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###### Nuclear Regulatory Commission

          - [NRC-2020-0230]

# AGENCY:

Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

# ACTION:

Regulatory guide; issuance.

# SUMMARY:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing Revision 4 to Regulatory Guide (RG), 1.189, “Fire Protection for Nuclear Power Plants.” This RG describes an approach that is acceptable to the NRC staff to meet the regulatory requirements in the NRC's regulations governing a civilian nuclear power generating plant's fire protection program.

# DATES:

Revision 4 to RG 1.189 is available on May 28, 2021.

# ADDRESSES:

Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2020-0230 when contacting the NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You may obtain publicly available information related to this document using any of the following methods:
      -  Federal Rulemaking Website:  Go to  https://www.regulations.gov  and search for Docket ID NRC-2020-0230. Address questions about Docket IDs in  Regulations.gov  to Stacy Schumann; telephone: 301-415-0624; email:  Stacy.Schumann@nrc.gov.  For technical questions, contact the individuals listed in the  FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT  section of this document.       ( print page 28917)      
      -  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, 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 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 or 301-415-4737, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (EST), Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

Revision 4 to RG 1.189 and the regulatory analysis may be found in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML21048A441 and ML20231A874, respectively.

Regulatory guides are not copyrighted, and NRC approval is not required to reproduce them.

# FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Michael Eudy, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, telephone: 301-415-1304, email: *Michael.Eudy@nrc.gov* and Charles Moulton, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, telephone: 301-415-2751, email: *Charles.Moulton@nrc.gov.* Both are staff of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

# SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

## I. Discussion

The NRC is issuing a revision in the NRC's “Regulatory Guide” series. This series was developed to describe and make available to the public information regarding methods that are acceptable to the NRC staff for implementing specific parts of the agency's regulations, techniques that the NRC staff uses in evaluating specific issues or postulated events, and data that the NRC staff needs in its review of applications for permits and licenses.

Revision 4 to RG 1.189 was issued with a temporary identification of Draft Regulatory Guide, DG-1359. This revision of the guide (Revision 4) addresses new issues identified since the guide was previously revised and released in 2018. This includes incorporation of the latest guidance on fire-induced circuit failures, multiple high impedance failures, open secondary circuits on current transformers, and shorting switches. Updates also include partial endorsements of Nuclear Energy Institute 00-01, “Guidance for Post Fire Safe Shutdown Circuit Analysis,” Revision 4, issued September 2016, and guidance based on NUREG/CR-7150, “Joint Assessment of Cable Damage and Quantification of Effects from Fire (JACQUE-FIRE),” Volumes 1, 2, and 3 (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML12313A105, ML14141A129, and ML17331B098.)

## II. Additional Information

The NRC published a notice of the availability of DG-1359 in the **Federal Register** on November 16, 2020 (85 FR 73089) for a 45-day public comment period. The public comment period closed on December 31, 2020. Public comments on DG-1359 and the staff responses to the public comments are available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML21048A440.

## III. Congressional Review Act

This RG is a rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801-808). However, the Office of Management and Budget has not found it to be a major rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act.

## IV. Backfitting, Forward Fitting, and Issue Finality

The issuance of RG 1.189, Revision 4, would provide the most recent guidance acceptable to the NRC staff for compliance with paragraph 50.48(a) and (b) of title 10 of the *Code of Federal Regulations* (10 CFR) and 10 CFR part 50, appendix R, “Fire Protection Program for Nuclear Power Facilities Operating Prior to January 1, 1979.” Issuance of RG 1.189, Revision 4, would not constitute backfitting, as that term is defined in 10 CFR 50.109, “Backfitting,” and as described in NRC Management Directive (MD) 8.4, “Management of Backfitting, Forward Fitting, Issue Finality, and Information Requests”; constitute forward fitting, as that term is defined and described in MD 8.4; or affect the issue finality of any approval issued under 10 CFR part 52. As explained in RG 1.189, Revision 4, applicants and licensees would not be required to comply with the positions set forth in RG 1.189, Revision 4.

Dated: May 24, 2021.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Meraj Rahimi,

Chief, Regulatory Guidance and Generic Issues Branch, Division of Engineering, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.

[FR Doc. 2021-11298 Filed 5-27-21; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7590-01-P