U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Kristine Svinicki on Tuesday touted the benefits of full membership in the five-person panel, without directly mentioning the U.S. Senate’s extended inaction on nominees waiting to fill two vacancies.
Svinicki noted that the commission has been at three members “for some period of time” – specifically since William Ostendorff stepped down at the end of his second term in June 2016. But when ruling on new or updated regulations for the nuclear industry, the commission is best served by a broad range of opinions, she said.
“Although we have the authority to move forward with three members, having served on five-member commissions I’ve observed that we have the greatest confidence as a commission, that each of the unique perspectives brought by each member of the commission adds value and completeness and thoroughness to our deliberation on the final product, which … might be in place for decades to come,” Svinicki said in her keynote speech to open the NRC’s Regulatory Information Conference.
Svinicki did not specifically mention the two Trump administration nominees who are waiting on Senate floor votes after being forwarded from the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee last July: Senate staffer Annie Caputo, for a term to June 30, 2021; and South Carolina energy consultant David Wright, for a term to June 30, 2020.
Current NRC Commissioner Jeff Baran is also waiting on a vote after being nominated for a second term, but his current term lasts through this June. If confirmed, his next term would extend to June 30, 2023.
Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.) has reportedly put a hold on Caputo’s nomination connected to his opposition to the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in his state. The NRC would be the adjudicator for the Department of Energy license application, which for now remains in limbo absent congressional funding. Heller’s office did not respond to requests for comment on the matter this week.
