UNITED STATES 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001 

SECRETARY August19, 2016 

COMMISSION VOTING RECORD 

DECISION ITEM: 

TITLE: 

SECY-16-0093 

RULEMAKING PLAN FOR REVISIONS TO TRANSPORTATION 

SAFETY REQUIREMENTS AND HARMONIZATION WITH 

INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY 

TRANSPORTATION REQUIREMENTS 

The Commission acted on the subject paper as recorded in the Staff Requirements 

Memorandum (SRM) of August 19, 2016. 

This Record contains a summary of voting on this matter together with the individual vote 

sheets, views and comments of the Commission. 

Enclosures: 

1. Voting Summary 

2. Commissioner Vote Sheets 

cc: Chairman Burns 

Commissioner Svinicki 

Commissioner Baran 

OGC 

EDO 

PDR 

,~\ 0~ Andrew L. Bates 

Acting Secretary of the Commission 
VOTING SUMMARY - SECY-16-0093 

RECORDED VOTES 

NOT 

APPROVED DISAPPROVED ABSTAIN PARTICIPATING COMMENTS DATE 

Chrm. Burns x x 08/08/16 

Cmr. Svinicki x x 08/11/16 

Cmr. Baran x x 08/11/16 
TO: 

FROM: 

SUBJECT: 

NOTATION VOTE 

RESPONSE SHEET 

Annette Vietti-Cook, Secretary 

Chairman Burns 

SECY-16-0093: RULEMAKING PLAN FOR REVISIONS 

TO TRANSPORTATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS 

AND HARMONIZATION WITH INTERNATIONAL 

ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY TRANSPORTATION 

REQUIREMENTS 

Approved _x_ Disapproved _ Abstain _ Not Participating_ 

Comments: Below X Attached None 

I approve initiation of a rulemaking related to the harmonization of Title 10 of the Code 

of Federal Regulations Part 71 with the International Atomic Energy Agency and the 

U.S. Department of Transportation regulations. I also approve staff's recommendation 

that an Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS) review is not warranted at 

this time. I support staff's position to engage ACRS, if necessary, after further review of 

the extent of this rulemaking. 

Enterecyn STARS 

Yes 

No 

GNATURE 

8 August 2016 

DATE 
TO: 

FROM: 

SUBJECT: 

NOTATION VOTE 

RESPONSE SHEET 

Annette Vietti-Cook, Secretary 

COMMISSIONER SVINICKI 

SECY-16-0093: RULEMAKING PLAN FOR REVISIONS 

TO TRANSPORTATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS 

AND HARMONIZATION WITH INTERNATIONAL 

ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY TRANSPORTATION 

REQUIREMENTS 

Approved XX Disapproved _ Abstain Not Participating _ 

Comments: Below XX Attached None 

I approve the staff's request to initiate a rulemaking for the limited purposes of harmonizing 

NRC's 10 CFR Part 71 regulations with the revised standards of the International Atomic Energy 

Agency and U.S. Department of Transportation regulations, subject to the following. First, the 

priority of this rulemaking should be set to "medium." The handful of rulemaking plans 

submitted subsequent to the Commission's direction in SRM-SECY-15-0129 may indicate a 

systemic flaw in the Common Prioritization of Rulemaking methodology in that the method is 

routinely returning a proposed priority of "high." Not every activity that "contributes toward the 

NRC's safety goal, safety strategies, and ... regulatory effectiveness and openness" can be 

"high" priority. As part of the agency's rebaselining activity, the staff recently proposed and the 

Commission approved the cancellation of certain rulemaking activities to harmonize regulations 

with current versions of various international and national standards. In light of this, I cannot 

agree that this harmonization rulemaking should take funding priority over all ongoing medium 

priority rulemaking work, nor do I agree that it is co-equal to high priority rulemaking work, such 

as the decommissioning rulemaking. Second, the scope of this rulemaking, beyond the external 

harmonization, should be limited to administrative or editorial changes. The staff's proposed 

addition of other staff-initiated changes "to clarify rule text" is too open ended and renders the 

Commission's approval of this rulemaking plan no more than ritualistic hand-waving. If the staff 

seeks to re-open broader provisions of the rule, beyond the harmonization, it should submit 

such a proposal, with specificity and justification, for the Commission's consideration at that 

time. Finally, there is not enough clarity either to approve or disapprove waiving ACRS review 

at this time. The staff should engage in discussions with the ACRS after further development of 

the proposed rule to determine whether ACRS review is necessary or appropriate. 

-
TO: 

FROM: 

SUBJECT: 

NOTATION VOTE 

RESPONSE SHEET 

· Annette Vietti-Cook, Secretary 

Commissioner Baran 

SECY-16-0093: RULEMAKING PLAN FOR REVISIONS 

TO TRANSPORTATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS 

AND HARMONIZATION WITH INTERNATIONAL 

ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY TRANSPORTATION 

REQUIREMENTS 

Approved _X_ Disapproved _ Abstain Not Participating _ 

Comments: Below X Attached None 

I approve initiation of a rulemaking to harmonize NRC's 10 CFR Part 71 

regulations for packaging and transportation of radioactive materials with the 

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and U.S. Department of Transportation 

(DOT) regulations. The rulemaking would update NRC's requirements to be consistent 

with the latest revision of IAEA's "Specific Safety Requirements Number SSR-6" and 

was explicitly contemplated in NRC's prior harmonization rule issued in June 2015. As 

the staff explains, "SSR-6 represents an international consensus set of requirements 

that provides a high level of safety in the packaging and transportation of radioactive 

materials and provides a basis and framework that facilitates the development of 

internationally consistent regulations." Moreover, DOT plans to proceed with its own 

harmonization rulemaking , and it is important to ensure that the NRC and DOT 

regulations remain compatible. 

Entered in STARS 

Yes X - - No 

DATE