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

29683 

Vol. 86, No. 105 

Thursday, June 3, 2021 

1Public Law 115–435, 132 Stat 5529 (2019). 

2Office of Management and Budget, M–19–23, 

‘‘Phase 1 Implementation of the Foundations for 

Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018: Learning 

Agendas, Personnel, and Planning Guidance,’’ 2 

(July 10, 2019). 

3 5 U.S.C. 313(d)(3). 

4Office of Management and Budget, M–20–12, 

‘‘Phase 4 Implementation of the Foundations for 

Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018: Program 

Evaluation Standards and Practices,’’ Appendix C 

(March 10, 2020) (M–20–12). 

5M–20–12, Appendix C. 

6 Id. 

7 Id. at 2. 

8 Id. at 3–5. 

9Nuclear Regulatory Commission, NUREG–1350, 

2019–2020 Information Digest, at 4 (August 2019). 

10 Id. at 7. 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

10 CFR Chapter I 

[NRC–2020–0262] 

Evidence-Building and Evaluation 

Policy Statement 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Policy statement; issuance. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) is issuing an 

Evidence-Building and Evaluation 

Policy Statement that describes the 

general standards that guide the NRC’s 

‘‘evidence-building’’ activities, 

consistent with the Foundations for 

Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 

2018. The policy statement is intended 

to provide agency personnel and 

stakeholders with a clear understanding 

of the expectations related to the NRC’s 

standards for evidence-building 

activities, which includes analyses, 

research, assessments, and evaluations 

performed by the agency for 

programmatic, operational, regulatory, 

and policy decision making. These 

standards include rigor, relevance and 

utility, transparency, collaboration, 

independence and objectivity, and 

ethics. 

DATES: This policy statement is effective 

on June 3, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID 

NRC–2020–0262 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–2020–0262. 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 publiclyavailable 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 final 

Evidence-Building and Evaluation 

Policy Statement, in its entirety, is in 

the attachment to this document. 

• Attention: The PDR, where you may 

examine and order copies of public 

documents is currently closed. You may 

submit your request to the PDR via 

email at PDR.Resource@nrc.gov or call 

1–800–397–4209 between 8:00 a.m. and 

4:00 p.m. (EST), Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Matthew Meyer, Office of the Executive 

Director for Operations, U.S. Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission, Washington, 

DC 20555–0001, telephone: 301–415– 

6198, email: Matthew.Meyer@nrc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Foundations for Evidence-Based 

Policymaking Act of 2018 (‘‘Evidence 

Act’’) became law on January 14, 2019 

(Pub. L. 115–435), to enhance evidencebuilding activities, make data more 

accessible, and strengthen privacy 

protections.1 ‘‘[T]he Evidence Act 

creates a new paradigm by calling on 

agencies to significantly rethink how 

they currently plan and organize 

evidence-building, data management, 

and data access functions to ensure an 

integrated and direct connection to data 

and evidence needs.’’ 2 The Evidence 

Act requires each agency to name an 

Evaluation Officer. At the NRC, the 

Director of the Office of Nuclear 

Regulatory Research holds this position 

and must ‘‘establish and implement an 

agency evaluation policy’’ to fulfill a 

primary function of this position.3 The 

agency evaluation policy ‘‘should guide 

the agency’s activities throughout the 

evaluation lifecycle.’’ 4 The Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) has 

provided guidance on establishing an 

agency evaluation policy based on 

‘‘approaches that Federal agencies have 

found useful.’’ 5 This guidance includes 

‘‘[e]nsuring that the agency evaluation 

policy incorporates the evaluation 

standards’’ recommended by OMB.6

OMB developed these evaluation 

standards through an interagency 

council that ‘‘reviewed an extensive list 

of source documents to identify widely 

accepted standards for evaluation.’’ 7

The interagency council identified the 

following evaluation standards: 

relevance and utility, rigor, 

independence and objectivity, 

transparency, and ethics.8

The Evidence Act focuses on the 

importance of sound evidence-building, 

which includes evaluation, to make 

informed evidence-based decisions. The 

evaluation standards developed by the 

interagency council, including an 

additional standard developed by the 

NRC (collaboration), are applicable to 

all of the NRC’s evidence-building 

activities. 

Historically, the NRC has relied on 

high-quality evidence obtained from 

external entities and through its own 

capacity. In recent years the agency has 

begun evidence-building activities to 

support licensing new or novel nuclear 

technologies, including advanced, nonlight water reactor designs; accident 

tolerant nuclear fuel; and digital 

instrumentation and controls.9

Additionally, the NRC has increasingly 

sought to rely on evidence-based 

metrics to improve internal agency 

performance including budgeting and 

financial management.10 The NRC has 

developed an evidence-building and 

evaluation policy statement to enhance 

its existing evidence-building activities 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES
29684 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 105 / Thursday, June 3, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 

11The Evidence Act defines ‘‘evaluation’’ as ‘‘an 

assessment using systematic data collection and 

analysis of one or more programs, policies, and 

organizations intended to assess their effectiveness 

and efficiency’’ (5 U.S.C. 311(3)). ‘‘Evaluation can 

look beyond the program, policy, or organizational 

level to include assessment of projects or 

interventions within a program’’ (OMB M–20–12). 

12The NRC’s rules of practice and procedure in 

10 CFR part 2 govern the Commission’s 

adjudicatory process. 

through the activities directed in the 

Evidence Act. The NRC envisions that 

this approach will strengthen the 

agency’s oversight of existing uses of 

nuclear technology, enhance the 

agency’s readiness to license and 

regulate new and novel nuclear 

technologies, and further the NRC’s 

ongoing efforts to improve its internal 

processes. 

II. Public Comments 

The NRC published the Proposed 

Evaluation Policy Statement in the 

Federal Register for a 30-day comment 

period on December 8, 2020 (85 FR 

79042). The NRC received a total of nine 

public comments. 

These comments were generally 

supportive of the policy statement and 

the NRC’s commitment to ensuring that 

its regulatory decisions are supported 

with evidence and sound technical 

bases. However, commenters also 

requested that the NRC clarify the 

applicability of the policy statement to 

evidence-building activities other than 

‘‘evaluation’’ as that term is defined in 

the Evidence Act (5 U.S.C. 311(3)), such 

as licensing, inspection, rulemaking, 

generic communication, and other 

regulatory activities (including 

backfitting analyses, and environmental 

reviews performed under the National 

Environmental Policy Act). The NRC 

agrees and has revised the proposed 

policy statement to clarify that the 

general standards articulated in the 

policy statement apply to all agency 

‘‘evidence-building’’ activities. This 

includes not only ‘‘evaluations’’ 

conducted to review the effectiveness 

and efficiency of NRC programs, 

policies, and organizations, but other 

types of evidence-building such as 

regulatory analyses, compliance 

analyses, and performance assessments. 

A complete table of the comments 

received on the proposed policy 

statement and NRC staff responses to 

those comments is available in ADAMS 

under Accession No. ML21070A196. 

III. Procedural Requirements 

Congressional Review Act 

This policy statement is not a rule as 

defined in the Congressional Review 

Act (5 U.S.C. 801–808). 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

This Policy Statement does not 

contain new or amended information 

collection requirements and, therefore, 

is not subject to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 

et seq.). 

The text of the Evidence-Building and 

Evaluation Policy statement is attached. 

Dated: May 28, 2021. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Wesley W. Held, 

Acting Secretary of the Commission. 

Note: The following attachment will not 

appear in the Code of Federal Regulations: 

Attachment—Evidence-Building and 

Evaluation Policy Statement 

The purpose of this EvidenceBuilding and Evaluation Policy 

Statement is to describe the general 

standards that govern the NRC’s 

planning and conduct of evidencebuilding. Evidence-building includes 

activities such as analysis, assessment, 

research, and program evaluation 

(evaluation).11 The Foundations for 

Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 

2018 requires an agency evaluation 

policy to guide the agency’s evaluation 

activities throughout the evaluation 

lifecycle. The NRC is committed to 

using evidence and scientific methods 

when making evidence-based decisions. 

The NRC is an evidence-based 

organization with a culture of 

continuous learning and improvement. 

The NRC’s evidence-building activities 

use objective technical analyses and 

assessments to document decisions with 

explicitly stated rationale. Furthermore, 

the NRC commits to implementing the 

standards of rigor; relevance and utility; 

transparency; collaboration; 

independence and objectivity; and 

ethics in the conduct of its evidencebuilding activities. This policy 

statement describes these general 

standards. 

The Commission, as a collegial body, 

formulates policies, develops 

regulations governing nuclear reactor 

and nuclear material safety, issues 

orders to licensees, and adjudicates 

legal matters. The collegial decisionmaking process results in actions 

reflecting the collective judgment of a 

group aided by professional and 

administrative staff and advisory 

committees, such as the Advisory 

Committee on Reactor Safeguards. Strict 

requirements govern the admission and 

consideration of ‘‘evidence’’ when the 

Commission acts in its adjudicatory 

capacity. This policy applies to the 

NRC’s non-adjudicatory functions.12

The NRC’s Principles of Good 

Regulation, which include 

independence, efficiency, clarity, 

reliability, and openness, have guided 

the agency’s regulatory activities and 

decisions using evidence and scientific 

methods. The principles focus on 

meeting the agency’s important safety 

and security mission while 

appropriately considering the interests 

of stakeholders, including licensees; 

State, local, and Tribal governments; 

nongovernmental organizations; and the 

public. The agency’s openness principle 

explicitly recognizes that the public 

must be informed about and have an 

opportunity to participate in the 

regulatory process. 

Evidence-building is used to inform 

agency activities and actions, such as 

licensing, oversight, budgeting, program 

improvement, accountability, 

management, rulemaking, guidance 

development, and policy development. 

The emphasis on evidence is meant to 

support innovation, improvement, and 

learning. Examples of how the NRC 

carries out evidence-building include 

(1) identifying, evaluating, and resolving 

safety issues; (2) ensuring that an 

independent technical basis exists to 

review licensee submittals; (3) 

evaluating operating experience and 

results of risk assessments for safety 

implications; (4) supporting the 

development and use of risk-informed 

regulatory approaches; (5) conducting 

research with scientific integrity; and (6) 

ensuring that licensing and oversight 

findings are supported by evidence. 

Evidence-Building Standards 

The NRC uses the following standards 

when conducting evidence-building 

activities. 

1. Rigor—The NRC is committed to 

using rigorous evidence-building 

methods by qualified staff with relevant 

education, skills, and experience to 

ensure findings are appropriate and 

feasible within statutory, budgetary, and 

other constraints. 

Rigorous evidence-building requires 

inferences about cause and effect to be 

well founded (internal validity); clarity 

about the populations, settings, or 

circumstances to which results can be 

generalized (external validity); and the 

use of measures that accurately capture 

the intended information (measurement 

reliability and validity). The NRC’s 

evidence-building activities are 

conducted by qualified staff with 

relevant education, skills, and 

experience for the methods undertaken. 

The NRC’s evidence-building activities 

use appropriate designs and methods 

that adhere to widely accepted scientific 

principles to answer key questions 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 105 / Thursday, June 3, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 29685 

13Management Directive 3.17, ‘‘Information 

Quality Program,’’ ensures that peer review is 

conducted on all influential scientific information 

and highly influential scientific assessment that the 

agency intends to disseminate. 1 15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq. 

while balancing goals, scale, timeline, 

feasibility, and available resources. 

Additionally, the NRC’s Information 

Quality Program 13 ensures that all 

information relied on by the NRC is 

subject to rigorous quality standards. 2. Relevance and Utility—The NRC 

ensures that evidence-building activities 

are relevant and provide useful findings 

to inform agency activities, actions, and 

stakeholders. 

The NRC performs evidence-building 

activities to examine questions of 

importance and serve the information 

needs of stakeholders. The NRC 

presents findings that are clear, concise, 

actionable, and available within a 

timeline that is appropriate to the 

questions under consideration. The 

NRC’s evidence-building priorities 

consider legislative requirements; the 

NRC’s strategic goals, objectives, and 

strategies; and the interests and views of 

stakeholders. 

3. Transparency—The NRC is 

committed to conducting evidencebuilding activities in an open and 

transparent manner, which keeps 

stakeholders informed. 

The NRC’s evidence-building 

activities are conducted openly and the 

public must be informed about and have 

an opportunity to participate in the 

NRC’s regulatory process. As a 

regulator, the NRC listens to, respects, 

and analyzes different views from its 

stakeholders. The NRC ensures open 

channels of communication are 

maintained between internal and 

external stakeholders, including 

Congress, other government agencies, 

licensees, nongovernmental 

organizations, individual members of 

the public, and international and 

domestic nuclear communities. The 

NRC takes reasonable measures to make 

all information, including information 

about the NRC’s evidence-building 

activities (including their purpose, 

objectives, design, findings, and 

methods), broadly available and 

accessible. The NRC releases public 

evidence-building findings in a timely 

manner and archives the data for 

secondary use by stakeholders, as 

appropriate. 4. Collaboration—The NRC is 

committed to working collaboratively 

when conducting evidence-building 

activities and draws on the expertise of 

subject matter experts to ensure 

diversity in perspectives. The NRC fosters a collaborative work 

environment that encourages diverse 

views, alternative approaches, critical 

thinking, creative problem solving, 

unbiased findings, and honest feedback. 

The NRC emphasizes trust, respect, and 

open communication to promote a 

positive work environment that 

maximizes the potential of all 

individuals, which improves evidence 

building and evaluation activities. A 

collaborative environment leverages 

expertise from subject matter experts 

and enables peer reviews to ensure 

rigorous evidence-building. The NRC 

conducts research and collaborates with 

organizations that develop consensus 

standards to improve data and methods 

used in risk analysis. The NRC 

collaborates with national laboratories, 

Agreement States, other Federal 

agencies, universities, and international 

organizations. 

5. Independence and Objectivity—As 

an independent Federal agency, the 

NRC is committed to conducting 

evidence-building activities that are 

independent and based on objective 

assessments and analysis of all relevant 

information. 

The NRC was established as an 

independent agency to regulate civilian 

uses of radioactive material. The NRC’s 

evidence-building activities are 

independent and objective to maintain 

credibility and integrity. The 

implementation of evidence-building 

activities, including the selection and 

assignment of the staff, should be 

appropriately insulated from factors that 

may affect objectivity, impartiality, and 

professional judgment. Evidencebuilding is inclusive and the NRC seeks 

input from a broad range of stakeholders 

in setting priorities, identifying 

questions, and assessing the 

implications of findings. The NRC 

strives for objectivity in the planning 

and conduct of evidence-building 

activities. 

6. Ethics—The NRC is committed to 

conducting evidence-building activities 

that adhere to Government-wide ethics 

standards to protect the public and 

maintain public trust. 

The NRC’s evidence-building 

activities comply with relevant legal 

requirements and are conducted in a 

manner that is free from conflicts of 

interest, undue influence, the 

appearance of bias, and safeguards the 

dignity, rights, safety, and privacy of 

participants. The NRC complies with 

Governmentwide ethics standards 

contained in Federal statutes and 

regulations, which are intended to 

ensure that every citizen can have 

confidence in the integrity of the 

Federal Government. 

[FR Doc. 2021–11637 Filed 6–2–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL 

PROTECTION 

12 CFR Part 1026 

[Docket No. CFPB–2020–0023] 

RIN 3170–AA83 

Higher-Priced Mortgage Loan Escrow 

Exemption (Regulation Z); Correcting 

Amendments 

AGENCY: Bureau of Consumer Financial 

Protection. 

ACTION: Final rule; official 

interpretations; correcting amendments. 

SUMMARY: This document corrects the 

Official Interpretations (Commentary) to 

Regulation Z. Specifically, the Bureau of 

Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) 

is adding a comment to its Commentary 

that it included in a recent higherpriced mortgage loan escrow exemption 

final rule but that was not incorporated 

into the Code of Federal Regulations 

(CFR) due to an omission in an 

amendatory instruction. The Bureau is 

also revising a comment that it included 

in the same recent final rule, but that 

inadvertently did not appear in a 

subsequently effective final rule. 

DATES: The corrections are effective on 

June 3, 2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Joseph Devlin, Senior Counsel, Office of 

Regulations, at 202–435–7700 or https:// 

reginquiries.consumerfinance.gov/. If 

you require this document in an 

alternative electronic format, please 

contact CFPB_Accessibility@cfpb.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Bureau is issuing this document 

to correct two comments in the Bureau’s 

Commentary to Regulation Z, which 

implements the Truth in Lending Act.1

In the final rule titled ‘‘Higher-Priced 

Mortgage Loan Escrow Exemption 

(Regulation Z)’’ (Escrow Exemption 

Final Rule), published in the Federal 

Register on February 17, 2021 (86 FR 

9840), the Bureau included Paragraph 

35(b)(2)(vi)(B) in its commentary text for 

the rule, but omitted the related 

amendatory instruction to add that 

specific paragraph to the Commentary. 

This omission was a scrivener’s error. 

The Bureau is therefore issuing this 

correction to ensure that Paragraph 

35(b)(2)(vi)(B) is incorporated into the 

Commentary published in the CFR. 

Additionally, the Bureau is amending 

the CFR to revise a comment that the 

Bureau amended in the Escrow 

Exemption Rule but that inadvertently 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES