United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Office of Public Affairs

Washington, DC 20555

Phone 301-415-8200 Fax 301-415-2234

Internet:opa@nrc.gov

No. 96-121 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Friday, September 13, 1996)

NRC SEEKS PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENCY'S

STRATEGIC ASSESSMENT OF REGULATORY ACTIVITIES

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is requesting public

comment on the second phase of a critical evaluation known as

strategic assessment and rebaselining of its regulatory

activities.

During the week of September 16, 1996, documents dealing

with the strategic assessment are being made available to the

public and several public conferences will be held around the

country.

Initiated in September last year by Chairman Shirley Ann

Jackson, the NRC assessment and rebaselining of its activities is

intended to provide a sound foundation for the agency's direction

and decision-making for the rest of this decade and into the

next. This initiative has four phases: Phase I-Strategic

Assessment, Phase II-Rebaselining and Development of Decision

Papers, Phase III-Production of a Strategic Plan, and Phase IVImplementation.

In the first phase a steering committee made up of senior

agency managers, working with an outside consultant, reviewed the

NRC's activities in order to understand where the NRC is today,

and what needs to be considered in providing options for

responding to change.

Some of the key objectives identified by the steering

committee are:

o Establish a strategic framework under which the NRC will

continue to meet its primary responsibility of protecting public

health and safety and the environment.

o Provide a sound and well-rounded foundation for the NRC's

direction and decision-making for the rest of this decade and

into the next century.

o Ensure that the Commission, its staff, Congress, other

Government agencies, and the public have a common understanding

of what the NRC's strategic goals are.
o Establish agency performance measures to determine the

extent to which strategic or tactical objectives are being

achieved.

The second phase builds on strategic issues identified in

Phase I. For key strategic issues, papers have been developed

containing policy options for Commission consideration. Before

reaching final decisions on the issues, the Commission wants to

have the benefit of stakeholders views--those who will be

affected by the decisions.

Three documents are available to help the public with making

comments: 1) a stakeholder involvement process paper, 2) a set

of direction-setting papers on 16 issues with Commission

preliminary views on each, and 3) a strategic planning framework

paper which explains how the issues relate to the strategic plan

and how the plan will be developed.

Copies of the three documents can be obtained electronically

from the NRC's Home Page on the World Wide Web (Internet address

http://www.nrc.gov) and FedWorld at 1-800-303-9672. Paper copies

are available by calling NRC's Public Document Room at 1-800-397-

4209.

In addition to NRC employees, stakeholders asked to comment

on the NRC strategic plan include Federal entities (the

Administration/Office of Management and Budget, Congress and

other agencies), Agreement States, non-Agreement States, NRC

licensees and their employees, nuclear industry groups, public

interest groups, and the general public.

The NRC will hold three public conferences to discuss the

issue papers and to obtain comments from stakeholders. The

conference dates and locations are:

October 24-25, Washington, DC--Washington Hilton;

October 31-November 1, Colorado Springs, CO--Sheraton Hotel;

November 7-8, Chicago, IL--the Ramada O'Hare.

Additional information on times and locations of the

conferences is available via Internet (http://www.nrc.gov),

FedWorld, or by calling NRC's public meeting recorded

announcement system at 1-800-952-9674.

To help understand their viewpoints, stakeholders are asked

to focus on the following in responding to the NRC:

1. What, if any, important considerations may have been

omitted from the issue papers?

2. How accurate are the NRC's assumptions and projections

for internal and external factors discussed in the issue papers?
3. Do the Commission's preliminary views associated with

each issue paper respond to the current environment and

challenges?

Additionally, the Commission is seeking comments on specific

questions identified in the "Preliminary Commission View" section

of each issue paper.

The comment period on the issue papers closes November 15.

Comments can be provided in writing, electronically, or at the

public conferences. Comments may be sent by e-mail to

internet:SECY@NRC.gov or to Mr. John C. Hoyle, Secretary of the

Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ATTN: Chief of

Docketing and Services Branch, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

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