A
big part of the NRC’s mission to protect people and the environment
depends on the companies and individuals we regulate meeting our
requirements. The NRC’s Office of Enforcement has a number of tools that
serve as deterrents and emphasize the importance of compliance with NRC
requirements. These tools encourage the prompt identification and
timely correction of violations by the licensee, certificate holder, or
applicant. They include, in part, Notices of Violations, civil
penalties, and Orders that modify, suspend or revoke a License.
The
NRC’s Enforcement Policy spells out the NRC's policies and procedures
in initiating enforcement actions and the responsibilities of the
Commission in reviewing these actions. But it is important to remember
that a policy statement is not a regulation and the Commission may
decide to deviate from the policy statement to respond appropriately to
the circumstances of a particular case.
To
identify violations of its regulations, the NRC conducts inspections
and investigations. Violations have varying levels of significance. In
assessing the significance of a violation, the NRC considers four
specific factors:
(1) actual safety or security consequences;
(2) potential safety or security consequences;
(3) impact on the ability of the NRC to perform its regulatory oversight function; and
(4) willfulness.
Willful
violations are of particular concern to the NRC because the agency’s
regulatory program is based on licensees and their contractors,
employees, and agents acting with integrity. For most violations
identified at power reactors, the significance of a violation is
assessed using the significance determination process of the Reactor
Oversight Process.
The
Enforcement Policy was
last updated on July 12, 2011, after interaction with affected
stakeholders. We’re happy to take any questions or comments you have
about the policy in the comments below.
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