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    <RIN_INFO>
        <RIN>3150-AF62</RIN>
        <PUBLICATION>
            <PUBLICATION_ID>199904</PUBLICATION_ID>
            <PUBLICATION_TITLE>Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions</PUBLICATION_TITLE>
        </PUBLICATION>
        <AGENCY>
            <CODE>3150</CODE>
            <NAME>Nuclear Regulatory Commission</NAME>
            <ACRONYM>NRC</ACRONYM>
        </AGENCY>
        <RULE_TITLE>Initial Operator License Examination Requirements</RULE_TITLE>
        <ABSTRACT><![CDATA[The proposed rule would amend the Commission's regulations to allow power reactor facility licensees to prepare the written examinations and operating tests, and to proctor and grade the written examinations, that the NRC uses to license operators and senior operators at those facilities. The rule would require the NRC to review and approve each examination and test before it is given and preserve the NRC's authority to prepare the examinations and tests, as necessary, to maintain examination quality and staff proficiency. This rule is not expected to affect reactor safety. 

Although a 1994 industry proposal to implement such a program on a voluntary basis was rejected by the NRC, subsequent budget reductions prompted the NRC to reconsider its position. In 1995, the Commission approved a voluntary pilot program to evaluate the revised examination process and, in 1996, directed the staff to initiate the subject rulemaking. The results of the pilot examinations conducted through the end of FY 1997 are consistent with results of NRC-prepared examinations conducted before and since initiating the pilot program, and voluntary participation in the program has allowed the NRC to eliminate approximately $3 million per year in contractor support for the operator licensing programs. This rule would enable facility licensees to exercise more control over the cost of licensing operators at their facilities. Some licensees have saved money during the pilot program, but others have had more costly examinations, largely because the examinations they submitted for NRC review and approval required extensive revisions to achieve NRC standards for quality and level of difficulty.]]></ABSTRACT>
        <PRIORITY_CATEGORY>Substantive, Nonsignificant</PRIORITY_CATEGORY>
        <RIN_STATUS>Previously Published in The Unified Agenda</RIN_STATUS>
        <RULE_STAGE>Final Rule Stage</RULE_STAGE>
        <MAJOR>No</MAJOR>
        <UNFUNDED_MANDATE_LIST>
            <UNFUNDED_MANDATE>No</UNFUNDED_MANDATE>
        </UNFUNDED_MANDATE_LIST>
        <CFR_LIST>
            <CFR>10 CFR 55</CFR>
        </CFR_LIST>
        <LEGAL_AUTHORITY_LIST>
            <LEGAL_AUTHORITY>42 USC 2201</LEGAL_AUTHORITY>
            <LEGAL_AUTHORITY>42 USC 5841</LEGAL_AUTHORITY>
        </LEGAL_AUTHORITY_LIST>
        <RPLAN_ENTRY>No</RPLAN_ENTRY>
        <TIMETABLE_LIST>
            <TIMETABLE>
                <TTBL_ACTION>NPRM</TTBL_ACTION>
                <TTBL_DATE>08/07/1997</TTBL_DATE>
                <FR_CITATION>62 FR 42426</FR_CITATION>
            </TIMETABLE>
            <TIMETABLE>
                <TTBL_ACTION>NPRM Comment Period End</TTBL_ACTION>
                <TTBL_DATE>10/21/1997</TTBL_DATE>
            </TIMETABLE>
            <TIMETABLE>
                <TTBL_ACTION>Final Action</TTBL_ACTION>
                <TTBL_DATE>04/00/1999</TTBL_DATE>
            </TIMETABLE>
        </TIMETABLE_LIST>
        <RFA_REQUIRED>No</RFA_REQUIRED>
        <GOVT_LEVEL_LIST>
            <GOVT_LEVEL>None</GOVT_LEVEL>
        </GOVT_LEVEL_LIST>
        <PRINT_PAPER>NA</PRINT_PAPER>
        <INTERNATIONAL_INTEREST>Not Collected</INTERNATIONAL_INTEREST>
        <AGENCY_CONTACT_LIST>
            <CONTACT>
                <FIRST_NAME>Siegfried</FIRST_NAME>
                <LAST_NAME>Guenther</LAST_NAME>
                <AGENCY>
                    <CODE>3150</CODE>
                    <NAME>Nuclear Regulatory Commission</NAME>
                    <ACRONYM>NRC</ACRONYM>
                </AGENCY>
                <PHONE>301 415-1056</PHONE>
                <EMAIL>sxg@nrc.gov</EMAIL>
                <MAILING_ADDRESS>
                    <STREET_ADDRESS>Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation,</STREET_ADDRESS>
                    <CITY>Washington</CITY>
                    <STATE>DC</STATE>
                    <ZIP>20555-0001</ZIP>
                </MAILING_ADDRESS>
            </CONTACT>
        </AGENCY_CONTACT_LIST>
        <PROCUREMENT>Not Procurement Related</PROCUREMENT>
        <REINVENT_GOVT>Revising Text to Reduce Burden or Duplication, or Streamline Requirements</REINVENT_GOVT>
    </RIN_INFO>
</REGINFO_RIN_DATA>
