UNITED STATES 

 NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

 REGION I 

 2100 RENAISSANCE BOULEVARD, SUITE 100 

 KING OF PRUSSIA, PENNSYLVANIA 19406-2713

May 16, 2013 

Cynthia L. Becker, Chief 

Bureau of Radiation Control 

Department of Health 

4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin C21 

Tallahassee, FL 32399-1741 

Dear Ms. Becker: 

A periodic meeting was held with you and your staff on March 21, 2013. The purpose of the 

meeting was to review and discuss the status of the Florida Department of Health’s Agreement 

State Program. The NRC was represented by Daniel Collins, Duncan White, and me. 

I have completed and enclosed a general meeting summary, including any specific actions that 

will be taken as a result of this meeting. If you feel that our conclusions do not accurately 

summarize the meeting discussion, or have any additional remarks about the meeting in 

general, please contact me at (610) 337-5371, or email to Donna.Janda@nrc.gov to discuss 

your comments. 

Sincerely, 

 /RA/ 

Donna M. Janda 

Regional State Agreements Officer 

Division of Nuclear Materials Safety 

Enclosure: As stated 

 
May 16, 2013 

Cynthia L. Becker, Chief 

Bureau of Radiation Control 

Department of Health 

4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin C21 

Tallahassee, FL 32399-1741 

Dear Ms. Becker: 

A periodic meeting was held with you and your staff on March 21, 2013. The purpose of the 

meeting was to review and discuss the status of the Florida Department of Health’s Agreement 

State Program. The NRC was represented by Daniel Collins, Duncan White and me. 

I have completed and enclosed a general meeting summary, including any specific actions that 

will be taken as a result of the meeting. If you feel that our conclusions do not accurately 

summarize the meeting discussion, or have any additional remarks about the meeting in 

general, please contact me at (610) 337-5371, or email to Donna.Janda@nrc.gov to discuss 

your comments. 

Sincerely, 

 /RA/ 

Donna M. Janda 

Regional State Agreements Officer 

Division of Nuclear Materials Safety 

Enclosure: As stated 

Distribution: 

D. White, FSME 

M. Beardsley, FSME 

L. Dimmick, FSME 

K. Meyer, FSME 

R. Lorson, RI 

D. Collins, RI 

SUNSI Review Complete: DMJ (Reviewer=s Initials) 

DOCUMENT NAME: S:\State Agreement Files\Florida\FLORIDA PERIODIC MEETING SUMMARY 3-21-13.docx 

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OFFICE DNMS/RI E 

NAME Janda/dmj 

DATE 05/16/13 

OFFICIAL RECORD COPY
 Enclosure 

AGREEMENT STATE PERIODIC MEETING SUMMARY FOR 

FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 

BUREAU OF RADIATION CONTROL 

DATE OF MEETING: March 21, 2013 

NRC Attendees Florida Bureau of Radiation Control (BRC) Attendees 

Daniel Collins, Deputy Director, 

DNMS, Region I 

Cynthia Becker, Chief 

Duncan White, Branch Chief, 

DMSSA, FSME 

Paul Vause, Administrator, Radioactive Materials Program 

Donna Janda, RSAO, Region I Michael Stephens, Environmental Health Program 

Consultant 

 Mike Phillips, Manager 

 Janet Cooksey, Management Review Specialist 

DISCUSSION: 

During the 2011 Integrated Materials Performance Evaluation Program (IMPEP) review of the 

Florida Agreement State Program (the Program), the review team found the State’s 

performance satisfactory for six performance indicators reviewed and satisfactory, but needs 

improvement, for the indicator, Compatibility Requirements. The review team made no 

recommendations. On June 7, 2011, the Management Review Board (MRB) met to consider 

the proposed final IMPEP report on the Florida Agreement State Program. The MRB found the 

Program adequate to protect public health and safety and compatible with NRC’s program. 

Based on the results of the IMPEP review, the review team recommended, and the MRB 

agreed, that the next full IMPEP review take place in four years and that a periodic meeting be 

held in approximately two years from the date of the March 2011 IMPEP. 

TOPICS COVERED DURING THE MEETING INCLUDED:

Program Strengths

The Program has a dedicated, experienced, and well-trained staff. There is an active in-house 

training program with three staff members dedicated to training and quality assurance activities. 

The Program is 100% user fee supported. The Program utilizes the NRC training courses when 

available and believes that knowledge learned from these courses is a valuable tool for staff. 

The large size of the BRC provides flexibility and a comprehensive approach for program 

implementation. The size of the staff can accommodate some turnover without affecting 

Program performance. Inspectors are based out of Regional offices and primarily telework for 

their day-to-day duties. The Program is fairly aggressive in implementing work process 

changes. For example, the inspection program is almost entirely paperless which has resulted 

in an average turnaround time of 7 days for inspection letters to be completed and mailed out. 

In addition, the BRC uses a laserfiche system for recordkeeping which makes search and/or 

retrieval of information very easy. 
Florida Periodic Meeting Summary 2 

 Enclosure 

The BRC’s Health Physics Laboratory performs the analytical services for the Program. The 

Program has a dedicated rulemaking staff and a very active radiological response volunteer 

program. Staff members actively participate in nuclear power plant exercises. The Program 

has an active general licensing registration program and inspects general licensees on a routine 

basis. 

Program Weaknesses

Program managers have identified that having such an experienced staff could lead to a 

decrease in knowledge management if retirements start within the next 5 years. Low salary 

rates continue to be a challenge to obtaining qualified staff. 

The Program is experiencing some challenges due to multiple turnovers and reorganization of 

the legal department. Some outstanding administrative complaints have been held up due to 

the turnovers and reorganization. The Program noted that another challenge is a change in the 

rulemaking statute. New steps have been added to the rulemaking process, which could lead to 

additional time required for some rulemaking actions. 

Feedback on the NRC’s Program

The Program commented that both the overall relationship and communications with the NRC 

are good. The Program would appreciate more Agreement State representation on working 

groups. 

Agreement State Program Staffing and Training

The Program currently consists of 62 staff positions, which includes Program management, 

totaling approximately 21 full-time equivalents. Since the 2011 IMPEP, the Program lost three 

technical staff members, promoted four individuals and hired five technical staff members, 

including one new position. The Program currently has two vacant positions in the Broward 

County Office (which operates under a contract with the Program), one vacant manager position 

in the Orlando Regional Office and one vacant licensing position in the Central Office in 

Tallahassee. 

Support for staff training exists in the Program. Program staff has attended the NRC and other 

training courses. The Program has a strong, active in-house training program. The Program 

offers a five-day health physics training class and works with stakeholders to conduct onsite 

device-specific training when the need is identified. For example, the Program is working with a 

hospital in Pensacola to conduct gamma knife training for inspectors. The Program maintains a 

clearinghouse which they have named “BRCpedia” which contains training materials, standard 

operating procedures, and other forms that staff can access in house and remotely. 

Organization

The Florida Agreement State Program is located in the Bureau of Radiation Control which is 

located within the Emergency Preparedness and Community Support Division of the Florida 

Department of Health. The Radioactive Materials Program, based at the Central Office in 

Tallahassee, is responsible for materials licensing and compliance activities. The Field 

Operations Program is responsible for coordinating inspection activities, which are conducted 

primarily by the six field offices and two counties under contract with the BRC. The 
Florida Periodic Meeting Summary 3 

 Enclosure 

Environmental Radiation Labs Program, based in Orlando, is responsible for the BRC’s 

laboratory and emergency response activities. 

Since the 2011 IMPEP, the Bureau Chief retired and the Field Operations Administrator was 

promoted to the Bureau Chief position. This personnel change resulted in several other 

promotions throughout the Bureau.

Program Budget/Funding

The Program is 100 percent fee funded. Florida generally charges about 25-35 percent of NRC 

fees depending on the program code. In addition to new application and annual fees, the 

Program charges a reclamation fee amounting to 5 percent of the annual fee. This fee is for 

disaster response and cleanup and disposal of radioactive materials. All funds are placed into a 

dedicated account for the Radiation Control Program. 

 

Inspection and Licensing Programs

All but one of the Program’s inspection frequencies are performed at a higher frequency than 

those established in Inspection Manual Chapter 2800. At the time of the periodic meeting, the 

Program reported it had no overdue inspections and had performed no routine or initial 

inspections overdue since the last IMPEP review. Between April 2011 and February 2013, the 

Program performed 1550 inspections (all priorities). Program managers stated that the 

Program successfully transitioned to using electronic forms for inspection and licensing 

documentation. All inspection findings are reviewed by the respective Regional Manager. 

The Program currently has approximately 1,660 specific licenses. Between April 2011 and 

February 2013, the Program completed approximately 3700 licensing actions. The Radioactive 

Materials Administrator or a Radioactive Materials Licensing Manager performs a technical and 

supervisory review on all licensing actions before issuance to the licensee. Licenses are issued 

for a five-year period under a timely renewal system. 

Regulations

Florida’s rulemaking process was changed prior to the 2011 IMPEP review. With the changes 

now in effect, the State’s administrative rulemaking process takes approximately 12 months 

from drafting to finalizing a rule. 

Since the 2011 IMPEP review, the Program submitted four proposed regulation amendments to 

NRC for review. Three of these amendments were overdue for adoption at the time they were 

submitted to NRC. The Program is currently working on addressing outstanding comments on 

final regulations and adopting regulations coming due for adoption. At the time of the periodic 

meeting, the Program had no additional overdue regulation amendments due for adoption. 

Event Reporting

Since the 2011 IMPEP review, the Program reported 86 events to the Nuclear Material Events 

Database (NMED), of which 25 were reportable to the NRC. Follow-up information for all 

events reported by the Program is included in the State’s NMED entries. 

 
Florida Periodic Meeting Summary 4 

 Enclosure 

Response to Incidents and Allegations

The Program continues to be sensitive to notifications of incidents and allegations. Incidents 

are quickly reviewed for their effect on public health and safety. Staff is dispatched to perform 

onsite investigations when necessary. The Program is aware of the need to maintain an 

effective response to incidents and allegations. Since the 2011 IMPEP review, NRC referred 

three allegations to the Program. All allegations referred by NRC to the Program become part 

of their incident follow up system. The BRC does not have the authority to protect an alleger’s 

identity. 

A significant event in Florida involved the follow up to the rubidium-86 (Rb-86) generator issue. 

The Program dedicated significant resources on follow up actions, including data collection and 

onsite inspections, as part of the nationwide effort to address the breakthrough issue. Once 

FDA reapproved use of the Rb-86 generators, the Program initiated the use of a unique license 

condition requiring licensees to follow the instructions for use in the product insert. 

Sealed Source and Device (SS&D) Evaluation Program

The BRC currently has four qualified reviewers, although one individual has not completed any 

SS&D evaluations. Program managers have indicated the need for three additional individuals 

to receive SS&D training when it is offered by NRC in 2014. 

Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Program

In 1981, the NRC amended its Policy Statement, “Criteria for Guidance of States and NRC in 

Discontinuance of NRC Authority and Assumption Thereof by States Through Agreement,” to 

allow a State to seek an amendment for the regulation of low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) as 

a separate category. Although Florida has authority to regulate a LLRW facility, the NRC has 

not required States to have a program for licensing a LLRW facility until such time as the State 

has been designated as a host State for a LLRW disposal facility. There are currently no plans 

for a LLRW disposal facility in Florida. 

Current State Initiatives

The Program continues its ongoing paperless project for inspection and licensing documents. 

The Program has no plans to use Web-Based Licensing as it has its own process in place. 

 

Emerging Technologies

None noted. 

State’s Mechanisms to Evaluate Performance

All reports are reviewed by the Bureau Chief. Supervisors access the BRC’s database as 

needed to monitor the status of inspection and licensing actions. Staff meetings are held 

weekly for licensing and support staff. Meeting minutes are available on a SharePoint site for all 

staff to access and review. The Bureau Chief has biweekly meetings with all Programs under 

her supervision. The inspection staff from all field offices meets approximately twice per year. 

Supervisory accompaniments are performed annually for each inspector. Newsletters with “hot 

spots” items of interest are distributed on a routine basis. 
Florida Periodic Meeting Summary 5 

 Enclosure 

SUMMARY: 

The Florida Radioactive Materials Program continues to be an effective, well-maintained 

Agreement State program with an experienced and well-trained staff. There are four vacancies 

in the Program at this time; however, the Program is effectively managing its licensing and 

inspection activities. 

NRC staff recommends that the next IMPEP review should be conducted as scheduled in fiscal 

year 2015.