Up & Atom

KEY TRENDS IN LAW AND POLICY REGARDING
NUCLEAR ENERGY AND MATERIALS
Read the practical guidance provided by our labor and employment lawyers, highlighting key considerations employers should begin analyzing regarding how to reopen or expand operations. The focus is on what can be done now with the understanding that guidance on when and how workplaces can reopen or expand will rely in large part on jurisdiction-specific local orders and guidance.
The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) released a statement on April 8 reminding employers that they cannot retaliate against workers who report unsafe or unhealthy working conditions during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently approved a 90-day deferral of all annual fee invoices that would have been issued to NRC licensees (including holders of reactor, fuel cycle facility, and materials licenses; certificates of compliance; sealed source and device registrations; and quality assurance program approvals) in the third quarter (April–June) of fiscal year (FY) 2020.
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR) issued a letter on April 14 to provide guidance on reactor operator licensing requirements during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently released a draft report from the agency’s Working Group on Reactor Decommissioning Financial Assurance (DFA). Comments on the draft report are due by April 21, 2020.
Read our recent LawFlash discussing the US Department of the Treasury’s updated criteria outlining which businesses are eligible to apply for CARES Act loans allocated for businesses “critical to maintaining national security.”
The US Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) recently posted guidelines on its continued operations during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. While NNSA personnel are mostly working remotely, the agency is otherwise operating business-as-usual.
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued a letter on April 9 to provide guidance on reporting requirements under 10 CFR 50.55a, “Codes and Standards,” in light of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The guidance is applicable to nuclear reactors licensed under 10 CFR Part 50.
The NRC issued its final Temporary Staff Guidance (Final Guidance) on April 6 on its review procedures for coronavirus (COVID-19)-related Part 26 exemption requests. The NRC previously issued a draft of this guidance on April 1 and also discussed the draft during a teleconference with the industry on April 2, which we reported on.
The US Department of Energy (DOE) and US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently published a joint addendum to their memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the shared roles and responsibilities of each agency to develop the DOE Advanced Reactor Demonstration (ARD) program.