Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 94 / Monday, May 15, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 30833

Dated: May 9, 2000.

Barry L. Carpenter,

Deputy Administrator, Livestock and Seed

Program.

[FR Doc. 00–12155 Filed 5–12–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P

NORTHEAST INTERSTATE LOWLEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE

COMMISSION

10 CFR Chapter XVIII

Northeast Interstate Low-Level

Radioactive Waste Compact Final Rule

for Declaration of Party State Eligibility

AGENCY: Northeast Interstate Low-Level

Radioactive Waste Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Northeast Interstate Lowlevel Radioactive Waste Commission

(the ‘‘Commission’’) is adopting these

rules to establish the conditions under

which a state not a party to the

Northeast Interstate Low-Level

Radioactive Waste Management

Compact (the ‘‘Compact’’) may be

declared eligible to become a party state.

The Commission must declare a state

eligible before it may become a party

state to the Compact. The procedures

and conditions established by the

Commission through this rule are

intended to protect the integrity of the

Compact and the interests of both the

existing party states and any state

petitioning for a declaration of

eligibility.

DATES: This rule becomes effective May

15, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kevin McCarthy, Chairman, Northeast

Interstate Low-Level Radioactive Waste

Commission, 703 Hebron Avenue,

Glastonbury, Connecticut 06033, (860)

633–2060.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

The Compact was established by ‘‘The

Omnibus Low-Level Radioactive Waste

Compact Consent Act of 1985,’’ Public

Law 99–240, Title II (the ‘‘Act’’). The

Act gave Congress’’ consent to

agreements between and among states

that were designed to facilitate the

regional disposal of low-level

radioactive waste (‘‘waste’’), thereby

promoting the health and safety of the

region. Connecticut and New Jersey are

current members of the Compact. The

Act also established the Commission

and gave it authority, inter alia, to

promulgate rules, conduct hearings,

receive and act on applications to

become eligible states, develop regional

plans to ensure safe and effective

management of waste within the region,

designate a host state for siting of a

regional disposal facility, enter

agreements for the importation of waste

into the region and export of waste from

the region, impose sanctions, and

establish criteria for disposal fees. The

Commission consists of one voting

member from Connecticut and one

voting member from New Jersey.

Since the establishment of the

Compact, there has been no regional

disposal facility to receive waste

generated within the Compact states.

Nevertheless, at various times, regional

generators have been able to dispose of

their waste at other facilities (e.g., at

facilities located in Clive, Utah, and

Barnwell, South Carolina). Those

facilities have not always been available

for disposal of all of the waste generated

within the region, however, and the

Commission has sought to make

available more reliable access to waste

disposal facilities. Current regional

generators anticipate that they will need

assured access to waste disposal

facilities for the next 50 years until all

of the currently licensed nuclear power

stations are fully decommissioned and

all spent nuclear fuel has been removed

from the sites. With these needs in

mind, the Commission seeks to ensure

the long-term availability of

approximately 800,000 cubic feet of

disposal space to accommodate all

classes of low-level waste. The

Commission also seeks to stabilize fees

for waste disposal.

The Commission has determined that

it is in the interests of the Compact

states to declare another state eligible

for membership in the Compact if (a)

that state is willing to become the

voluntary host state and (b) membership

in the Compact would achieve

important objectives for both the current

member states and any petitioning state.

Article VII.e. of the Compact permits the

Commission to ‘‘establish such

conditions as it deems necessary and

appropriate to be met by a state

requesting eligibility as a party state to

this compact.’’ The Commission has

further determined that the

identification and implementation of

reasonable conditions to be applied

when evaluating a petition for new

party state eligibility are essential to the

long-term health and safety of the

region.

These rules establish the conditions

for party state eligibility contemplated

by Article VII.e. of the Compact and the

criteria for fee and surcharge systems

contemplated by Article IV.i.(15) of the

Compact. The rules specify the

procedures that the Commission will

follow for receiving petitions for party

state eligibility. They then describe the

essential conditions for declaring a state

eligible for membership in the Compact.

Those conditions include agreements (a)

to be the sole host state until all

currently licensed nuclear power

stations in the region have been

decommissioned, (b) to warrant the

availability of 800,000 cubic feet of

disposal capacity for Connecticut and

New Jersey generators, (c) to assure

stable, predictable disposal fees that are

no greater than generators in

Connecticut and New Jersey paid at the

end of 1999, (d) to give flexibility for

generators to dispose of waste elsewhere

at their discretion, (e) to indemnify the

existing party states for any potential

environmental liability caused by their

membership in the Compact and by

operation of the regional disposal

facility, and (f) to ensure an equitable

schedule for return of a portion of any

incentive payment made by the existing

party states if the regional disposal

facility ceases to be available for any

reason.

Summary of Public Comments on the

Proposed Rule

The Commission received written

comments on the proposed rule (65 FR

13700, March 14, 2000) from the New

Jersey Low-Level Radioactive Waste

Disposal Facility Siting Board,

Northeast Nuclear Energy Company,

GPU Nuclear, the State of Connecticut

Office of Policy Management, Public

Service Electric & Gas Company, and

Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power

Company. These organizations (except

Connecticut Yankee), as well as the New

Jersey Chamber of Commerce and the

New Jersey Business and Industry

Association, offered oral comments at

public hearings held in Trenton, NJ on

April 17, 2000, and in Bridgeport, CT on

April 18, 2000. All of the commenters

supported the proposed rule and urged

its adoption. Copies of the public

comments are available for review at the

Commission’s office, 703 Hebron

Avenue, Glastonbury, Connecticut

06033.

Public Comments on the Rule To

Establish Criteria for Declaration of

Eligible State

None of the public commenters

objected to the Commission’s proposed

procedures and criteria for declaring a

state eligible to become a party to the

Compact. Some of the comments raise

issues that should be addressed during

the evaluation of a specific petition for

declaration as a party state. Other

comments raise issues that are

30834 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 94 / Monday, May 15, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

appropriately addressed separately from

this rulemaking. The Commission is

grateful for all of the thoughtful

comments that have been offered. The

following discussion describes the

Commission’s evaluation of the

comments received.

General Comments: Several

commenters commended the

rulemaking process and the criteria that

the Commission established for

declaring an eligible state. Various

commenters stated that the rule

appropriately: (1) Ensures that any new

eligible state will be the voluntary host

state until all current nuclear power

plants within the region are fully

decommissioned, (2) guarantees 800,000

cubic feet of disposal capacity for New

Jersey and Connecticut generators, (3)

permits imports and exports of waste

into and out of the region, (4) caps

disposal fees at predictable, reasonable

levels, (5) requires the return of

incentive payments if the regional

disposal facility becomes unavailable

for any reason, and (6) indemnifies

Connecticut and New Jersey for any

damages liability. The Commission

appreciates the commenters’ affirmation

of these essential components of the

rule.

Specific Comment No. 1: Several

commenters raised questions about the

methodology that would be employed

under § 1800.13(d) to determine the

average fees that generators within the

existing party states paid for disposal at

the Barnwell, South Carolina, facility at

the end of calendar year 1999. One

commenter suggested that the

Commission should establish explicit

criteria under Compact Article V.f. to be

used in determining these baseline fees.

The commenter proposed the following

criteria: (a) Fees should be fair and

equitable among various classes of

generators and should bear some

reasonable relationship to the cost of

disposal; (b) fees should be simple and

easy to calculate; (c) fees should be

competitive and should reflect marketbased conditions; and (d) fees should

generate adequate revenues to assure an

economically viable disposal facility.

The Commission agrees with the

commenters on the importance of

determining the maximum disposal fee

and generally agrees with the principles

suggested as guidelines for determining

those fees under the rule. The

Commission does not believe it is

necessary at this time, however, to

establish any further explicit criteria for

setting the maximum disposal fee to

which a petitioning state must agree.

The rule establishes the fees paid in the

later part of calendar year 1999 as the

basis for the prospective uniform

maximum fee schedule. That rate

presumptively represents a marketbased rate because it is the rate that

generators were willing to pay in 1999

for disposal of waste at the Barnwell

facility. Any more specific criteria for

determining the fees may unnecessarily

limit a new party state’s ability to devise

an acceptable maximum waste disposal

fee schedule.

The Commission will apply this rule

to evaluate any petition by a state

seeking to be declared eligible for

Compact membership. It will be up to

the petitioning state to demonstrate that

the maximum disposal rate schedule

will be determined fairly and equitably

based on the rates that Connecticut and

New Jersey generators paid in 1999. The

Commission will consider the

petitioning state’s actual determination

of disposal rates before acting on the

petition to ensure that the process used

was acceptable, and, before accepting

the petition, the Commission may

impose conditions specifying disposal

rates. In light of these procedures, the

Commission sees no need to modify the

rule.

Specific Comment No. 2: Several

commenters asked the Commission to

identify which index will be used to

determine the inflation factor or the

process that will be used to select the

appropriate index. The rule in

§ 1800.13(d) deliberately did not specify

a specific inflation index, but stated that

it must be acceptable to the

Commission. With input from

generators and the existing states, the

Commission has considered use of a

variety of indices, including the

Producer Price Index, the Employment

Cost Index, the Consumer Price Index,

and the Gross Domestic Product

deflator. The Commission believes that

an appropriate index within the

Producer Price indices will probably be

acceptable, but the Commission will

evaluate the proposed index in any

petition to determine whether it is

finally acceptable. No change in the rule

is necessary.

Specific Comment No. 3: Two

commenters suggested that the rule in

§ 1800.13(h) was not clear because it did

not specify what would happen if the

regional disposal facility ceases to be

available on December 31 in the years

2001, 2003, 2005, or 2008. The

commenters suggested that § 1800.13(h)

be changed so that the end of each

period is ‘‘prior to January 1’’ in the

appropriate year. The Commission

accepts this change and has

incorporated it in the final rule.

Specific Comment No. 4: One

commenter asked whether, under the

rule in § 1800.13(e), the Commission

will continue to obtain all necessary

approvals for regional generators to

dispose of waste outside the region,

whether regional generators will be

permitted to ship waste outside the

region for purposes of treatment,

volume reduction, repackaging, storage,

processing or any other reason, and

whether repackaged waste or its residue

can be shipped directly to the regional

disposal facility as regional waste. The

Commission affirms that, as it interprets

§ 1800.13(e), the Commission will

continue to obtain appropriate

approvals for regional generators to

dispose of waste outside the region,

regional generators will be permitted to

ship waste outside the region for

purposes of treatment, volume

reduction, repackaging, storage,

processing or any other reason, and

repackaged waste or its residue will be

permitted to be shipped directly to the

regional disposal facility as regional

waste. No change to the rule is required.

Specific Comment No. 5: One

commenter asked the Commission to

specify how the 800,000 cubic feet of

disposal capacity that will be allotted to

generators in the existing party states

would be divided between Connecticut

and New Jersey. As the commenter

noted, it currently appears that 800,000

cubic feet of disposal capacity will be

sufficient to accommodate both states’

projected waste volumes. At this time,

the Commission expects that the total

disposal capacity available for

Connecticut and New Jersey will be

divided evenly, with 400,000 cubic feet

allotted to each state’s generators.

Nevertheless, circumstances may

change over the next 50 years. Thus, the

Commission (or the Commissioners

representing Connecticut and New

Jersey) may modify this presumptive

allocation to meet the needs of the

generators in the two states. Any

modification to the even division of

available disposal capacity between the

two states should consider the needs of

generators and any comments that the

generators in those states may have on

the appropriate allocation.

Conclusions: After considering all of

the comments, the Commission

concludes that this final rule, as

modified, will further promote health

and safety within the region. It will

provide a mechanism for the

Commission to consider a long-term

resolution for disposal of low-level

radioactive waste generated within the

region. It will establish the essential

conditions that must be satisfied before

declaring a state eligible for membership

in the Compact. The rules are consistent

with and will further the purposes of

the Compact and the Low-Level

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 94 / Monday, May 15, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 30835

Radioactive Waste Policy Act, as

amended (Pub. L. 96–573; Pub. L. 99–

240, Title I).

Statutory Authority

The Commission has authority to

issue this rule under The Omnibus Lowlevel Radioactive Waste Compact

Consent Act of 1985, Public Law 99–

240, section 227, Art. IV(i)(7), Art.

VII(e), 99 Stat. 1842, 1914, 1921–22.

List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 1800

Administrative practice and

procedure, Hazardous waste,

Radioactive materials.

Kevin McCarthy,

Chairman, Northeast Interstate Low-Level

Radioactive Waste Commission.

For the reasons set out in the

preamble, the Commission establishes

chapter XVIII, consisting of part 1800, in

title 10 of the Code of Federal

Regulations to read as follows:

CHAPTER XVIII—NORTHEAST

INTERSTATE LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE

WASTE COMMISSION

PART 1800—DECLARATION OF

PARTY STATE ELIGIBILITY FOR

NORTHEAST INTERSTATE LOWLEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE

COMPACT

Sec.

1800.10 Purpose and scope.

1800.11 Definitions.

1800.12 Procedures for declaring a state

eligible for membership in the Compact.

1800.13 Conditions for becoming an eligible

party state.

1800.14 Modification to and enforcement of

the rules in this part.

Authority: Sec. 227, Art. IV(i)(7), Art.

VII(e), Pub. L. 99–240, 99 Stat. 1842, 1914,

1921–1922.

§ 1800.10 Purpose and scope.

Pursuant to Articles IV.i.(1), (7), (15),

and VII.e. of the Northeast Interstate

Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact

(enacted by the ‘‘Omnibus Low-Level

Radioactive Waste Compact Consent Act

of 1985,’’ Public Law 99–240, 99 Stat.

1842, Title I) (the ‘‘Compact’’), the

Northeast Interstate Low-Level

Radioactive Waste Commission (the

‘‘Commission’’) establishes through this

part the conditions that it deems

necessary and appropriate to be met by

a state requesting eligibility to become

a party state to this Compact. The

Commission shall apply these

conditions to evaluate the petition of

any state seeking to be eligible to

become a party state pursuant to Article

VII of the Compact.

§ 1800.11 Definitions.

The definitions contained in Article II

of the Compact and Article I.B. of the

Commission’s By Laws shall apply

throughout this part. For the purposes of

this part, additional terms are defined as

follows:

(a) By Laws refers to the Commission’s

By Laws as adopted and amended by

the Commission pursuant to Article

IV.c. and Article IV.i.(7) of the Compact,

most recently amended on December 10,

1998, and dated July 1999;

(b) Person means an individual,

corporation, business enterprise or other

legal entity, either public or private, and

expressly includes states;

(c) Nuclear power station means any

facility holding a license from the U.S.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission under

10 CFR Part 50.

(d) Existing party states means

Connecticut and New Jersey

collectively.

§ 1800.12 Procedures for declaring a state

eligible for membership in the Compact.

(a) Any state seeking to become an

eligible state under the Compact shall

submit to the Chairman of the

Commission six copies of a petition to

become an eligible state. The petition

shall discuss each of the conditions

specified in § 1800.13 and shall:

(1) Affirm that the petitioning state

fully satisfies each condition; or

(2) Explain why the petitioning state

does not or cannot fully satisfy any

particular condition.

(b) Upon receipt of a petition from

any state seeking to become an eligible

state under the Compact, the

Commission shall publish a notice in

accordance with Article I.F.1. of the By

Laws and shall initiate an adjudicatory

proceeding to act on the petition. Any

person may submit written comments

on a petition, and all such comments

must be received by the Commission

within 30 days of notice that a petition

has been submitted.

(c) The Commission shall evaluate the

petition against the conditions for

declaration of an eligible state specified

in § 1800.13. As part of the proceeding

to evaluate a petition to become an

eligible state, the Commission may, in

its discretion, conduct a hearing

pursuant to Article IV.i.(6) of the

Compact and Article V.F.1. of the

Commission’s By-Laws. For good cause

shown, the Commission may issue an

order shortening the notice period for

hearings provided in Article I.F.1. of the

By Laws to a period of not less than ten

days.

(d) After review of the petition and

after any hearing, if held, the

Commission shall issue an order

accepting or rejecting the petition or

accepting the petition with conditions.

If the Commission accepts the petition

without conditions, the petitioning state

shall be declared an eligible state and

shall become a new party state upon

passage of the Compact by its state

legislature, repeal of all statutes or

statutory provisions that pose

unreasonable impediments to the

capability of the state to satisfy the

conditions for eligibility (as determined

by the Commission) and payment of (or

arrangement to pay) the fee specified in

Article IV.j.(1). If the Commission

accepts the petition with conditions, the

petitioning state may become an eligible

state by satisfying all of the conditions

in the Commission’s order and

providing an amended petition

incorporating its compliance with all of

the conditions in this subpart and in the

Commission’s order. The Commission

will consider the amended petition as

part of the original adjudicatory

proceeding and will issue a new order

accepting or rejecting the amended

petition.

(e) A state that submits a petition for

declaration as an eligible state that is

rejected by the Commission may submit

a new petition at any time. The

Commission will consider the new

petition without reference to the prior

petition but may use evidence obtained

in any prior proceeding to evaluate the

new petition.

(f) The Commission’s consideration of

a petition for declaration of an eligible

state shall be governed by the Compact,

the Commission’s By Laws, and this

part.

§ 1800.13 Conditions for becoming an

eligible party state.

The Commission shall evaluate a

petition to become an eligible party state

on the basis of the following conditions

and criteria:

(a) To be eligible for Compact

membership, a state must agree that it

will be the voluntary host state upon

admission to the Compact and will

continue to be the voluntary host state

for a least that period of time until all

currently licensed nuclear power

stations within the region have been

fully decommissioned and their licenses

(including any licenses for storage of

spent nuclear fuel under 10 CFR Part

72) have been terminated.

(b) To be eligible for Compact

membership, a state must agree that, so

long as the petitioning state remains

within the Compact, it will be the sole

host state.

(c) To be eligible for Compact

membership, a state must warrant the

availability of a regional disposal

30836 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 94 / Monday, May 15, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

facility that will accommodate 800,000

cubic feet of waste from generators

located within the borders of the

existing party states.

(d) To be eligible for Compact

membership, a state must agree to

establish a uniform fee schedule for

waste disposal at the regional disposal

facility that shall apply to all generators

within the region. That uniform fee

schedule, including all surcharges

(except new surcharges imposed

pursuant to Article V.f.3. of the

Compact), shall not exceed the average

fees that generators within the existing

party states paid for disposal at the

Barnwell, South Carolina, facility at the

end of calendar year 1999, adjusted

annually based on an acceptable

inflation index.

(e) To be eligible for Compact

membership, a state must agree with the

existing states that regional generators

shall be permitted to process or dispose

of waste at sites outside the Compact

boundaries based solely on the

judgment and discretion of each

regional generator.

(f) To be eligible for Compact

membership, a state must agree with the

existing states that the Commission may

authorize importation of waste from

non-regional generators for the purpose

of disposal only if the host state

approves and such importation does not

jeopardize the warranted availability of

800,000 cubic feet of disposal capacity

for waste produced by generators within

the existing party states. A new party

state must agree that regional generators

shall not pay higher fees than nonregional generators and that all books

and records related to the establishment

or collection of fees shall be available

for Commission review.

(g) To be eligible for Compact

membership, in addition to the express

limitations on non-host state and

Commission liability provided in the

Compact, a state must agree to

indemnify the Commission or the

existing party states for any damages

incurred solely because of the new

state’s membership in the Compact and

for any damages associated with any

injury to persons or property during the

institutional control period as a result of

the radioactive waste and waste

management operations of any regional

facility. The petitioning state must agree

that this indemnification obligation will

survive the termination of the

petitioning state’s membership in the

Compact.

(h) To be eligible for Compact

membership, a state must agree that any

incentive payments made by the

existing party states as an inducement

for a state to join the Compact will be

returned to the existing party states,

with interest, on a pro rata basis if, for

any reason, the regional disposal facility

ceases to be available to generators in

the existing party states for a period of

more than six months (other than

periods that have been expressly

approved and authorized by the

Commission) or is unavailable for

disposal of 800,000 cubic feet of waste

from generators within the borders of

the existing states. In the event of such

unavailability, the new party state must

agree to return the incentive payments

based on the following schedule:

(1) 75% of the incentive payment if

the regional facility becomes

unavailable prior to January 1, 2002;

(2) 50% of the incentive payment if

the regional facility becomes

unavailable on or after January 1, 2002,

and prior to January 1, 2004;

(3) 30% of the incentive payment if

the regional facility becomes

unavailable on or after January 1, 2004,

and prior to January 1, 2006;

(4) 20% of the incentive payment if

the regional facility becomes

unavailable on or after January 1, 2006,

and prior to January 1, 2009;

(5) 10% of the incentive payment if

the regional facility becomes

unavailable on or after January 1, 2009,

and prior to the time when all currently

licensed nuclear power stations within

the region have been fully

decommissioned and their licenses

(including any licenses for storage of

spent nuclear fuel under 10 CFR Part

72) have been terminated.

(i) To be eligible for Compact

membership, a state must agree with the

existing states that once a new party

state has been admitted to membership

in the Compact pursuant to the rules in

this part, declaration of any other state

as an eligible party state will require the

unanimous consent of all members of

the Commission.

§ 1800.14 Modification to and enforcement

of the rules in this part.

(a) Because of the importance of the

conditions for declaration of an eligible

state under the Compact, the rules in

this part may only be modified,

amended, or rescinded after a public

hearing held pursuant to Article IV.i.(6)

of the Compact and Article V.F.1. of the

Commission’s By Laws and by a

unanimous vote of all members of the

Commission.

(b) Any party state may enforce the

rules in this part by bringing an action

against or on behalf of the Commission

in the United States District Court for

the District of Columbia pursuant to

Article IV.n. of the Compact.

(c) If, for any reason, any portion of

the rules in this part shall be declared

invalid or unenforceable, the remainder

of the rules in this part shall remain in

full force and effect.

[FR Doc. 00–12158 Filed 5–12–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7595–01–P

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

13 CFR Part 121

Small Business Size Regulations; Size

Standards and the North American

Industry Classification System

AGENCY: Small Business Administration.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Small Business

Administration (SBA) is amending its

size regulations by establishing a new

table of small business size standards

for industries as the North American

Industry Classification System (NAICS)

defines them. These new size standards

are effective beginning with Fiscal Year

2001, which starts on October 1, 2000.

Small business size standards currently

exist for most industries under the

Standard Industrial Classification (SIC)

system. SBA has determined that NAICS

is a better description of industries in

the U.S. economy than the SIC system

for purposes of establishing size

standards.

DATES: This rule is effective October 1,

2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carl

Jordan, Office of Size Standards, at (202)

205–6618.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Introduction

Under section 3(a)(2) of the Small

Business Act, SBA establishes small

business definitions, or size standards,

by industry category and varies size

standards as necessary to reflect

industry differences to determine small

business eligibility for Federal

programs. The current table of size

standards uses SIC industry

descriptions as the basis for the size

standards. Because NAICS replaced the

SIC system for use by Federal agencies

in collecting economic data, we

reviewed NAICS to determine whether

we should also use the NAICS industry

descriptions to establish small business

size standards. Based on that review, we

proposed in the October 22, 1999,

Federal Register (64 FR 57187–57286)

to adopt a new table of small business

size standards for industries as they are

described in NAICS, effective October 1,

2000.