison to FY 2019, the resources budgeted for the spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning fee class increased for reviews of new storage license renewal applications for Holtec HI-Storm 100, TN-32, TN-68, NAC UMS, NAC-MPC, Westinghouse W-150, and GE-Hitachi Morris Operation, which are expected in FY 2020; inspection activities related to site preparation for decommissioning of TMI-1, Pilgrim, Oyster Creek, and Indian Point; and fuel performance research. In addition, budgeted resources for contract costs increased due to a reduction in the utilization of prior year unobligated carryover funding compared to FY 2019.

    The 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings for FY 2020 decreased due to the completion of certain follow-up inspections and enforcement activities for San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. This decrease in the 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings is offset by increased work in the reactors-in-decommissioning program resulting from the final status reviews at multiple sites, and also due to the license transfer application for the Crystal River Nuclear Generating Plant, Unit 3.

    The required annual fee recovery amount is divided equally among 122 licensees, resulting in a proposed FY 2020 annual fee of $172,000 per licensee.

    c. Fuel Facilities

    The NRC proposes to collect $18.1 million in annual fees from the fuel facilities fee class, as shown in Table VIII. The FY 2019 fees and percentage changes are shown for comparison purposes.

    Table VIII—Annual Fee Summary Calculations for Fuel Facilities

    [Dollars in millions]

    Summary fee calculationsFY 2019 finalFY 2020 proposedPercentage change
    Total budgeted resources$30.0$23.2−22.6
    Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts−7.3−6.8−7.0
    Net 10 CFR part 171 resources22.716.5−27.6
    Allocated generic transportation1.21.21.2
    Fee-relief adjustment/LLW surcharge0.50.4−23.3
    Billing adjustments0.10.10.0
    Total remaining required annual fee recovery$24.5$18.1−25.9

    In comparison to FY 2019, the resources budgeted for the fuel facilities fee class decreased in FY 2020. The reduction in budgetary resources is primarily due to an expected decline in submissions for license renewal applications, the decrease in the number of license amendments, the termination of the MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility Start Printed Page 9335construction authorization, and efficiencies gained because of changes to the Fuel Facilities Inspection Program and workload projections. The 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings decrease as a result of the license application for the MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility being withdrawn.

    The NRC proposes to continue allocating annual fees to individual fuel facility licensees based on the effort/fee determination matrix developed in the FY 1999 final fee rule (64 FR 31447; June 10, 1999). To briefly recap, the matrix groups licensees within this fee class into various fee categories. The matrix lists processes conducted at licensed sites and assigns effort factors for the safety and safeguards activities associated with each process (these effort levels are reflected in Table IX). The annual fees are then distributed across the fee class based on the regulatory effort assigned by the matrix. The effort factors in the matrix represent regulatory effort that is not recovered through 10 CFR part 170 fees (e.g., rulemaking, guidance). Regulatory effort for activities that are subject to 10 CFR part 170 fees, such as the number of inspections, is not applicable to the effort factor.

    Table IX—Effort Factors for Fuel Facilities, FY 2020

    Facility type (fee category)Number of facilitiesEffort factors
    SafetySafeguards
    High-Enriched Uranium Fuel (1.A.(1)(a))28891
    Low-Enriched Uranium Fuel (1.A.(1)(b))37021
    Limited Operations (1.A.(2)(a))000
    Gas Centrifuge Enrichment Demonstration (1.A.(2)(b))000
    Hot Cell (and others) (1.A.(2)(c))000
    Uranium Enrichment (1.E.)11623
    UF6 Conversion and Deconversion (2.A.(1))1127

    In FY 2020, the total remaining amount of annual fees to be recovered, $18.1 million, is comprised of safety activities, safeguards activities, and the fee-relief adjustment/LLW surcharge. For FY 2020, the total budgeted resources to be recovered as annual fees for safety activities are $10.0 million. To calculate the annual fee, the NRC allocates this amount to each fee category based on its percentage of the total regulatory effort for safety activities. Similarly, the NRC allocates the budgeted resources to be recovered as annual fees for safeguards activities, $7.7 million, to each fee category based on its percentage of the total regulatory effort for safeguards activities. Finally, the fuel facilities fee class portion of the fee-relief adjustment/LLW surcharge—$0.4 million—is allocated to each fee category based on its percentage of the total regulatory effort for both safety and safeguards activities. The annual fee per licensee is then calculated by dividing the total allocated budgeted resources for the fee category by the number of licensees in that fee category. The fee and percentage change for each facility is summarized in Table X.

    Table X—Annual Fees for Fuel Facilities

    [Actual dollars]

    Facility type (fee category)FY 2019 final annual feeFY 2020 proposed annual feePercentage change
    High-Enriched Uranium Fuel (1.A.(1)(a))$6,675,000$4,944,000−25.9
    Low-Enriched Uranium Fuel (1.A.(1)(b))2,262,0001,675,000−26.0
    Gas Centrifuge Enrichment Demonstration (1.A.(2)(b))N/AN/AN/A
    Hot Cell (and others) (1.A.(2)(c))N/AN/AN/A
    Uranium Enrichment (1.E.)2,909,0002,154,000−26.0
    UF6 Conversion and Deconversion (2.A.(1))1,417,0001,049,000−26.0

    d. Uranium Recovery Facilities

    The NRC proposes to collect $0.2 million in annual fees from the uranium recovery facilities fee class, which is stable compared to FY 2019, as shown in Table XI. The FY 2019 fees and percentage changes are shown for comparison purposes.

    Table XI—Annual Fee Summary Calculations for Uranium Recovery Facilities

    [Dollars in millions]

    Summary fee calculationsFY 2019 finalFY 2020 proposedPercentage change
    Total budgeted resources$1.0$0.6−36.6
    Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts−0.8−0.5−44.3
    Net 10 CFR part 171 resources0.20.20.0
    Allocated generic transportationN/AN/AN/A
    Fee-relief adjustment0.00.00.0
    Billing adjustments0.00.00.0
    Start Printed Page 9336
    Total required annual fee recovery$0.2$0.20.0

    In comparison to FY 2019, the budgeted resources and 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings for the uranium recovery fee class decreased due to the expected reduction in support for adjudicatory actions, the uncertainty associated with the construction of the NuFuels Crownpoint site, and Cameco's announcement to cease U.S. uranium recovery operations. Budgeted resources also decreased to include additional uranium recovery resources in the fee-relief category, “In Situ leach rulemaking and unregistered general licenses,” in order to ensure the equitability and the stability of annual fees.

    The NRC regulates DOE's Title I and Title II activities under Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) [3] and the proposed annual fee to DOE includes the costs specifically budgeted for the NRC's UMTRCA Title I and II activities, as well as 10 percent of the remaining budgeted costs for this fee class. The DOE's UMTRCA annual fee decreased compared to FY 2019 due to an increase in the 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings for processing groundwater corrective action plans site reviews, the anticipated workload increase at various DOE UMTRCA sites, and the fee-relief credit. The NRC assesses the remaining 90 percent of its budgeted costs to the remaining licensee in this fee class, as described in the work papers. This is reflected in Table XII as follows:

    Table XII—Costs Recovered Through Annual Fees; Uranium Recovery Fee Class

    [Actual dollars]

    Summary of costsFY 2019 final annual feeFY 2020 proposed annual feePercentage change
    DOE Annual Fee Amount (UMTRCA Title I and Title II) General Licenses:
    UMTRCA Title I and Title II budgeted costs less 10 CFR part 170 receipts$115,888$113,377−2.2
    10 percent of generic/other uranium recovery budgeted costs5,4315,6123.3
    10 percent of uranium recovery fee-relief adjustment33−149−551.5
    Total Annual Fee Amount for DOE (rounded)121,000119,000−1.7
    Annual Fee Amount for Other Uranium Recovery Licenses:
    90 percent of generic/other uranium recovery budgeted costs less the amounts specifically budgeted for UMTRCA Title I and Title II activities48,88050,5103.3
    90 percent of uranium recovery fee-relief adjustment294−1,344−557.1
    Total Annual Fee Amount for Other Uranium Recovery Licenses$49,173$49,1650.0

    Further, for any non-DOE licensees, the NRC proposes to continue using a matrix to determine the effort levels associated with conducting generic regulatory actions for the different licensees in the uranium recovery fee class; this is similar to the NRC's approach for fuel facilities, described previously. The matrix methodology for uranium recovery licensees first identifies the licensee categories included within this fee class (excluding DOE). These categories are: Conventional uranium mills and heap leach facilities, uranium in situ recovery (ISR) and resin ISR facilities, mill tailings disposal facilities, and uranium water treatment facilities. The matrix identifies the types of operating activities that support and benefit these licensees, along with each activity's relative weight (for more information, see the work papers). Currently, there is only one remaining non-DOE licensee which is a Basic In Situ Recovery facility. Table XIII displays the benefit factors for the non-DOE licensee in that fee category:

    Table XIII—Benefit Factors for Uranium Recovery Licenses

    Fee categoryNumber of licenseesBenefit factor per licenseeTotal valueBenefit factor percent total
    Conventional and Heap Leach mills (2.A.(2)(a))0000
    Basic In Situ Recovery facilities (2.A.(2)(b))1190190100.0
    Expanded In Situ Recovery facilities (2.A.(2)(c))0000
    Section 11e.(2) disposal incidental to existing tailings sites (2.A.(4))0000
    Start Printed Page 9337
    Total1190190100.0

    The annual fee for the remaining non-DOE licensee is calculated by allocating 100 percent of the budgeted resources, as summarized in Table XIV.

    Table XIV—Annual Fees for Uranium Recovery Licensees

    (Other than DOE)

    [Actual dollars]

    Facility type (fee category)FY 2019 final annual feeFY 2020 proposed annual feePercentage change
    Conventional and Heap Leach mills (2.A.(2)(a))N/AN/AN/A
    Basic In Situ Recovery facilities (2.A.(2)(b))$49,200$49,2000.0
    Expanded In Situ Recovery facilities (2.A.(2)(c))N/AN/AN/A
    Section 11e.(2) disposal incidental to existing tailings sites (2.A.(4))N/AN/AN/A
    Uranium water treatment (2.A.(5))N/AN/AN/A

    e. Research and Test Reactors (Non-Power Reactors)

    The NRC proposes to collect $0.317 million in annual fees from the research and test reactor licensee class, as shown in Table XV. The FY 2019 fees and percentage changes are shown for comparison purposes.

    Table XV—Annual Fee Summary Calculations for Research and Test Reactors

    [Actual dollars]

    Summary fee calculationsFY 2019 finalFY 2020 proposedPercentage change
    Total budgeted resources$834,280$3,650,008337.5
    Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts−538,000−3,370,000526.4
    Net 10 CFR part 171 resources296,280280,008−5.5
    Allocated generic transportation30,97131,3561.2
    Fee-relief adjustment284−8,756−3,183.1
    Billing adjustments1,90114,263650.9
    Total required annual fee recovery329,436316,871−3.8
    Total research and test reactors440.0
    Total annual fee per reactor$82,400$79,200−3.9

    In comparison to FY 2019, the budgeted resources for the research and test reactors increased primarily within the medical isotope production facilities due to the submittal of the SHINE Medical Technologies, Inc. (SHINE) operating license application.

    The 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings also increased due to the following: (1) The submittal of SHINE's operating license application for a medical production facility; (2) the review of Aerotest Operations, Inc.'s request to amend its operating license to possession only; and (3) reviews of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy America's, LLC Nuclear Test Reactor license amendments for security plan reviews.

    The proposed annual fee-recovery amount is divided equally among the four research and test reactors subject to annual fees and results in an FY 2020 annual fee of $79,200 for each licensee.

    f. Rare Earth

    The NRC has not allocated any budgeted resources to this fee class; therefore, the NRC is not proposing an annual fee for this fee class in FY 2020.

    g. Materials Users

    The NRC proposes to collect $34.1 million in annual fees from materials users licensed under 10 CFR parts 30, 40, and 70, as shown in Table XVI. The FY 2019 fees and percentage changes are shown for comparison purposes.Start Printed Page 9338

    Table XVI—Annual Fee Summary Calculations for Materials Users

    [Dollars in millions]

    Summary fee calculationsFY 2019 finalFY 2020 proposedPercentage change
    Total budgeted resources for licensees not regulated by Agreement States$36.0$33.7−6.4
    Less estimated 10 CFR part 170 receipts−1.11.11.0
    Net 10 CFR part 171 resources35.032.7−6.6
    Allocated generic transportation1.21.35.3
    Fee-relief adjustment/LLW surcharge0.10.0−64.5
    Billing adjustments0.10.165.4
    Total required annual fee recovery$36.4$34.1−6.3

    The annual fee for these categories of materials users' licenses is developed as follows: Annual Fee = Constant × [Application Fee + (Average Inspection Cost/Inspection Priority)] + Inspection Multiplier × (Average Inspection Cost/Inspection Priority) + Unique Category Costs.

    The total annual fee recovery of $34.1 million proposed for FY 2020 shown in Table XVI consists of $26.5 million for general costs and $7.5 million for inspection costs. To equitably and fairly allocate the $34.1 million required to be collected among approximately 2,600 diverse materials users licensees, the NRC continues to calculate the annual fees for each fee category within this class based on the 10 CFR part 170 application fees and estimated inspection costs for each fee category. Because the application fees and inspection costs are indicative of the complexity of the materials license, this approach provides a proxy for allocating the generic and other regulatory costs to the diverse fee categories. This fee-calculation method also considers the inspection frequency (priority), which is indicative of the safety risk and resulting regulatory costs associated with the categories of licenses.

    The NRC proposes to decrease annual fees for licensees in this fee class in FY 2020 due to the utilization of prior year unobligated carryover funding and reductions of regional resources for the Nuclear Regulatory Apprenticeship Network (formerly the Nuclear Safety Professional Development Program), and budget estimates that are better aligned with projected workload. In addition, there was a reduction of materials users licensees from FY 2019. The materials users fee class increased the number of Certificates of Compliance (CoCs) from 25 to 26, which increased the percentage of transportation resources that benefit the fee class.

    The constant multiplier is established to recover the total general costs (including allocated generic transportation costs) of $26.5 million. To derive the constant multiplier, the general cost amount is divided by the product of all fee categories (application fee plus the inspection fee divided by inspection priority) then multiplied by the number of licensees. This calculation results in a constant multiplier of 1.27 for FY 2020. The average inspection cost is the average inspection hours for each fee category multiplied by the professional hourly rate of $279. The inspection priority is the interval between routine inspections, expressed in years. The inspection multiplier is established in order to recover the $7.5 million in inspection costs. To derive the inspection multiplier, the inspection costs amount is divided by the product of all fee categories (inspection fee divided by inspection priority) then multiplied by the number of licensees. This calculation results in an inspection multiplier of 1.48 for FY 2020. The unique category costs are any special costs that the NRC has budgeted for a specific category of licenses. Please see the work papers for more detail about this classification.

    The annual fee assessed to each licensee also takes into account a share of the approximately $0.065 million fee-relief credit assessment allocated to the materials users fee class (see Table IV, “Allocation of Fee-Relief Adjustment and LLW Surcharge, FY 2019,” in Section IV, “Discussion,” of this document), and for certain categories of these licensees, a share of the approximately $0.113 million LLW surcharge costs allocated to the fee class. The proposed annual fee for each fee category is shown in the proposed revision to § 171.16(d).

    h. Transportation

    The NRC proposes to collect $1.0 million in annual fees to recover generic transportation budgeted resources in FY 2020, as shown in Table XVII. The FY 2019 fees and percentage changes are shown for comparison purposes.

    Table XVII—Annual Fee Summary Calculations for Transportation

    [Dollars in millions]

    Summary fee calculationsFY 2019 finalFY 2020 proposedPercentage change
    Total Budgeted Resources$8.0$7.2−10.2
    Less Estimated 10 CFR part 170 Receipts−3.7−2.7−27.0
    Net 10 CFR part 171 Resources4.34.54.6
    Less Generic Transportation Resources−3.3−3.55.7
    Fee-relief adjustment/LLW surcharge0.00.00.0
    Billing adjustments0.00.00.0
    Total required annual fee recovery$1.0$1.00.6
    Start Printed Page 9339

    In comparison to FY 2019, the total budgeted resources for generic transportation activities decreased due to the utilization of prior year unobligated carryover funding, a reduction in FTE due to decreases in maintenance work associated with the Storage and Transportation Information Management System, and the decline in DOE's percentage of total CoCs as a result of three new CoCs benefitting other fee classes. The 10 CFR part 170 estimated billings decreased primarily due to the issuance of CoCs for NAC International, Inc. and Industrial Nuclear Company, LLC in FY 2019.

    Consistent with the policy established in the NRC's FY 2006 final fee rule (71 FR 30721; May 30, 2006), the NRC recovers generic transportation costs unrelated to DOE by including those costs in the annual fees for licensee fee classes. The NRC continues to assess a separate annual fee under § 171.16, fee category 18.A., for DOE transportation activities. The amount of the allocated generic resources is calculated by multiplying the percentage of total CoCs used by each fee class (and DOE) by the total generic transportation resources to be recovered.

    This resource distribution to the licensee fee classes and DOE is shown in Table XVIII. Note that for the research and test reactors fee class, the NRC allocates the distribution to only those licensees that are subject to annual fees. Although four CoCs benefit the entire research and test reactor class, only 4 out of 31 research and test reactors are subject to annual fees. Consequently, the number of CoCs used to determine the proportion of generic transportation resources allocated annual fees for the research and test reactors fee class has been adjusted to 0.7 so these licensees are charged a fair and equitable portion of the total fees. For more information, see the work papers.

    Table XVIII—Distribution of Transportation Resources, FY 2020

    [Dollars in millions]

    Licensee fee class/DOENumber of CoCs benefiting fee class or DOEPercentage of total CoCsAllocated generic transportation resources
    Materials Users26.028.11.3
    Operating Power Reactors5.05.40.2
    Spent Fuel Storage/Reactor Decommissioning16.017.30.8
    Research and Test Reactors0.70.70.0
    Fuel Facilities24.025.91.2
    Sub-Total of Generic Transportation Resources71.777.33.5
    DOE21.022.71.0
    Total92.7100.04.5

    The NRC assesses an annual fee to DOE based on the 10 CFR part 71 CoCs it holds. The NRC, therefore, does not allocate these DOE-related resources to other licensees' annual fees because these resources specifically support DOE.

    FY 2020—Policy Changes

    The NRC proposes two policy changes for FY 2020:

    Remove the Fee Exceptions in § 170.21, Footnote 1 and § 170.31, Footnote 2

    The NRC proposes to eliminate the fee exceptions set forth in footnote 1 to § 170.21 “Schedule of Fees for Production and Utilization Facilities, Review of Standard Referenced Design Approvals, Special Projects, Inspections, and Import and Export Licenses,” and footnote 2 to § 170.31, “Schedule of Fees for Materials Licenses and Other Regulatory Services, Including Inspections, and Import and Export Licenses.” These footnotes contain parallel language stating that the NRC “will not charge fees under 10 CFR part 170 for orders related to civil penalties or other civil sanctions issued by the Commission under § 2.202 or for amendments resulting specifically from the requirements of these orders.”

    Currently, the language in footnote 1 to § 170.21 and footnote 2 to § 170.31 is an exception to the general rule that the NRC recovers review and inspection costs through fees assessed to individuals under 10 CFR part 170. The current language excludes the following activities from 10 CFR part 170 fees if an order relates to a civil penalty or other sanction: (1) Subsequent NRC inspection or review work to ensure compliance with the terms of the order, and (2) subsequent NRC review costs if the order requires the licensee to seek a license amendment. The current language also states, however, that where an order is “unrelated to civil penalties or other civil sanctions,” the NRC will follow its normal practice of assessing fees under 10 CFR part 170.

    The language in these footnotes comes from the NRC's FY 2005 fee rule (70 FR 30526; May 26, 2005). Before 2005, the NRC excluded work in connection with all orders from 10 CFR part 170 fees. In the FY 2005 fee rule, the NRC amended the footnotes to narrow the exceptions to just those orders that “relate” to civil penalties or civil sanctions. The NRC made this change because, after September 11, 2001, it had imposed additional security requirements on multiple licensees through orders. As a result of these orders, the NRC performed extensive follow-up activities that, because of the pre-existing broad exceptions in footnotes 1 and 2, were exempt from 10 CFR part 170 fees. Because the NRC's activities were exempt from 10 CFR part 170 fees, the NRC recovered the associated costs through annual fees under 10 CFR part 171, even though the work benefited specific licensees (70 FR 30528-30535; May 26, 2005).

    Through the FY 2005 fee rule, the NRC attempted to more fairly allocate costs by ensuring that the beneficiaries of its review and inspection services associated with orders of the type issued after September 11, 2001, paid for those services through 10 CFR part 170 fees. At the same time, the NRC retained an exception for orders that relate to a civil penalty or civil sanction. The NRC also explained in the FY 2005 fee rule that it was maintaining its longstanding policy of not charging 10 CFR part 170 fees for the preparation of any order. The costs associated with preparing an Start Printed Page 9340order would continue to be recovered through annual fees under 10 CFR part 171.

    The authority for assessing the 10 CFR part 171 fees comes from the same statute that provides the authority for the NRC's 10 CFR part 170 fee schedule. That statute—the IOAA—requires that the NRC assess fees fairly and equitably, and it authorizes the NRC to collect fees whenever the agency provides “a service or thing of value” to a recipient. In addition, OBRA-90 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-25, “User Charges,” require that the NRC recover fees from persons who derive a special benefit from the agency's services.

    Even if an order related to a civil penalty or civil sanction has some public benefit, the services the NRC provides in connection with the order, such as inspections and document-review activities, primarily benefit the licensee. These services primarily benefit the licensee because they enable the licensee to maintain its NRC license in good standing and continue operating its facility. Furthermore, regardless of whether the NRC issues an order in a safety, security, or enforcement context, the NRC's follow-up services related to the order—inspections, document review and analysis, and other services—benefit the licensee by contributing to public confidence in the safe operation of the licensee's facility. Charging 10 CFR part 170 fees for services related to all orders is therefore most consistent with the NRC's obligations under the IOAA, OBRA-90, and OMB Circular A-25. Transferring the cost of these services to other members of a licensee's fee class, on the other hand, could therefore be viewed as unfair and inconsistent with the IOAA, OBRA-90, and Circular A-25.

    Accordingly, in this proposed rule, the NRC proposes removing the fee exceptions (i.e., the first two sentences) from § 170.21, footnote 1 and § 170.31, footnote 2. Removing the exceptions will promote fairness and equity in the NRC's fees rules, consistent with the IOAA; and it will help ensure that licensees who receive special benefits in the form of NRC services pay for those services, consistent with OMB Circular A-25. Removing the exceptions will also simplify the NRC's fee rules. If there are circumstances in which charging 10 CFR part 170 fees for follow-up activities related to an order would be unfair, the NRC retains the ability under 10 CFR 170.11 to grant a fee exemption for those services, either on its own initiative or upon request.

    Removing the fee exceptions will not, however, change the NRC's longstanding policy regarding the recovery of costs associated with preparing an order. Consistent with this policy, such costs will continue to be recovered through annual fees under 10 CFR part 171.

    Amending § 171.15 Regarding the Assessment of Annual Fees for 10 CFR Part 52 Combined License Holders and Future 10 CFR Part 50 Power Reactor Licensees

    Based on its review of PRM-171-1 and the public comments, the NRC proposes to amend § 171.15(a) so that the assessment of annual fees for 10 CFR part 52 COL holders commences upon successful completion of power ascension testing, rather than after the Commission makes a finding under § 52.103(g) finding. The NRC is also proposing to apply this approach to future 10 CFR part 50 power reactor licensees.

    Currently, § 171.15 requires a 10 CFR part 52 COL holder to begin paying the annual fee once the Commission finds under § 52.103(g) that all acceptance criteria in the COL are met. Similarly, 10 CFR part 50 licensees begin paying annual fees upon issuance of an operating license. The timing of annual fees reflects the NRC's historical position that a nuclear power reactor licensee receives the benefits of its license, and thus should begin paying annual fees, when the NRC authorizes the licensee to use nuclear materials (i.e., begin operating the reactor).

    As stated in its fee rules, the NRC is firmly committed to the application of fairness and equity in the assessment of fees to licensees. The NRC recognizes that, subsequent to the § 52.103(g) finding for 10 CFR part 52 COL holders, and issuance of the operating license for 10 CFR part 50 power reactor licensees, fuel must be loaded, and power ascension testing must be completed to provide assurance that the facility is fully operational. As part of this process, 10 CFR part 52 COL holders must provide written notification to the NRC that successful power ascension testing is completed. This notification is the trigger that enables operation at a steady-state reactor core power level equal to 100 percent of reactor thermal power as defined in the facility's final safety analysis report.

    As a result, the NRC recognizes that it would be fairer and more equitable to change the timing of when annual fees commence for 10 CFR part 52 licensees from when the Commission issues a § 52.103(g) finding to a time that aligns more closely with the licensee's facility becoming fully operational. For that reason, the NRC is proposing to defer charging annual fees until after the licensee's start-up and initial-testing phase. The NRC proposes to begin charging annual fees only after the licensee has notified the NRC in writing that it has successfully completed power ascension testing. For similar reasons, the NRC also proposes to apply this change to 10 CFR part 50 power reactor licensees.

    Because only current 10 CFR part 52 COLs contain a standard license condition that requires written notification be submitted to the NRC upon successful completion of power ascension testing, the NRC will consider adding a similar license condition to future 10 CFR part 50 operating licenses and 10 CFR part 52 COLs to ensure that they promptly notify the NRC of successful completion of power ascension testing. Upon successful completion of testing and the required notification to the NRC, the power reactor would be fully operational. The annual fee assessment for 10 CFR part 50 power reactor licensees and 10 CFR part 52 COL holders would therefore begin on the date of the licensee's written notification of successful completion of power ascension testing.

    Accordingly, the NRC proposes to amend § 171.15(a) so that annual fees commence not upon issuance of the operating license for 10 CFR part 50 power reactors and issuance of the § 52.103(g) finding for 10 CFR part 52 COL holders, but upon written notification to the NRC of successful completion of power ascension testing. The NRC finds that this proposal would be a reasonable, fair, and equitable revision of the NRC's fee rule. The public comments the NRC received on PRM-171-1 were supportive of this type of proposed change. Among the commenters were NEI, which represents numerous members of the class of licensees that would be directly impacted by this change. Because of this proposed policy change, the NRC also proposes to make conforming changes to revise § 171.3, “Scope,” and § 171.17, ”Proration.” Finally, the NRC will consider expanding the scope of this approach to apply to other 10 CFR part 50 licensees in a future rulemaking.

    FY 2020—Administrative Change

    The NRC also proposes to make one administrative change:

    Add a footnote to the table in § 171.16(d) for additional clarity.

    The NRC is proposing to add a footnote to the table in 10 CFR 171.16(d) to clarify that licensees that are subject to annual fees under fee categories 4.A., 4.B. or 4.C. are not subject to fees under Start Printed Page 93413.N. for waste disposal services authorized on the same license.

    Update on the Fees Transformation Initiative

    In the Staff Requirements Memorandum, dated October 19, 2016, (ADAMS Accession No. ML16293A902) for SECY-16-0097, “Fee Setting Improvements and Fiscal Year 2017 Proposed Fee Rule,” (ADAMS Accession No. ML16194A365), the Commission directed staff to explore, as a voluntary pilot, whether the NRC could establish a flat fee structure for routine licensing matters in the area of uranium recovery, and to accelerate the process improvements for setting fees, including the transition to an electronic billing system. In addition, the Commission also directed the staff to begin the fees transformation activities listed in SECY-16-0097 as “Process Changes Recommended for Future Consideration—FY 2018 and Beyond,” which includes one remaining item to complete regarding the rulemaking to update the NRC's small business size standards in 10 CFR 2.810, “NRC Size Standards.”

    With respect to the uranium recovery flat fee pilot initiative, the NRC explored the feasibility of establishing a flat fee structure for routine licensing matters and inspection activities. The NRC provided a report to Congress on January 9, 2020, describing the results of the pilot initiative and the decision to maintain the current NRC fee billing structure for 10 CFR part 170 fees for service for uranium recovery licensing matters. For more information, the report to Congress can be found at ADAMS Accession No. ML20010D684.

    With respect to the NRC's transition to an electronic billing system (eBilling), eBilling went live with a phased implementation on October 1, 2019, for 9 licensees with 65 dockets. Other licensees will be phased in throughout the year. The NRC is targeting October 2020 as the month when full implementation will take place.

    Finally, in order to obtain sufficient information to update the NRC's small business size standard in 10 CFR 2.810, the NRC is conducting a financial survey of materials licensees to determine whether changes to the size standards are needed. The NRC published a notice in the Federal Register (85 FR 6225; February 4, 2020) announcing the survey, with a requested due date of April 30, 2020, to complete the survey in order to achieve a high response rate. Licensees may submit a response to the survey electronically through the internet. This survey can be accessed, and responses entered, on the NRC public website at www.NRC.gov. At the bottom of the first screen under the section titled, ABOUT US, click on LICENSE FEES. Next screen, click in the box titled RELATED INFORMATION, click on the item Small Entity Classification Survey. Proceed to complete the survey. In addition, licensees were mailed a paper survey with an NRC-addressed, business reply return envelop included in the mailing, which can be submitted through the U.S. mail in lieu of responding to the survey electronical. The survey results will be used to acquire the data needed to determine if changes are needed, and the impact of changing the current nuclear industry-specific standards.

    For more information, please see our fees transformation accomplishments schedule, located on our license fees website at: https://www.nrc.gov/​about-nrc/​regulatory/​licensing/​fees-transformation-accomplishments.html.

    V. Regulatory Flexibility Certification

    As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended (RFA),[4] the NRC has prepared a regulatory flexibility analysis related to this proposed rule. The regulatory flexibility analysis is available as indicated in Section XIV, Availability of Documents, of this document.

    VI. Regulatory Analysis

    Under OBRA-90, the NRC is required to recover approximately 90 percent of its budget authority in FY 2020. The NRC established fee methodology guidelines for 10 CFR part 170 in 1978, and established additional fee methodology guidelines for 10 CFR part 171 in 1986. In subsequent rulemakings, the NRC has adjusted its fees without changing the underlying principles of its fee policy to ensure that the NRC continues to comply with the statutory requirements for cost recovery in OBRA-90.

    In this proposed rule, the NRC continues this longstanding approach. Therefore, the NRC did not identify any alternatives to the current fee structure guidelines and did not prepare a regulatory analysis for this proposed rule.

    VII. Backfitting and Issue Finality

    The NRC has determined that the backfit rule, 10 CFR 50.109, does not apply to this proposed rule and that a backfit analysis is not required. A backfit analysis is not required because these amendments do not require the modification of, or addition to, systems, structures, components, or the design of a facility, or the design approval or manufacturing license for a facility, or the procedures or organization required to design, construct, or operate a facility.

    VIII. Plain Writing

    The Plain Writing Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-274) requires Federal agencies to write documents in a clear, concise, and well-organized manner. The NRC has written this document to be consistent with the Plain Writing Act, as well as the Presidential Memorandum, “Plain Language in Government Writing,” published June 10, 1998 (63 FR 31885). The NRC requests comment on the proposed rule with respect to the clarity and effectiveness of the language used.

    IX. National Environmental Policy Act

    The rule is limited to amending the NRC's administrative requirements in 10 CFR parts 170 and 171. Therefore, this action is categorically excluded from needing environmental review, as described in § 51.22(c)(1). Consequently, neither an environmental impact statement nor an environmental assessment has been prepared for this proposed rule.

    X. Paperwork Reduction Act

    This proposed rule does not contain a collection of information as defined in the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and, therefore, is not subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

    Public Protection Notification

    The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless the document requesting or requiring the collection displays a currently valid OMB control number.

    XI. Voluntary Consensus Standards

    The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995, Public Law 104-113, requires that Federal agencies use technical standards that are developed or adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies unless the use of such a standard is inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise impractical. In this proposed rule, the NRC proposes to amend the licensing, inspection, and annual fees charged to its licensees and applicants, as necessary, to recover approximately 90 percent of its budget authority in FY 2020, as required by OBRA-90. This action does not constitute the establishment of a standard that Start Printed Page 9342contains generally applicable requirements.

    XII. Availability of Guidance

    The Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act requires all Federal agencies to prepare a written compliance guide for each rule for which the agency is required by 5 U.S.C. 604 to prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis. The NRC, in compliance with the law, prepared the “Small Entity Compliance Guide” for the FY 2019 proposed fee rule. The NRC plans to continue to use this compliance guide for FY 2020 and has relabeled the compliance guide to reflect the current fiscal year. The FY 2020 version of the compliance guide is available as indicated in Section XIV, Availability of Documents, of this document. The next compliance guide will be developed when the NRC completes the next small entity biennial review in FY 2021.

    XIII. Public Meeting

    The NRC will conduct a public meeting for the purpose of describing this proposed rule and answering questions from the public on this proposed rule. The NRC will publish a notice of the location, time, and agenda of the meeting on the NRC's public meeting website within at least 10 calendar days before the meeting. In addition, the agenda for the meeting will be posted on www.regulations.gov under Docket ID NRC-2017-0228. For instructions to receive alerts when changes or additions occur in a docket folder, see Section XIV, Availability of Documents, of this document. Stakeholders should monitor the NRC's public meeting website for information about the public meeting at: https://www.nrc.gov/​public-involve/​public-meetings/​index.cfm.

    XIV. Availability of Documents

    The documents identified in the following table are available to interested persons through one or more of the following methods, as indicated.

    DocumentsADAMS Accession No./Web Link
    SECY-05-0164, “Annual Fee Calculation Method,” dated September 15, 2005ML052580332.
    SECY-16-0097, “Fee Setting Improvements and Fiscal Year 2017 Proposed Fee Rule,” dated August 15, 2016ML16194A365.
    Staff Requirements Memorandum for SECY-16-0097, dated October 19, 2016ML16293A902.
    NUREG-1100, Volume 35, “Congressional Budget Justification: Fiscal Year 2020” (February 2019)ML19065A279.
    Petition for Rulemaking-171-1, “Petition to Amend 10 CFR 171.15, “Reactor Licenses and Independent Spent Fuel Storage Licenses,” dated February 28, 2019ML19081A015.
    “Nuclear Power Plant License Fees Upon Commencing Commercial Operation,” partial consideration in the rulemaking process (84 FR 65032; November 26, 2019)https://www.govinfo.gov/​content/​pkg/​FR-2019-11-26/​html/​2019-25581.htm.
    FY 2020 Proposed Rule Work PapersML19343A735.
    “Uranium Recovery Flat Fee Pilot Initiative: A Report for the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce”ML20010D684.
    FY 2020 Proposed Fee RuleML19312B014.
    FY 2020 Regulatory Flexibility AnalysisML19318G030.
    FY 2020 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Small Entity Compliance GuideML19318G044.
    NRC Form 526, “Certification of Small Entity Status for the Purposes of Annual Fees Imposed under 10 CFR Part 171https://www.nrc.gov/​reading-rm/​doc-collections/​forms/​nrc526.pdf.
    OMB Circular A-25, “User Charges”https://www.whitehouse.gov/​sites/​whitehouse.gov/​files/​omb/​assets/​OMB/​circulars/​a025/​a025.html.
    Fees Transformation Accomplishmentshttps://www.nrc.gov/​about-nrc/​regulatory/​licensing/​fees-transformation-accomplishments.html .
    Small Entity Classification Surveyhttps://forms.office.com/​Pages/​ResponsePage.aspx?​id=​dRTQ6LXDakOgZV3vTGT1LokV9jkSmnJMh_​vCoMIesDBUNUxHN0JSMkdDTlc0TzhMUUxKVktaRVVWVSQlQCN0PWcu.

    Throughout the development of this rule, the NRC may post documents related to this rule, including public comments, on the Federal Rulemaking website at https://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID NRC-2017-0228. The Federal Rulemaking website allows you to receive alerts when changes or additions occur in a docket folder. To subscribe: (1) Navigate to the docket folder NRC-2017-0228; (2) click the “Sign up for Email Alerts” link; and (3) enter your email address and select how frequently you would like to receive emails (daily, weekly, or monthly).

    Start List of Subjects

    List of Subjects

    10 CFR Part 170

    • Byproduct material
    • Import and export licenses
    • Intergovernmental relations
    • Non-payment penalties
    • Nuclear energy
    • Nuclear materials
    • Nuclear power plants and reactors
    • Source material
    • Special nuclear material

    10 CFR Part 171

    • Annual charges
    • Approvals
    • Byproduct material
    • Holders of certificates
    • Intergovernmental relations
    • Nonpayment penalties
    • Nuclear materials
    • Nuclear power plants and reactors
    • Registrations
    • Source material
    • Special nuclear material
    End List of Subjects

    For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, as amended; and 5 U.S.C. 552 and 553, the NRC is proposing to adopt the following amendments to 10 CFR parts 170 and 171:

    Start Part Start Printed Page 9343

    PART 170—FEES FOR FACILITIES, MATERIALS, IMPORT AND EXPORT LICENSES, AND OTHER REGULATORY SERVICES UNDER THE ATOMIC ENERGY ACT OF 1954, AS AMENDED

    End Part Start Amendment Part

    1. The authority citation for part 170 continues to read as follows:

    End Amendment Part Start Authority

    Authority: Atomic Energy Act of 1954, secs. 11, 161(w) (42 U.S.C. 2014, 2201(w)); Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, sec. 201 (42 U.S.C. 5841); 42 U.S.C. 2214; 31 U.S.C. 901, 902, 9701; 44 U.S.C. 3504 note.

    End Authority
    [Amended]
    Start Amendment Part

    2. In § 170.20, remove the dollar amount “$275” and add in its place the dollar amount “$279”.

    End Amendment Part Start Amendment Part

    3. In § 170.21, revise the entry for “K. Import and export licenses” and footnotes 1 and 6 to read as follows:

    End Amendment Part
    Schedule of fees for production and utilization facilities, review of standard referenced design approvals, special projects, inspections and import and export licenses.
    * * * * *

    Schedule of Facility Fees

    [See footnotes at end of table]

    Facility categories and type of feesFees 1 2
    *         *         *         *         *         *         *
    K. Import and export licenses: 6
    Licenses for the import and export only of production or utilization facilities or the export only of components for production or utilization facilities issued under 10 CFR part 110.
    1. Application for import or export of production or utilization facilities 4 (including reactors and other facilities) and exports of components requiring Commission and Executive Branch review, for example, actions under 10 CFR 110.40(b).
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    2. Application for export of reactor and other components requiring Executive Branch review, for example, those actions under 10 CFR 110.41(a).
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A
    3. Application for export of components requiring the assistance of the Executive Branch to obtain foreign government assurances.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A
    4. Application for export of facility components and equipment not requiring Commission or Executive Branch review, or obtaining foreign government assurances.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A
    5. Minor amendment of any active export or import license, for example, to extend the expiration date, change domestic information, or make other revisions which do not involve any substantive changes to license terms or conditions or to the type of facility or component authorized for export and, therefore, do not require in-depth analysis or review or consultation with the Executive Branch, U.S. host state, or foreign government authorities.
    Minor amendment to licenseN/A
    1 Fees will be charged for approvals issued under a specific exemption provision of the Commission's regulations under title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (e.g., 10 CFR 50.12, 10 CFR 73.5) and any other sections in effect now or in the future, regardless of whether the approval is in the form of a license amendment, letter of approval, safety evaluation report, or other form.
    2 Full cost fees will be determined based on the professional staff time and appropriate contractual support services expended. For applications currently on file and for which fees are determined based on the full cost expended for the review, the professional staff hours expended for the review of the application up to the effective date of the final rule will be determined at the professional rates in effect when the service was provided.
    3 *         *         *         *         *         *         *
    4 Imports only of major components for end-use at NRC-licensed reactors are authorized under NRC general import license in 10 CFR 110.27.
    *         *         *         *         *         *         *
    6 Because the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, excludes international activities from the fee-recoverable budget in FY 2020, import and export licensing actions will not be charged fees.
    Start Amendment Part

    4. In § 170.31, revise the table to read as follows:

    End Amendment Part
    Schedule of fees for materials licenses and other regulatory services, including inspections, and import and export licenses.
    * * * * *

    Table 1 to § 170.31—Schedule of Materials Fees

    [See footnotes at end of table]

    Category of materials licenses and type of fees 1Fees 2 3
    1. Special nuclear material: 11
    A. (1) Licenses for possession and use of U-235 or plutonium for fuel fabrication activities.
    (a) Strategic Special Nuclear Material (High Enriched Uranium) 6 [Program Code(s): 21213]Full Cost.
    (b) Low Enriched Uranium in Dispersible Form Used for Fabrication of Power Reactor Fuel 6 [Program Code(s): 21210]Full Cost.
    (2) All other special nuclear materials licenses not included in Category 1.A. (1) which are licensed for fuel cycle activities.6
    (a) Facilities with limited operations 6 [Program Code(s): 21240, 21310, 21320]Full Cost.
    (b) Gas centrifuge enrichment demonstration facilities.6 [Program Code(s): 21205]Full Cost.
    (c) Others, including hot cell facilities.6[Program Code(s): 21130, 21133]Full Cost.
    Start Printed Page 9344
    B. Licenses for receipt and storage of spent fuel and reactor-related Greater than Class C (GTCC) waste at an independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) 6 [Program Code(s): 23200]Full Cost.
    C. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear material of less than a critical mass as defined in § 70.4 in sealed sources contained in devices used in industrial measuring systems, including x-ray fluorescence analyzers.4
    Application [Program Code(s): 22140]$1,300.
    D. All other special nuclear material licenses, except licenses authorizing special nuclear material in sealed or unsealed form in combination that would constitute a critical mass, as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, for which the licensee shall pay the same fees as those under Category 1.A.4
    Application [Program Code(s): 22110, 22111, 22120, 22131, 22136, 22150, 22151, 22161, 22170, 23100, 23300, 23310]$2,600.
    E. Licenses or certificates for construction and operation of a uranium enrichment facility 6 [Program Code(s): 21200]Full Cost.
    F. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear material greater than critical mass as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, for development and testing of commercial products, and other non-fuel-cycle activities.4 6 [Program Code(s): 22155]Full Cost.
    2. Source material: 11
    A. (1) Licenses for possession and use of source material for refining uranium mill concentrates to uranium hexafluoride or for deconverting uranium hexafluoride in the production of uranium oxides for disposal.6 [Program Code(s): 11400]Full Cost.
    (2) Licenses for possession and use of source material in recovery operations such as milling, in-situ recovery, heap-leaching, ore buying stations, ion-exchange facilities, and in processing of ores containing source material for extraction of metals other than uranium or thorium, including licenses authorizing the possession of byproduct waste material (tailings) from source material recovery operations, as well as licenses authorizing the possession and maintenance of a facility in a standby mode.6
    (a) Conventional and Heap Leach facilities 6 [Program Code(s): 11100]Full Cost.
    (b) Basic In Situ Recovery facilities 6 [Program Code(s): 11500]Full Cost.
    (c) Expanded In Situ Recovery facilities 6 [Program Code(s): 11510]Full Cost.
    (d) In Situ Recovery Resin facilities 6 [Program Code(s): 11550]Full Cost.
    (e) Resin Toll Milling facilities 6 [Program Code(s): 11555]Full Cost.
    (f) Other facilities6 [Program Code(s): 11700]Full Cost.
    (3) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal, except those licenses subject to the fees in Category 2.A.(2) or Category 2.A.(4) 6 [Program Code(s): 11600, 12000]Full Cost.
    (4) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal incidental to the disposal of the uranium waste tailings generated by the licensee's milling operations, except those licenses subject to the fees in Category 2.A.(2) 6 [Program Code(s): 12010]Full Cost.
    B. Licenses which authorize the possession, use, and/or installation of source material for shielding.7 8
    Application [Program Code(s): 11210]$1,200.
    C. Licenses to distribute items containing source material to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 40 of this chapter.
    Application [Program Code(s): 11240]$4,300.
    D. Licenses to distribute source material to persons generally licensed under part 40 of this chapter.
    Application [Program Code(s): 11230, 11231].$2,800.
    E. Licenses for possession and use of source material for processing or manufacturing of products or materials containing source material for commercial distribution.
    Application [Program Code(s): 11710]$2,700.
    F. All other source material licenses.
    Application [Program Code(s): 11200, 11220, 11221, 11300, 11800, 11810, 11820]$2,700.
    3. Byproduct material: 11
    A. Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03211, 03212, 03213]$13,100.
    (1). Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 6-20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04010, 04012, 04014]$17,400.
    (2). Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04011, 04013, 04015]$21,700.
    B. Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03214, 03215, 22135, 22162]$3,600.
    (1). Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 6-20
    Application [Program Code(s): 04110, 04112, 04114, 04116]$4,800.
    (2). Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04111, 04113, 04115, 04117]$6,000.
    Start Printed Page 9345
    C. Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapter that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kits, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational institutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 02500, 02511, 02513]$5,200.
    (1). Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapter that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kits, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational institutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Number of locations of use: 6-20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04210, 04212, 04214]$6,900.
    (2). Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapter that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kits, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational institutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04211, 04213, 04215]$8,700.
    D. [Reserved]N/A.
    E. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of materials in which the source is not removed from its shield (self-shielded units).
    Application [Program Code(s): 03510, 03520]$3,200.
    F. Licenses for possession and use of less than or equal to 10,000 curies of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of materials in which the source is exposed for irradiation purposes. This category also includes underwater irradiators for irradiation of materials where the source is not exposed for irradiation purposes.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03511]$6,500.
    G. Licenses for possession and use of greater than 10,000 curies of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of materials in which the source is exposed for irradiation purposes. This category also includes underwater irradiators for irradiation of materials where the source is not exposed for irradiation purposes.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03521]$62,300.
    H. Licenses issued under subpart A of part 32 of this chapter to distribute items containing byproduct material that require device review to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter. The category does not include specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03254, 03255, 03257]$6,700.
    I. Licenses issued under subpart A of part 32 of this chapter to distribute items containing byproduct material or quantities of byproduct material that do not require device evaluation to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter. This category does not include specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03250, 03251, 03252, 03253, 03256]$11,600.
    J. Licenses issued under subpart B of part 32 of this chapter to distribute items containing byproduct material that require sealed source and/or device review to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter. This category does not include specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03240, 03241, 03243]$2,000.
    K. Licenses issued under subpart B of part 32 of this chapter to distribute items containing byproduct material or quantities of byproduct material that do not require sealed source and/or device review to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter. This category does not include specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03242, 03244]$1,100.
    L. Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 01100, 01110, 01120, 03610, 03611, 03612, 03613]$5,500.
    (1) Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 6-20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04610, 04612, 04614, 04616, 04618, 04620, 04622]$7,300.
    (2) Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04611, 04613, 04615, 04617, 04619, 04621, 04623]$9,100.
    M. Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03620]$8,300.
    N. Licenses that authorize services for other licensees, except:
    (1) Licenses that authorize only calibration and/or leak testing services are subject to the fees specified in fee Category 3.P.; and
    (2) Licenses that authorize waste disposal services are subject to the fees specified in fee Categories 4.A., 4.B., and 4.C.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03219, 03225, 03226]$8,900.
    O. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operations. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03310, 03320]$6,400.
    Start Printed Page 9346
    (1). Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operations. Number of locations of use: 6-20
    Application [Program Code(s): 04310, 04312]$8,500.
    (2). Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operations. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04311, 04313]$10,600
    P. All other specific byproduct material licenses, except those in Categories 4.A. through 9.D. 9 Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 02400, 02410, 03120, 03121, 03122, 03123, 03124, 03130, 03140, 03220, 03221, 03222, 03800, 03810, 22130]$4,700.
    (1). All other specific byproduct material licenses, except those in Categories 4.A. through 9.D. 9 Number of locations of use: 6-20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04410, 04412, 04414, 04416, 04418, 04420, 04422, 04424, 04426, 04428, 04430, 04432, 04434, 04436, 04438]$6,300.
    (2). All other specific byproduct material licenses, except those in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.9 Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04411, 04413, 04415, 04417, 04419, 04421, 04423, 04425, 04427, 04429, 04431, 04433, 04435, 04437, 04439]$7,900.
    Q. Registration of a device(s) generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter
    Registration$600.
    R. Possession of items or products containing radium-226 identified in 10 CFR 31.12 which exceed the number of items or limits specified in that section.5
    1. Possession of quantities exceeding the number of items or limits in 10 CFR 31.12(a)(4) or (5) but less than or equal to 10 times the number of items or limits specified.
    Application [Program Code(s): 02700]$2,600.
    2. Possession of quantities exceeding 10 times the number of items or limits specified in 10 CFR 31.12(a)(4) or (5). Application [Program Code(s): 02710]
    S. Licenses for production of accelerator-produced radionuclides.$2,500
    Application [Program Code(s): 03210]$14,300.
    4. Waste disposal and processing: 11
    A. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of waste byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material from other persons for the purpose of contingency storage or commercial land disposal by the licensee; or licenses authorizing contingency storage of low-level radioactive waste at the site of nuclear power reactors; or licenses for receipt of waste from other persons for incineration or other treatment, packaging of resulting waste and residues, and transfer of packages to another person authorized to receive or dispose of waste material.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03231, 03233, 03236, 06100, 06101]Full Cost.
    B. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of waste byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material from other persons for the purpose of packaging or repackaging the material. The licensee will dispose of the material by transfer to another person authorized to receive or dispose of the material.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03234]$6,900.
    C. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of prepackaged waste byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material from other persons. The licensee will dispose of the material by transfer to another person authorized to receive or dispose of the material.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03232]$5,000.
    5. Well logging: 11
    A. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material for well logging, well surveys, and tracer studies other than field flooding tracer studies.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03110, 03111, 03112]$4,600.
    B. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material for field flooding tracer studies.
    Licensing [Program Code(s): 03113]Full Cost.
    6. Nuclear laundries: 11
    A. Licenses for commercial collection and laundry of items contaminated with byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03218]$22,200.
    7. Medical licenses: 11
    A. Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therapy devices. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 02300, 02310]$11,200.
    (1). Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therapy devices. Number of locations of use: 6-20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04510, 04512]$14,800.
    (2). Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therapy devices. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04511, 04513]$18,500.
    Start Printed Page 9347
    B. Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license. Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 02110]$8,700.
    (1). Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license. Number of locations of use: 6-20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04710]$11,600.
    (2). Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license. Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04711]$14,500.
    C. Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices.10 Number of locations of use: 1-5.
    Application [Program Code(s): 02120, 02121, 02200, 02201, 02210, 02220, 02230, 02231, 02240, 22160]$6,600
    (1). Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices.10 Number of locations of use: 6-20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04810, 04812, 04814, 04816, 04818, 04820, 04822, 04824, 04826, 04828]$8,800.
    (2). Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices.10 Number of locations of use: more than 20.
    Application [Program Code(s): 04811,04813, 04815, 04817, 04819, 04821,04823, 04825, 04827, 04829]$10,900.
    8. Civil defense:11
    A. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material for civil defense activities.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03710]$2,600.
    9. Device, product, or sealed source safety evaluation:
    A. Safety evaluation of devices or products containing byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material, except reactor fuel devices, for commercial distribution.
    Application—each device$10,900.
    B. Safety evaluation of devices or products containing byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material manufactured in accordance with the unique specifications of, and for use by, a single applicant, except reactor fuel devices.
    Application—each device$9,000.
    C. Safety evaluation of sealed sources containing byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material, except reactor fuel, for commercial distribution.
    Application—each source$5,300.
    D. Safety evaluation of sealed sources containing byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material, manufactured in accordance with the unique specifications of, and for use by, a single applicant, except reactor fuel.
    Application—each source$1,100.
    10. Transportation of radioactive material:
    A. Evaluation of casks, packages, and shipping containers.
    1. Spent Fuel, High-Level Waste, and plutonium air packagesFull Cost.
    2. Other CasksFull Cost.
    B. Quality assurance program approvals issued under part 71 of this chapter.
    1. Users and Fabricators
    Application$4,200.
    InspectionsFull Cost.
    2. Users.
    Application$4,200.
    InspectionsFull Cost.
    C. Evaluation of security plans, route approvals, route surveys, and transportation security devices (including immobilization devices)Full Cost.
    11. Review of standardized spent fuel facilities.Full Cost.
    12. Special projects:
    Including approvals, pre-application/licensing activities, and inspections.
    Application [Program Code: 25110]Full Cost.
    13. A. Spent fuel storage cask Certificate of ComplianceFull Cost.
    B. Inspections related to storage of spent fuel under § 72.210 of this chapterFull Cost.
    14. Decommissioning/Reclamation 11
    Start Printed Page 9348
    A. Byproduct, source, or special nuclear material licenses and other approvals authorizing decommissioning, decontamination, reclamation, or site restoration activities under parts 30, 40, 70, 72, and 76 of this chapter, including master materials licenses (MMLs). The transition to this fee category occurs when a licensee has permanently ceased principal activities. [Program Code(s): 03900, 11900, 21135, 21215, 21240, 21325, 22200]Full Cost.
    B. Site-specific decommissioning activities associated with unlicensed sites, including MMLs, regardless of whether or not the sites have been previously licensed.Full Cost.
    15. Import and Export licenses: 12
    Licenses issued under part 110 of this chapter for the import and export only of special nuclear material, source material, tritium and other byproduct material, and the export only of heavy water, or nuclear grade graphite (fee categories 15.A. through 15.E.).
    A. Application for export or import of nuclear materials, including radioactive waste requiring Commission and Executive Branch review, for example, those actions under 10 CFR 110.40(b).
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    B. Application for export or import of nuclear material, including radioactive waste, requiring Executive Branch review, but not Commission review. This category includes applications for the export and import of radioactive waste and requires the NRC to consult with domestic host state authorities (i.e., Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact Commission, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, etc.).
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    C. Application for export of nuclear material, for example, routine reloads of low enriched uranium reactor fuel and/or natural uranium source material requiring the assistance of the Executive Branch to obtain foreign government assurances.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A
    D. Application for export or import of nuclear material not requiring Commission or Executive Branch review, or obtaining foreign government assurances.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    E. Minor amendment of any active export or import license, for example, to extend the expiration date, change domestic information, or make other revisions which do not involve any substantive changes to license terms and conditions or to the type/quantity/chemical composition of the material authorized for export and, therefore, do not require in-depth analysis, review, or consultations with other Executive Branch, U.S. host state, or foreign government authorities.
    Minor amendmentN/A
    Licenses issued under part 110 of this chapter for the import and export only of Category 1 and Category 2 quantities of radioactive material listed in appendix P to part 110 of this chapter (fee categories 15.F. through 15.R.). Category 1 (Appendix P, 10 CFR Part 110) Exports:
    F. Application for export of appendix P Category 1 materials requiring Commission review (e.g. exceptional circumstance review under 10 CFR 110.42(e)(4)) and to obtain one government-to-government consent for this process. For additional consent see fee category 15.I.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    G. Application for export of appendix P Category 1 materials requiring Executive Branch review and to obtain one government-to-government consent for this process. For additional consents see fee category 15.I.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    H. Application for export of appendix P Category 1 materials and to obtain one government-to-government consent for this process. For additional consents see fee category 15.I.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A
    I. Requests for each additional government-to-government consent in support of an export license application or active export license.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    Category 2 (Appendix P, 10 CFR Part 110) Exports:
    J. Application for export of appendix P Category 2 materials requiring Commission review (e.g. exceptional circumstance review under 10 CFR 110.42(e)(4)).
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    K. Applications for export of appendix P Category 2 materials requiring Executive Branch review.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    L. Application for the export of Category 2 materials.
    Application—new license, or amendment; or license exemption requestN/A.
    M. [Reserved]N/A.
    N. [Reserved]N/A.
    O. [Reserved]N/A.
    P. [Reserved]N/A.
    Q. [Reserved]N/A.
    Minor Amendments (Category 1 and 2, Appendix P, 10 CFR Part 110, Export):
    R. Minor amendment of any active export license, for example, to extend the expiration date, change domestic information, or make other revisions which do not involve any substantive changes to license terms and conditions or to the type/quantity/chemical composition of the material authorized for export and, therefore, do not require in-depth analysis, review, or consultations with other Executive Branch, U.S. host state, or foreign authorities.
    Minor amendmentN/A.
    16. Reciprocity:
    Agreement State licensees who conduct activities under the reciprocity provisions of 10 CFR 150.20.
    Application$2,100.
    17. Master materials licenses of broad scope issued to Government agencies.
    Application [Program Code(s): 03614]Full Cost.
    18. Department of Energy.
    Start Printed Page 9349
    A. Certificates of Compliance. Evaluation of casks, packages, and shipping containers (including spent fuel, high-level waste, and other casks, and plutonium air packages).Full Cost.
    B. Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) activities.Full Cost.
    1Types of fees—Separate charges, as shown in the schedule, will be assessed for pre-application consultations and reviews; applications for new licenses, approvals, or license terminations; possession-only licenses; issuances of new licenses and approvals; certain amendments and renewals to existing licenses and approvals; safety evaluations of sealed sources and devices; generally licensed device registrations; and certain inspections. The following guidelines apply to these charges:
    (a) Application and registration fees. Applications for new materials licenses and export and import licenses; applications to reinstate expired, terminated, or inactive licenses, except those subject to fees assessed at full costs; applications filed by Agreement State licensees to register under the general license provisions of 10 CFR 150.20; and applications for amendments to materials licenses that would place the license in a higher fee category or add a new fee category must be accompanied by the prescribed application fee for each category.
    (1) Applications for licenses covering more than one fee category of special nuclear material or source material must be accompanied by the prescribed application fee for the highest fee category.
    (2) Applications for new licenses that cover both byproduct material and special nuclear material in sealed sources for use in gauging devices will pay the appropriate application fee for fee category 1.C. only.
    (b) Licensing fees. Fees for reviews of applications for new licenses, renewals, and amendments to existing licenses, pre-application consultations and other documents submitted to the NRC for review, and project manager time for fee categories subject to full cost fees are due upon notification by the Commission in accordance with § 170.12(b).
    (c) Amendment fees. Applications for amendments to export and import licenses must be accompanied by the prescribed amendment fee for each license affected. An application for an amendment to an export or import license or approval classified in more than one fee category must be accompanied by the prescribed amendment fee for the category affected by the amendment, unless the amendment is applicable to two or more fee categories, in which case the amendment fee for the highest fee category would apply.
    (d) Inspection fees. Inspections resulting from investigations conducted by the Office of Investigations and nonroutine inspections that result from third-party allegations are not subject to fees. Inspection fees are due upon notification by the Commission in accordance with § 170.12(c).
    (e) Generally licensed device registrations under 10 CFR 31.5. Submittals of registration information must be accompanied by the prescribed fee.
    2 Fees will be charged for approvals issued under a specific exemption provision of the Commission's regulations under title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (e.g., 10 CFR 30.11, 40.14, 70.14, 73.5, and any other sections in effect now or in the future), regardless of whether the approval is in the form of a license amendment, letter of approval, safety evaluation report, or other form. In addition to the fee shown, an applicant may be assessed an additional fee for sealed source and device evaluations as shown in fee categories 9.A. through 9.D.
    3 Full cost fees will be determined based on the professional staff time multiplied by the appropriate professional hourly rate established in § 170.20 in effect when the service is provided, and the appropriate contractual support services expended.
    4 Licensees paying fees under categories 1.A., 1.B., and 1.E. are not subject to fees under categories 1.C., 1.D. and 1.F. for sealed sources authorized in the same license, except for an application that deals only with the sealed sources authorized by the license.
    5 Persons who possess radium sources that are used for operational purposes in another fee category are not also subject to the fees in this category. (This exception does not apply if the radium sources are possessed for storage only.)
    6 Licensees subject to fees under fee categories 1.A., 1.B., 1.E., or 2.A. must pay the largest applicable fee and are not subject to additional fees listed in this table.
    7 Licensees paying fees under 3.C., 3.C.1, or 3.C.2 are not subject to fees under 2.B. for possession and shielding authorized on the same license.
    8 Licensees paying fees under 7.C. are not subject to fees under 2.B. for possession and shielding authorized on the same license.
    9 Licensees paying fees under 3.N. are not subject to paying fees under 3.P., 3.P.1, or 3.P.2 for calibration or leak testing services authorized on the same license.
    10 Licensees paying fees under 7.B., 7.B.1, or 7.B.2 are not subject to paying fees under 7.C., 7.C.1, or 7.C.2. for broad scope licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices authorized on the same license.
    11 A materials license (or part of a materials license) that transitions to fee category 14.A is assessed full-cost fees under 10 CFR part 170, but is not assessed an annual fee under 10 CFR part 171. If only part of a materials license is transitioned to fee category 14.A, the licensee may be charged annual fees (and any applicable 10 CFR part 170 fees) for other activities authorized under the license that are not in decommissioning status.
    12 Because the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, excludes international activities from the fee-recoverable budget in FY 2020, import and export licensing actions will not be charged fees.
    Start Part

    PART 171—ANNUAL FEES FOR REACTOR LICENSES AND FUEL CYCLE LICENSES AND MATERIALS LICENSES, INCLUDING HOLDERS OF CERTIFICATES OF COMPLIANCE, REGISTRATIONS, AND QUALITY ASSURANCE PROGRAM APPROVALS AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES LICENSED BY THE NRC

    End Part Start Amendment Part

    5. The authority citation for part 171 continues to read as follows:

    End Amendment Part Start Authority

    Authority: Atomic Energy Act of 1954, secs. 11, 161(w), 223, 234 (42 U.S.C. 2014, 2201(w), 2273, 2282); Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, sec. 201 (42 U.S.C. 5841); 42 U.S.C. 2214; 44 U.S.C. 3504 note.

    End Authority Start Amendment Part

    6. Revise § 171.3 to read as follows:

    End Amendment Part
    Scope.

    The regulations in this part apply to any person holding an operating license for a test reactor or research reactor issued under part 50 of this chapter, and to any person holding an operating license for a power reactor licensed under 10 CFR part 50 or a combined license issued under 10 CFR part 52 that has provided notification to the NRC that the licensee has successfully completed power ascension testing. The regulations in this part also apply to any person holding a materials license as defined in this part, a Certificate of Compliance, a sealed source or device registration, a quality assurance program approval, and to a Government agency as defined in this part. Notwithstanding the other provisions in this section, the regulations in this part do not apply to uranium recovery and fuel facility licensees until after the Commission verifies through inspection that the facility has been constructed in accordance with the requirements of the license.

    Start Amendment Part

    7. In § 171.15, revise paragraphs (a), (b)(1) and (2) introductory text, (c)(1) and (2) introductory text, (d)(1) introductory text, (d)(2) and (3), and (f) to read as follows:

    End Amendment Part
    Start Printed Page 9350
    Annual fees: Reactor licenses and independent spent fuel storage licenses.

    (a) Each person holding an operating license for a test or research reactor; each person holding an operating license for a power reactor licensed under 10 CFR part 50 or a combined license under 10 CFR part 52 that has provided notification to the NRC that the licensee has successfully completed power ascension testing; each person holding a 10 CFR part 50 or 10 CFR part 52 power reactor license that is in decommissioning or possession only status, except those that have no spent fuel onsite; and each person holding a 10 CFR part 72 license who does not hold a 10 CFR part 50 or 10 CFR part 52 license and provides notification in accordance with 10 CFR 72.80(g), shall pay the annual fee for each license held during the Federal fiscal year in which the fee is due. This paragraph (a) does not apply to test or research reactors exempted under § 171.11(b).

    (b)(1) The FY 2020 annual fee for each operating power reactor that must be collected by September 30, 2020, is $4,534,000.

    (2) The FY 2020 annual fees are comprised of a base annual fee for power reactors licensed to operate, a base spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning annual fee, and associated additional charges (fee-relief adjustment). The activities comprising the spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning base annual fee are shown in paragraphs (c)(2)(i) and (ii) of this section. The activities comprising the FY 2020 fee-relief adjustment are shown in paragraph (d)(1) of this section. The activities comprising the FY 2020 base annual fee for operating power reactors are as follows:

    * * * * *

    (c)(1) The FY 2020 annual fee for each power reactor holding a 10 CFR part 50 license or combined license issued under 10 CFR part 52 that is in a decommissioning or possession-only status and has spent fuel onsite, and for each independent spent fuel storage 10 CFR part 72 licensee who does not hold a 10 CFR part 50 license or a 10 CFR part 52 combined license, is $172,000.

    (2) The FY 2020 annual fee is comprised of a base spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning annual fee (which is also included in the operating power reactor annual fee shown in paragraph (b) of this section) and a fee-relief adjustment. The activities comprising the FY 2020 fee-relief adjustment are shown in paragraph (d)(1) of this section. The activities comprising the FY 2020 spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning rebaselined annual fee are:

    * * * * *

    (d)(1) The fee-relief adjustment allocated to annual fees includes a surcharge for the activities listed in paragraph (d)(1)(i) of this section, plus the amount remaining after total budgeted resources for the activities included in paragraphs (d)(1)(ii) and (iii) of this section are reduced by the appropriations the NRC receives for these types of activities. If the NRC's appropriations for these types of activities are greater than the budgeted resources for the activities included in paragraphs (d)(1)(ii) and (iii) of this section for a given fiscal year, annual fees will be reduced. The activities comprising the FY 2020 fee-relief adjustment are as follows:

    * * * * *

    (2) The total FY 2020 fee-relief adjustment allocated to the operating power reactor class of licenses is a $1,484,630 fee-relief credit, not including the amount allocated to the spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning class. The FY 2020 operating power reactor fee-relief adjustment to be assessed to each operating power reactor is approximately a $15,628 fee-relief credit. This amount is calculated by dividing the total operating power reactor fee-relief credit, $1,484,630, by the number of operating power reactors (95).

    (3) The FY 2020 fee-relief adjustment allocated to the spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning class of licenses is a $92,071 fee-relief credit. The FY 2020 spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning fee relief adjustment to be assessed to each operating power reactor, each power reactor in decommissioning or possession-only status that has spent fuel onsite, and to each independent spent fuel storage 10 CFR part 72 licensee who does not hold a 10 CFR part 50 license, is a $755 fee-relief credit. This amount is calculated by dividing the total fee-relief credit by the total number of power reactors licenses, except those that permanently ceased operations and have no fuel onsite, and 10 CFR part 72 licensees who do not hold a 10 CFR part 50 license.

    * * * * *

    (f) The FY 2020 annual fees for licensees authorized to operate a research or test (non-power) reactor licensed under 10 CFR part 50, unless the reactor is exempted from fees under § 171.11(a), are as follows:

    Table 2 to Paragraph (f)

    Research reactor$79,200
    Test reactor79,200
    Start Amendment Part

    8. In § 171.16, revise paragraphs (c), (d), and (e) introductory text to read as follows:

    End Amendment Part
    Annual fees: Materials licensees, holders of certificates of compliance, holders of sealed source and device registrations, holders of quality assurance program approvals, and government agencies licensed by the NRC.
    * * * * *

    (c) A licensee who is required to pay an annual fee under this section, in addition to 10 CFR part 72 licenses, may qualify as a small entity. If a licensee qualifies as a small entity and provides the Commission with the proper certification along with its annual fee payment, the licensee may pay reduced annual fees as shown in table 1 to this paragraph (c). Failure to file a small entity certification in a timely manner could result in the receipt of a delinquent invoice requesting the outstanding balance due and/or denial of any refund that might otherwise be due. The small entity fees are as follows:

    Table 1 to Paragraph (c)

    NRC small entity classificationMaximum annual fee per licensed category
    Small Businesses Not Engaged in Manufacturing (Average gross receipts over last 3 completed fiscal years):
    $485,000 to $7 million$4,500
    Less than $485,000900
    Small Not-For-Profit Organizations (Annual Gross Receipts):
    $485,000 to $7 million4,500
    Start Printed Page 9351
    Less than $485,000900
    Manufacturing Entities that Have An Average of 500 Employees or Fewer:
    35 to 500 employees4,500
    Fewer than 35 employees900
    Small Governmental Jurisdictions (Including publicly supported educational institutions) (Population):
    20,000 to 49,9994,500
    Fewer than 20,000900
    Educational Institutions that are not State or Publicly Supported, and have 500 Employees or Fewer
    35 to 500 employees4,500
    Fewer than 35 employees900

    (d) The FY 2020 annual fees are comprised of a base annual fee and an allocation for fee-relief adjustment. The activities comprising the FY 2020 fee-relief adjustment are shown for convenience in paragraph (e) of this section. The FY 2020 annual fees for materials licensees and holders of certificates, registrations, or approvals subject to fees under this section are shown in table 2 to this paragraph (d):

    Table 2 to Paragraph (d)—Schedule of Materials Annual Fees and Fees for Government Agencies Licensed by NRC

    [See footnotes at end of table]

    Category of materials licensesAnnual fees 1 2 3
    1. Special nuclear material:
    A. (1) Licenses for possession and use of U-235 or plutonium for fuel fabrication activities
    (a) Strategic Special Nuclear Material (High Enriched Uranium)15 [Program Code(s): 21130]$4,944,000
    (b) Low Enriched Uranium in Dispersible Form Used for Fabrication of Power Reactor Fuel 15 [Program Code(s): 21210]$1,675,000
    (2) All other special nuclear materials licenses not included in Category 1.A.(1) which are licensed for fuel cycle activities.
    (a) Facilities with limited operations 15 [Program Code(s): 21310, 21320]N/A
    (b) Gas centrifuge enrichment demonstration facility 15N/A
    (c) Others, including hot cell facility 15N/A
    B. Licenses for receipt and storage of spent fuel and reactor-related Greater than Class C (GTCC) waste at an independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) 1115 [Program Code(s): 23200]N/A
    C. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear material of less than a critical mass, as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, in sealed sources contained in devices used in industrial measuring systems, including x-ray fluorescence analyzers. [Program Code(s): 22140]$2,800
    D. All other special nuclear material licenses, except licenses authorizing special nuclear material in sealed or unsealed form in combination that would constitute a critical mass, as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, for which the licensee shall pay the same fees as those under Category 1.A. [Program Code(s): 22110, 22111, 22120, 22131, 22136, 22150, 22151, 22161, 22170, 23100, 23300, 23310]$7,100
    E. Licenses or certificates for the operation of a uranium enrichment facility 15 [Program Code(s): 21200]$2,154,000
    F. Licenses for possession and use of special nuclear materials greater than critical mass, as defined in § 70.4 of this chapter, for development and testing of commercial products, and other non-fuel cycle activities.4 [Program Code: 22155]$5,100
    2. Source material:
    A. (1) Licenses for possession and use of source material for refining uranium mill concentrates to uranium hexafluoride or for deconverting uranium hexafluoride in the production of uranium oxides for disposal.15 [Program Code: 11400]$1,049,000
    (2) Licenses for possession and use of source material in recovery operations such as milling, in-situ recovery, heap-leaching, ore buying stations, ion-exchange facilities and in-processing of ores containing source material for extraction of metals other than uranium or thorium, including licenses authorizing the possession of byproduct waste material (tailings) from source material recovery operations, as well as licenses authorizing the possession and maintenance of a facility in a standby mode.
    (a) Conventional and Heap Leach facilities.15 [Program Code(s): 11100]N/A
    (b) Basic In Situ Recovery facilities.15 [Program Code(s): 11500]$49,200
    (c) Expanded In Situ Recovery facilities15 [Program Code(s): 11510]N/A
    (d) In Situ Recovery Resin facilities.15 [Program Code(s): 11550]5 N/A
    (e) Resin Toll Milling facilities.15 [Program Code(s): 11555]5 N/A
    (3) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal, except those licenses subject to the fees in Category 2.A.(2) or Category 2.A.(4).15 [Program Code(s): 11600, 12000]5 N/A
    (4) Licenses that authorize the receipt of byproduct material, as defined in Section 11e.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act, from other persons for possession and disposal incidental to the disposal of the uranium waste tailings generated by the licensee's milling operations, except those licenses subject to the fees in Category 2.A.(2).15 [Program Code(s): 12010]N/A
    B. Licenses which authorize the possession, use, and/or installation of source material for shielding.1617 Application [Program Code(s): 11210]$3,100
    Start Printed Page 9352
    C. Licenses to distribute items containing source material to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 40 of this chapter. [Program Code: 11240]$7,700
    D. Licenses to distribute source material to persons generally licensed under part 40 of this chapter. [Program Code(s): 11230 and 11231]$6,000
    E. Licenses for possession and use of source material for processing or manufacturing of products or materials containing source material for commercial distribution. [Program Code: 11710]$7,500
    F. All other source material licenses. [Program Code(s): 11200, 11220, 11221, 11300, 11800, 11810, 11820]$9,200
    3. Byproduct material:
    A. Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 03211, 03212, 03213]$28,000
    (1). Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 03211, 03212, 03213]$37,100
    (2). Licenses of broad scope for the possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04011, 04013, 04015]$46,300
    B. Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 03214, 03215, 22135, 22162]$11,400
    (1). Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04110, 04112, 04114, 04116]$15,000
    (2). Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for processing or manufacturing of items containing byproduct material for commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04111, 04113, 04115, 04117]$18,700
    C. Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapter that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kits, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational institutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 02500, 02511, 02513]$10,500
    (1). Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapter that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kits, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational institutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04210, 04212, 04214]$13,900
    (2). Licenses issued under §§ 32.72 and/or 32.74 of this chapter that authorize the processing or manufacturing and distribution or redistribution of radiopharmaceuticals, generators, reagent kits, and/or sources and devices containing byproduct material. This category does not apply to licenses issued to nonprofit educational institutions whose processing or manufacturing is exempt under § 170.11(a)(4). Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04211, 04213, 04215]$17,400
    D. [Reserved]5 N/A
    E. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of materials in which the source is not removed from its shield (self-shielded units). [Program Code(s): 03510, 03520]$11,700
    F. Licenses for possession and use of less than or equal to 10,000 curies of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of materials in which the source is exposed for irradiation purposes. This category also includes underwater irradiators for irradiation of materials in which the source is not exposed for irradiation purposes. [Program Code(s): 03511]$10,700
    G. Licenses for possession and use of greater than 10,000 curies of byproduct material in sealed sources for irradiation of materials in which the source is exposed for irradiation purposes. This category also includes underwater irradiators for irradiation of materials in which the source is not exposed for irradiation purposes. [Program Code(s): 03521]$85,100
    H. Licenses issued under subpart A of part 32 of this chapter to distribute items containing byproduct material that require device review to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter, except specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter. [Program Code(s): 03254, 03255, 03257]$10,600
    I. Licenses issued under subpart A of part 32 of this chapter to distribute items containing byproduct material or quantities of byproduct material that do not require device evaluation to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter, except for specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons exempt from the licensing requirements of part 30 of this chapter. [Program Code(s): 03250, 03251, 03252, 03253, 03256]$16,900
    J. Licenses issued under subpart B of part 32 of this chapter to distribute items containing byproduct material that require sealed source and/or device review to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter, except specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter. [Program Code(s): 03240, 03241, 03243]$4,100
    K. Licenses issued under subpart B of part 32 of this chapter to distribute items containing byproduct material or quantities of byproduct material that do not require sealed source and/or device review to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter, except specific licenses authorizing redistribution of items that have been authorized for distribution to persons generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter. [Program Code(s): 03242, 03244]$3,000
    Start Printed Page 9353
    L. Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 01100, 01110, 01120, 03610, 03611, 03612, 03613]$15,000
    (1) Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of product material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04610, 04612, 04614, 04616, 04618, 04620, 04622]$19,800
    (2) Licenses of broad scope for possession and use of byproduct material issued under parts 30 and 33 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04611, 04613, 04615, 04617, 04619, 04621, 04623]$24,700
    M. Other licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 30 of this chapter for research and development that do not authorize commercial distribution. [Program Code(s): 03620]$14,400
    N. Licenses that authorize services for other licensees, except: (1) Licenses that authorize only calibration and/or leak testing services are subject to the fees specified in fee Category 3.P.; and (2) Licenses that authorize waste disposal services are subject to the fees specified in fee categories 4.A., 4.B., and 4.C.21 [Program Code(s): 03219, 03225, 03226]$18,100
    O. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operations. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding authorized under part 40 of this chapter when authorized on the same license Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 03310, 03320]$29,800
    (1). Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operations. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding authorized under part 40 of this chapter when authorized on the same license. Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04310, 04312]$39,900
    (2). Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material issued under part 34 of this chapter for industrial radiography operations. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding authorized under part 40 of this chapter when authorized on the same license. Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04311, 04313]$49,700
    P. All other specific byproduct material licenses, except those in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.18 Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 02400, 02410, 03120, 03121, 03122, 03123, 03124, 03140, 03130, 03220, 03221, 03222, 03800, 03810, 22130]$9,700
    (1). All other specific byproduct material licenses, except those in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.18 Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04410, 04412, 04414, 04416, 04418, 04420, 04422, 04424, 04426, 04428, 04430, 04432, 04434, 04436, 04438]$13,000
    (2). All other specific byproduct material licenses, except those in Categories 4.A. through 9.D.18 Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04411, 04413, 04415, 04417, 04419, 04421, 04423, 04425, 04427, 04429, 04431, 04433, 04435, 04437, 04439]$16,300
    Q. Registration of devices generally licensed under part 31 of this chapter13 N/A
    R. Possession of items or products containing radium-226 identified in 10 CFR 31.12 which exceed the number of items or limits specified in that section: 14
    (1). Possession of quantities exceeding the number of items or limits in 10 CFR 31.12(a)(4), or (5) but less than or equal to 10 times the number of items or limits specified. [Program Code(s): 02700]$7,000
    (2). Possession of quantities exceeding 10 times the number of items or limits specified in 10 CFR 31.12(a)(4) or (5). [Program Code(s): 02710]$7,300
    S. Licenses for production of accelerator-produced radionuclides. [Program Code(s): 03210]$30,200
    4. Waste disposal and processing:
    A. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of waste byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material from other persons for the purpose of contingency storage or commercial land disposal by the licensee; or licenses authorizing contingency storage of low-level radioactive waste at the site of nuclear power reactors; or licenses for receipt of waste from other persons for incineration or other treatment, packaging of resulting waste and residues, and transfer of packages to another person authorized to receive or dispose of waste material. [Program Code(s): 03231, 03233, 03235, 03236, 06100, 06101]$31,900
    B. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of waste byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material from other persons for the purpose of packaging or repackaging the material. The licensee will dispose of the material by transfer to another person authorized to receive or dispose of the material. [Program Code(s): 03234]$18,100
    C. Licenses specifically authorizing the receipt of prepackaged waste byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material from other persons. The licensee will dispose of the material by transfer to another person authorized to receive or dispose of the material. [Program Code(s): 03232]$10,300
    5. Well logging:
    A. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material for well logging, well surveys, and tracer studies other than field flooding tracer studies. [Program Code(s): 03110, 03111, 03112]$14,300
    B. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material for field flooding tracer studies. [Program Code(s): 03113]5 N/A
    6. Nuclear laundries:
    A. Licenses for commercial collection and laundry of items contaminated with byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material. [Program Code(s): 03218]$34,000
    7. Medical licenses:
    A. Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.9 Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 02300, 02310]$25,300
    Start Printed Page 9354
    (1). Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.9 Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04510, 04512]$33,500
    (2). Licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in gamma stereotactic radiosurgery units, teletherapy devices, or similar beam therapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.9 Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04511, 04513]$42,000
    B. Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.9 Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 02110]$30,800
    (1). Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.9 Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04710]$41,100
    (2). Licenses of broad scope issued to medical institutions or two or more physicians under parts 30, 33, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter authorizing research and development, including human use of byproduct material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.9 Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04711]$51,200
    C. Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.919 Number of locations of use: 1-5. [Program Code(s): 02120, 02121, 02200, 02201, 02210, 02220, 02230, 02231, 02240, 22160]$14,800
    (1). Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.919 Number of locations of use: 6-20. [Program Code(s): 04810, 04812, 04814, 04816, 04818, 04820, 04822, 04824, 04826, 04828]$19,700
    (2). Other licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices. This category also includes the possession and use of source material for shielding when authorized on the same license.919 Number of locations of use: more than 20. [Program Code(s): 04811, 04813, 04815, 04817, 04819, 04821, 04823, 04825, 04827, 04829]$24,500
    8. Civil defense:
    A. Licenses for possession and use of byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material for civil defense activities. [Program Code(s): 03710]$7,000
    9. Device, product, or sealed source safety evaluation:
    A. Registrations issued for the safety evaluation of devices or products containing byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material, except reactor fuel devices, for commercial distribution$13,800
    B. Registrations issued for the safety evaluation of devices or products containing byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material manufactured in accordance with the unique specifications of, and for use by, a single applicant, except reactor fuel devices$11,400
    C. Registrations issued for the safety evaluation of sealed sources containing byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material, except reactor fuel, for commercial distribution$6,700
    D. Registrations issued for the safety evaluation of sealed sources containing byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material, manufactured in accordance with the unique specifications of, and for use by, a single applicant, except reactor fuel$1,400
    10. Transportation of radioactive material:
    A. Certificates of Compliance or other package approvals issued for design of casks, packages, and shipping containers.
    1. Spent Fuel, High-Level Waste, and plutonium air packages6 N/A
    2. Other Casks6 N/A
    B. Quality assurance program approvals issued under part 71 of this chapter.
    1. Users and Fabricators6 N/A
    2. Users6 N/A
    C. Evaluation of security plans, route approvals, route surveys, and transportation security devices (including immobilization devices)6 N/A
    11. Standardized spent fuel facilities6 N/A
    12. Special Projects. [Program Code(s): 25110]6 N/A
    13. A. Spent fuel storage cask Certificate of Compliance6 N/A
    B. General licenses for storage of spent fuel under 10 CFR 72.21012 N/A
    14. Decommissioning/Reclamation:
    Start Printed Page 9355
    A. Byproduct, source, or special nuclear material licenses and other approvals authorizing decommissioning, decontamination, reclamation, or site restoration activities under parts 30, 40, 70, 72, and 76 of this chapter, including master materials licenses (MMLs). The transition to this fee category occurs when a licensee has permanently ceased principal activities. [Program Code(s): 03900, 11900, 21135, 21215, 21240, 21325, 22200]7 20 N/A
    B. Site-specific decommissioning activities associated with unlicensed sites, including MMLs, whether or not the sites have been previously licensed7 N/A
    15. Import and Export licenses8 N/A
    16. Reciprocity8 N/A
    17. Master materials licenses of broad scope issued to Government agencies.15 [Program Code(s): 03614]$312,000
    18. Department of Energy:
    A. Certificates of Compliance10 $1,026,000
    B. Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) activities$119,000
    1 Annual fees will be assessed based on whether a licensee held a valid license with the NRC authorizing possession and use of radioactive material during the current FY. The annual fee is waived for those materials licenses and holders of certificates, registrations, and approvals who either filed for termination of their licenses or approvals or filed for possession only/storage licenses before October 1 of the current FY, and permanently ceased licensed activities entirely before this date. Annual fees for licensees who filed for termination of a license, downgrade of a license, or for a possession-only license during the FY and for new licenses issued during the FY will be prorated in accordance with the provisions of § 171.17. If a person holds more than one license, certificate, registration, or approval, the annual fee(s) will be assessed for each license, certificate, registration, or approval held by that person. For licenses that authorize more than one activity on a single license (e.g., human use and irradiator activities), annual fees will be assessed for each category applicable to the license.
    2 Payment of the prescribed annual fee does not automatically renew the license, certificate, registration, or approval for which the fee is paid. Renewal applications must be filed in accordance with the requirements of parts 30, 40, 70, 71, 72, or 76 of this chapter.
    3 Each FY, fees for these materials licenses will be calculated and assessed in accordance with § 171.13 and will be published in the Federal Register for notice and comment.
    4 Other facilities include licenses for extraction of metals, heavy metals, and rare earths.
    5 There are no existing NRC licenses in these fee categories. If NRC issues a license for these categories, the Commission will consider establishing an annual fee for this type of license.
    6 Standardized spent fuel facilities, 10 CFR parts 71 and 72 Certificates of Compliance and related Quality Assurance program approvals, and special reviews, such as topical reports, are not assessed an annual fee because the generic costs of regulating these activities are primarily attributable to users of the designs, certificates, and topical reports.
    7 Licensees in this category are not assessed an annual fee because they are charged an annual fee in other categories while they are licensed to operate.
    8 No annual fee is charged because it is not practical to administer due to the relatively short life or temporary nature of the license.
    9 Separate annual fees will not be assessed for pacemaker licenses issued to medical institutions that also hold nuclear medicine licenses under fee categories 7.A, 7.A.1, 7.A.2, 7.B., 7.B.1, 7.B.2, 7.C, 7.C.1, or 7.C.2.
    10 This includes Certificates of Compliance issued to the U.S. Department of Energy that are not funded from the Nuclear Waste Fund.
    11 See § 171.15(c).
    12 See § 171.15(c).
    13 No annual fee is charged for this category because the cost of the general license registration program applicable to licenses in this category will be recovered through 10 CFR part 170 fees.
    14 Persons who possess radium sources that are used for operational purposes in another fee category are not also subject to the fees in this category. (This exception does not apply if the radium sources are possessed for storage only.)
    15 Licensees subject to fees under categories 1.A., 1.B., 1.E., 2.A., and licensees paying fees under fee category 17 must pay the largest applicable fee and are not subject to additional fees listed in this table.
    16 Licensees paying fees under 3.C. are not subject to fees under 2.B. for possession and shielding authorized on the same license.
    17 Licensees paying fees under 7.C. are not subject to fees under 2.B. for possession and shielding authorized on the same license.
    18 Licensees paying fees under 3.N. are not subject to paying fees under 3.P., 3.P.1, or 3.P.2 for calibration or leak testing services authorized on the same license.
    19 Licensees paying fees under 7.B., 7.B.1, or 7.B.2 are not subject to paying fees under 7.C., 7.C.1, or 7.C.2 for broad scope license licenses issued under parts 30, 35, 40, and 70 of this chapter for human use of byproduct material, source material, and/or special nuclear material, except licenses for byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material in sealed sources contained in teletherapy devices authorized on the same license.
    20 No annual fee is charged for a materials license (or part of a materials license) that has transitioned to this fee category because the decommissioning costs will be recovered through 10 CFR part 170 fees, but annual fees may be charged for other activities authorized under the license that are not in decommissioning status.
    21 Licensees paying fees under 4.A., 4.B. or 4.C. are not subject to paying fees under 3.N. licenses that authorize services for other licensees authorized on the same license.

    (e) The fee-relief adjustment allocated to annual fees includes the budgeted resources for the activities listed in paragraph (e)(1) of this section, plus the total budgeted resources for the activities included in paragraphs (e)(2) and (3) of this section, as reduced by the appropriations the NRC receives for these types of activities. If the NRC's appropriations for these types of activities are greater than the budgeted resources for the activities included in paragraphs (e)(2) and (3) of this section for a given fiscal year, a negative fee-relief adjustment (or annual fee reduction) will be allocated to annual fees. The activities comprising the FY 2020 fee-relief adjustment are as follows:

    * * * * *
    Start Amendment Part

    9. In § 171.17, revise paragraphs (a) introductory text and (a)(1) and (2) to read as follows:

    End Amendment Part
    Proration.
    * * * * *

    (a) Reactors, 10 CFR part 72 licensees who do not hold 10 CFR part 50 or 10 CFR part 52 licenses, and materials licenses with annual fees of $100,000 or greater for a single fee category. The NRC will base the proration of annual fees for terminated and downgraded licenses on the fee rule in effect at the time the action is official. The NRC will base the determinations on the proration Start Printed Page 9356requirements under paragraphs (a)(2) and (3) of this section.

    (1) New licenses. (i) The annual fees for new licenses for power reactors that are subject to fees under this part, for which the licensee has notified the NRC on or after October 1 of a fiscal year (FY) that the licensee has successfully completed power ascension testing, are prorated on the basis of the number of days remaining in the FY. Thereafter, the full annual fee is due and payable each subsequent FY.

    (ii) The annual fees for new licenses for non-power reactors, 10 CFR part 72 licensees who do not hold 10 CFR part 50 or 10 CFR part 52 licenses, and materials licenses with annual fees of $100,000 or greater for a single fee category for the current FY, that are subject to fees under this part and are granted a license to operate on or after October 1 of a FY, are prorated on the basis of the number of days remaining in the FY. Thereafter, the full annual fee is due and payable each subsequent FY.

    (2) Terminations. The base operating power reactor annual fee for operating reactor licensees who have requested amendment to withdraw operating authority permanently during the FY will be prorated based on the number of days during the FY the license was in effect before docketing of the certifications for permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel or when a final legally effective order to permanently cease operations has come into effect. The spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning annual fee for reactor licensees who permanently cease operations and have permanently removed fuel from the site during the FY will be prorated on the basis of the number of days remaining in the FY after docketing of both the certifications of permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the site. The spent fuel storage/reactor decommissioning annual fee will be prorated for those 10 CFR part 72 licensees who do not hold a 10 CFR part 50 or 10 CFR part 52 license who request termination of the 10 CFR part 72 license and permanently cease activities authorized by the license during the FY based on the number of days the license was in effect before receipt of the termination request. The annual fee for materials licenses with annual fees of $100,000 or greater for a single fee category for the current FY will be prorated based on the number of days remaining in the FY when a termination request or a request for a possession-only license is received by the NRC, provided the licensee permanently ceased licensed activities during the specified period.

    * * * * *
    Start Signature

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 4th day of February, 2020.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

    L. Benedict Ficks,

    Acting Chief Financial Officer.

    End Signature End Supplemental Information

    Footnotes

    1.  For each table, numbers may not add due to rounding.

    Back to Citation

    2.  The fees collected by the NRC for Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) services and indemnity fees (financial protection required of all licensees for public liability claims at 10 CFR part 140) are subtracted from the budgeted resources amount when calculating the 10 CFR part 170 professional hourly rate, per the guidance in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-25, User Charges. The budgeted resources for FOIA activities are allocated under the product for Information Services within the Corporate Support business line. The budgeted resources for indemnity activities are allocated under the Licensing Actions and Research and Test Reactors products within the Operating Reactors business line.

    Back to Citation

    3.  The Congress established the two programs, Title I and Title II, under UMTRCA to protect the public and the environment from hazards associated with uranium milling. The UMTRCA Title I program is for remedial action at abandoned mill tailings sites where tailings resulted largely from production of uranium for weapons programs. The NRC also regulates DOE's UMTRCA Title II program, which is directed toward uranium mill sites licensed by the NRC or Agreement States in or after 1978.

    Back to Citation

    4.  5 U.S.C. 603. The RFA, 5 U.S.C. 601-612, has been amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, Public Law 104-121, Title II, 110 Stat. 847 (1996).

    Back to Citation

    [FR Doc. 2020-03054 Filed 2-14-20; 8:45 am]

    BILLING CODE 7590-01-P

Document Information

Published:
02/18/2020
Department:
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Entry Type:
Proposed Rule
Action:
Proposed rule.
Document Number:
2020-03054
Dates:
Submit comments by March 19, 2020. Comments received after this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the NRC is able to ensure consideration only for comments received before this date. Because OBRA-90 requires the NRC to collect the FY 2020 fees by September 30, 2020, the NRC must finalize any revisions to its fee schedules promptly, and thus be unable to grant any request for an extension of the comment period.
Pages:
9328-9356 (29 pages)
Docket Numbers:
NRC-2017-0228, Docket No. PRM-171-1, NRC-2019-0084
RINs:
3150-AK10: Revision of Fee Schedules: Fee Recovery for FY 2020 [NRC-2017-0228]
RIN Links:
https://www.federalregister.gov/regulations/3150-AK10/revision-of-fee-schedules-fee-recovery-for-fy-2020-nrc-2017-0228-
Topics:
Intergovernmental relations, Nuclear energy, Nuclear materials, Nuclear power plants and reactors
PDF File:
2020-03054.Pdf
CFR: (7)
10 CFR 170.20
10 CFR 170.21
10 CFR 170.31
10 CFR 171.3
10 CFR 171.15
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