Appendix B
Key Federal Laws and Regulations
OCRWM Annual Report to Congress, FY 1996

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as originally enacted, set basic policies:

• Development of Geologic Repositories. The Act established a framework for the siting, characterization, construction, and operation of two permanent geologic repositories for disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste.
• Storage. The Act provided for a limited amount of emergency interim storage and for developing a proposal to site and construct a monitored retrievable storage facility on a firm schedule.
• Intergovernmental Relations. The Act set requirements for interactions between the Federal Government and States, local governments, and Indian Tribes.
• Other Federal Responsibilities. The Act assigned responsibilities for nuclear waste management to specific Federal agencies.
• Nuclear Waste Fund. The Act required the establishment of a fund to cover nuclear waste disposal costs. User fees on electricity generated and sold are paid into the fund.
• Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The Act established the office within the Department of Energy.

The Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987

The Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987 significantly revised the 1982 policies. The 1987 Act:

• Directed the Department to characterize only the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada, to determine whether it is suitable as a repository site, and to postpone consideration of the need for a second repository until the year 2007.
• Authorized the siting, construction, and operation of a monitored retrievable storage facility subject to certain conditions that link the construction and operation of the facility very tightly to the construction and licensing of a repository.
• Provided financial incentives for States or Indian Tribes on whose land a repository or monitored retrievable storage facility is sited; increased external oversight by establishing the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board; authorized on-site oversight representatives of host States, Indian Tribes, and localities; and provided for increased local government participation.
• Established the Office of the Nuclear Waste Negotiator to attempt to reach an agreement with a State or Indian Tribe willing to host a repository or monitored retrievable storage facility.

The Energy Policy Act

On October 24, 1992, the President signed into law the Energy Policy Act of 1992. The Act includes key elements of the National Energy Strategy proposed by the Administration in 1990. A number of provisions affect the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management.

Section 801 of the Act directed the Environmental Protection Agency to contract with the National Academy of Sciences to provide "findings and recommendations on reasonable standards for protection of the public health and safety" that would govern the long-term performance of a high-level radioactive waste repository at the Yucca Mountain site. Within one year of receiving the Academy's recommendations, the Environmental Protection Agency is required to promulgate public health and safety standards that "shall prescribe the maximum annual effective dose equivalent to the individual members of the public from releases to the accessible environment from radioactive materials stored or disposed of in the repository." The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is then required to modify its technical requirements and criteria consistent with the Environmental Protection Agency's standards.

Section 803 instructed the Department of Energy to evaluate whether its current programs and plans for management of nuclear waste are adequate to deal with additional volumes or categories that might be generated by nuclear power plants newly licensed after October 1992.

The Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act of 1996

The Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act of 1996 provided a total of $400 million for the program, $85 million of which was designated to be used only for the development of an interim storage facility and only upon enactment of new statutory authority. Pending such authority, the program was effectively reduced to a $315 million funding level, or one-half of the $630 million funding level anticipated for the continuation of the 1994 program approach.

Congress recognized that the significant reduction in funding would require a more restricted repository program. The Conference Report accompanying the appropriations language provided the following guidance:

The conferees agree on the importance of continuing existing scientific work at Yucca Mountain to determine the ultimate feasibility and licensability of the permanent repository at that site. The conferees direct the Department to refocus the repository program on completing the core scientific activities at Yucca Mountain. The Department should complete excavation of the necessary portions of the exploratory tunnel and the scientific tests needed to assess the performance of the repository. It should defer preparation and filing of a license application for the repository with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission until a later date. The Department's goal should be to collect the scientific information needed to determine the suitability of the Yucca Mountain site and to complete a conceptual design for the repository and waste package for later submission to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Key Regulations

These rules are published in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is divided into volumes organized by Title and Part. For example, "10 CFR 60" refers to "Part 60 of Title 10."

         10 CFR 2 (NRC) Rules of Practice for Domestic Licensing Procedures and Issuance of Orders. Specifies the licensing process and requires an electronic record-keeping system to preserve data needed for licensing.

         10 CFR 20 (NRC) Standards for Protection Against Radiation. Establishes standards for radiation safety at an NRC-licensed facility.


         10 CFR 50, Appendix B (NRC) Quality Assurance Criteria for Nuclear Power Plant and Fuel Reprocessing Plants. Establishes quality assurance requirements.


         10 CFR 60 (NRC) Disposal of High-Level Radioactive Wastes in Geologic Repositories. Sets forth technical requirements governing development of a permanent geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Includes the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's oversight and licensing duties.


         10 CFR 71 (NRC) Packaging and Transportation of Radioactive Material. Implements Department of Transportation requirements for packaging and transporting spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste.


         10 CFR 72 (NRC) Licensing Requirements for the Independent Storage of Spent Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste. Sets forth technical requirements for licensing private storage facilities to receive, ship, and store spent nuclear fuel, and outlines procedures by which the Department of Energy is licensed to receive, ship, and store spent fuel at a temporary facility.


         10 CFR 960 (DOE) General Guidelines for the Recommendation of Sites for Nuclear Waste Repositories. Promulgated to establish guidelines to compare sites; used as the basis for the 1988 Site Characterization Plan for the Yucca Mountain Project.


         10 CFR 961 (DOE) Standard Contract for Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and/or High-Level Radioactive Waste. Outlines the contract with utilities to receive, ship, and dispose of spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste.


         40 CFR 191 (EPA) Environmental Radiation Protection Standards for Management and Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-Level and Transuranic Radioactive Wastes. Originally issued in 1985 pursuant to the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, the regulations were remanded in 1987 in response to an objection filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council. However, in 1992, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Act reinstated the disposal standard, except for those sections that were subject to the remand order. In addition, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Act exempted "the characterization, licensing, construction, operation, or closure of any site required to be characterized under Section 113(a) of Public Law 97-425" (Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982) from regulation under 40 CFR 191. Pursuant to Section 801 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992, the Environmental Protection Agency is developing a separate standard applicable to the Yucca Mountain site.


         49 CFR 171-179 (DOT) Hazardous Materials Regulations. Specifies general Department of Transportation requirements for the transportation of radioactive materials.