This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains regulatory documents having general

applicability and legal effect, most of which

are keyed to and codified in the Code of

Federal Regulations, which is published under

50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.

The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by

the Superintendent of Documents.

Rules and Regulations Federal Register

12853 

Vol. 87, No. 45 

Tuesday, March 8, 2022 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

10 CFR Parts 11, 25, and 95 

[NRC–2020–0133] 

RIN 3150–AK49 

Access Authorization Fees 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Direct final rule; withdrawal. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) is withdrawing a 

direct final rule that would have 

updated the access authorization fees 

charged to NRC licensees for work 

performed under the Material Access 

Authorization Program and the 

Information Access Authority Program. 

The direct final rule also would have 

made two administrative changes to 

revise definitions to include new 

naming conventions for background 

investigation case types and to specify 

the electronic process for completing 

security forms. The NRC is taking this 

action because it has received a 

significant adverse comment in 

response to the companion proposed 

rule that was published with the direct 

final rule. 

DATES: Effective March 8, 2022, the NRC 

withdraws the direct final rule 

published at 86 FR 73631 on December 

28, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID 

NRC–2020–0133 when contacting the 

NRC about the availability of 

information for this action. You may 

obtain publicly available information 

related to this action by any of the 

following methods: 

• Federal Rulemaking website: Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and search 

for Docket ID NRC–2020–0133. Address 

questions about NRC dockets to Dawn 

Forder; telephone: 301–415–3407; 

email: Dawn.Forder@nrc.gov. For 

technical questions, contact the 

individual listed in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 

document. 

• NRC’s Agencywide Documents 

Access and Management System 

(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly 

available documents online in the 

ADAMS Public Documents collection at 

https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/ 

adams.html. To begin the search, select 

‘‘Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.’’ For 

problems with ADAMS, please contact 

the NRC’s Public Document Room (PDR) 

reference staff at 1–800–397–4209, at 

301–415–4737, or by email to 

PDR.Resource@nrc.gov. The ADAMS 

accession number for each document 

referenced (if it is available in ADAMS) 

is provided the first time that it is 

mentioned in the SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION section. 

• NRC’s PDR: You may examine and 

purchase copies of public documents, 

by appointment, at the NRC’s PDR, 

Room P1 B35, One White Flint North, 

11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 

Maryland 20852. To make an 

appointment to visit the PDR, please 

send an email to PDR.Resource@nrc.gov 

or call 1–800–397–4209 or 301–415– 

4737, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. 

(ET), Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Vanessa Cox, Office of Nuclear Material 

Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 

20555–0001, telephone: 301–415 8342, 

email: Vanessa.Cox@nrc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

December 28, 2021 (86 FR 73631), the 

NRC published in the Federal Register 

a direct final rule that would have 

amended parts 11, 25, and 95 of title 10 

of the Code of Federal Regulations to 

update the access authorization fees 

charged to NRC licensees for work 

performed under the Material Access 

Authorization Program and the 

Information Access Authority Program. 

The direct final rule also would have 

made two administrative changes to 

revise definitions to include new 

naming conventions for background 

investigation case types and to specify 

the electronic process for completing 

security forms. The direct final rule was 

to become effective on March 14, 2022. 

The NRC also concurrently published 

a companion proposed rule on 

December 28, 2022 (86 FR 73685). In the 

proposed rule, the NRC stated that if 

any significant adverse comments were 

received, then the NRC would withdraw 

the direct final rule by publishing a 

notice in the Federal Register. In that 

event, the direct final rule would not 

take effect. 

The NRC received a significant 

adverse comment on the proposed rule 

that accompanied the direct final rule; 

therefore the NRC is withdrawing the 

direct final rule. The comment was 

submitted by the Nuclear Energy 

Institute, a private organization. The 

comment (ADAMS Accession No. 

ML22025A233) is available at 

www.regulations.gov by searching on 

Docket ID NRC–2020–0133. The 

comment states that the direct final rule 

did not provide sufficient information to 

explain the proposed increase in 

authorization fees. Specifically, the 

comment questions why the NRC 

selected the revised number and how 

authorization applications are becoming 

more complex. Additionally, the 

comment requests that the NRC 

consider phasing in the proposed fee 

increase and takes issue with the direct 

final rule’s conclusion that the NRC has 

not adjusted its fees since 2012. The 

NRC considers the comment to be a 

significant adverse comment as defined 

in Section II, Rulemaking Procedure, of 

the direct final rule because the 

comment raises an issue serious enough 

to warrant a substantive response to 

clarify or complete the record. 

As stated in the December 28, 2021, 

proposed rule, the NRC will address the 

comment in a subsequent final rule. The 

NRC will not initiate a second public 

comment period on this action. 

Dated: March 2, 2022. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Daniel H. Dorman, 

Executive Director for Operations. 

[FR Doc. 2022–04813 Filed 3–7–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 


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