The Honorable Marcus A. Rowden April 18, 1977 Page 4 (c) How are the costs of such joint hearings to be shared? (d) Please identify other States where such NRC-State agreements are being negotiated and estimate when agreement might be reached. 11. (a) When the NRC considers an application for a nuclear power plant license or permit, does it develop the full lifetime costs of the plant, including the decommissioning costs, in determining the plant costs and energy costs? If not, please explain why not. (b) What are the estimated decommissioning costs of the power plants for which an operating license was issued since January 1970? Please identify the plants and their expected life. 12. We understand from NRC testimony that the Office of State Programs "monitors State legislation and activities that are anticipated to impact on NRC policies, plans and programs". (a) What staff years were devoted to this activity in FY 1976 and thus far in FY 1977? What is the estimate for FY 1978? (b) What were the travel costs attributable to this activity in FY 1976 and 1977? What is the estimate for FY 1978? (c) What are the guidelines for this activity? (d) Why is this activity necessary? 13. Please provide a list of publications issued by the Office of Public Affairs since January 1, 1976. 14. Please provide a detailed explanation of the functions and duties of the Office of Management Information and Program Control and the Office of Planning and Analysis. 15. We understand that the NRC relies heavily on the use of computers to "perform a myriad of functions" and that the NRC will shift "from utilizing the services of Government hardware to the private sector" effective September 30, 1977. (a) Please provide a list of those functions. (b) What was the cost of ERDA support in FY 1976? (c) What will be the estimated cost of such support by the private sector in FY 1978, 1979 and 1980? The Honorable Marcus A. Rowden (d) Please explain in detail the efforts made by the NRC to obtain Federal agency ADP support to meet NRC needs, pursuant to 40 U.S.C. 759 and indicate the problem areas. Please provide (by April 25, 1977) a copy of all letters, memoranda, notes, reports, and other documents in NRC files concerning NRC efforts to obtain Federal and non-Federal ADP support, including all such correspondence, etc., with ERDA, GSA and OMB concerning this matter and with the private sector. (e) Please identify the private sector firms being considered to provide this ADP support and indicate to what extent, if any, each such firm currently provides such support to, or is otherwise a subsidiary of, any energy firm, including a utility firm. (e) What, if any, provisions will be included in the contract with these firms to insure against possible conflicts of interest and to provide for disclosure of a firm's relationship with any utility company or energy company? 16. Please provide a table showing R&D and management service contracts executed by NRC since January 1, 1976 and for each such contract indicate the contract amount and the estimated completion date. 17. (a) In his statement, the Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation said he took steps "to open the licensing process to public exposure and include public disclosure of divergent staff views". Please give more details about those "steps", including the specific regulations. 18. Please review H. R. 2788, which applies to the FEA and provide to us your views and comments on whether similar provisions should be enacted for the NRC. We are particularly interested in knowing what procedures the NRC follows to avoid organizational conflicts of interests. 19. Please identify the Federal agencies funded in FY 1976 and 1977 by NRC through its cooperative research program, the amount of such funds for each agency, the purpose of the project and the share, if any, by other Federal agencies. 20. Section 102 of H. R. 3455 authorizes the NRC to retain and use monies received by it for cooperative nuclear research programs. 1977? (a) What was the source and amount of those monies in FY 1976 and (b) Does the NRC receive any other revenues of any kind? If yes, please identify the source and amount and explain what disposition is made of them. The Honorable Marcus A. Rowden April 18, 1977 (c) Why is it necessary or desirable for the NRC to retain and use any revenues rather than deposit them into the treasury and obtain appropriations in lieu thereof? 21. Please identify any unresolved safety issues common to many nuclear power plants, the efforts made and planned by the NRC to resolve these issues quickly, and indicate what effect these issues have had in the delay on licensing plants and on recent decisions by utilities to abandon or put aside plans for new nuclear plants. 22. On April 7, 1977, the GAO issued a report (EMD-77-32) entitled "Security at Nuclear Power Plants -- At Best, Inadequate". A copy of the report was furnished to the NRC by the GAO. (a) Please provide your views and comments on the report. (b) Please state what actions the NRC has taken or will take, and the timetable therefor, to implement the GAO recommendations (pp. 18-19). (c) The GAO notes the NRC regulations of March 28, 1977, but expresses concern about the 1 year lead time allowed for compliance and recommends interim action. Why did the NRC allow 1 years to achieve compliance? Please provide the basis for establishing that period. 23. (a) According to NRC testimony, the designed safeguards system developed by NRC will have the capability of defeating any credible threat with a high degree of assurance". Has the Commission approved the defined threat level of outsiders and insiders? How does this address the hypothesized threat in the large number of scenarios involving outsiders and insiders? (b) In a report done for the NRC (The White-Collar Challenge to Nuclear Safeguards) a question is raised concerning the adequacy of controls at nuclear facilities to detect and prevent insider crimes. The report notes that the physical security to prevent outside attackers 'may not be useful in preventing insiders from obtaining special nuclear materials. What has NRC done about this problem? 24. (a) Please explain why a Federal guard force is not needed for the protection of private facilities. (b) Why is NRC using ERDA to transport special nuclear materials? Is this because a Federal guard force would otherwise be required for the transportation of special nuclear materials? 25. Please explain the extent to which NRC utilizes standards developed by voluntary standard-setting organizations and identify the organizations The Honorable Marcus A. Rowden April 18, 1977 Page 7 developing such standards, the membership of the developing organization, and the procedures used by NRC to insure that they are the best possible standards. 26. (a) Please provide to us a list of safeguards research projects underway as of April 1, 1977 and those planned in FY 1977 and 1978, the purpose of each project, the cost of each project and the estimated completion date. (b) We understand that about $19 million is earmarked in the FY 1978 budget for contract safeguards research. What is the purpose of this research and why should it not be conducted by NRC and/or ERDA, rather than the private sector? To what extent is this management service research? 27. We understand that a draft GAO report concerning a comparison of ERDA and NRC nuclear safeguards of fuel cycle facilities has been reviewed by the NRC. We also understand that the GAO report is critical of the fact that each agency appears to have a different approach for safeguarding nuclear materials. We request that you identify the differences, explain why there are such differences, and set forth the advantages and disadvantages of the approach followed by the NRC versus that of ERDA. 28. Please provide your views, comments and recommendations on S. 266. 29. We understand that the NRC has received inquiries from both the State of California and Pacific Gas & Electric to grant an interim operating license for PG&E's Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant. (a) What is the status of this request? (b) What are the economic and other advantages and disadvantages of such an interim license? (c) If an interim license were granted, and the plant operated, how would the radioactive nature of some of the equipment influence a decision on the part of the NRC to order PG & E to alter such equipment for seismic reasons? If you are unable to respond to all of the above questions by the hearing dates, please respond to as much as possible, then indicate when in May the remainder will be forthcoming. We welcome your views. Sincerely, John D. Dingell JDD/Fjh QUESTION 2.(a) Please provide a table showing the organization of the NRC at the Commission level. On the table show the number of authorized positions for each office at such level for FY 1977 and the number of persons in such positions as of April 1, 1977, as well as the number of positions authorized for FY 1978 under H.R. 3455, as introduced. ANSWER. The attached Table I shows the organization of the NRC at the Commission level, indicating the number of authorized positions for each Commission office for FY 1977, the number of persons in such positions, as of April 1, 1977, and the number of positions authorized for FY 1978 under H.R. 3455 as introduced. QUESTION 2. (b) Please provide a second organization table for all other NRC offices, divisions and branches and the Atomic Safety and ANSWER. The attached Table II indicates similar data, as available, for all other offices, divisions and branches and for the ÁSLAP and ASLBP. NRC authorizes positions to an Office Director who may use positions within his organization to accomplish the functions assigned. Thus, FY 1977 positions authorized are shown by Office level only. |