The White House on Friday announced its intention to nominate David Wright to a full term on the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Wright has served on the commission since May 2018. He assumed a seat vacated by Commissioner Jeff Baran, which expires on June 30, 2020. Baran, a commissioner since 2014, last year was confirmed to a full five-year term through June 30, 2023.
Prior to joining the nuclear industry regulator, Wright was an energy and water consultant in South Carolina. He previously held various positions on the South Carolina Public Service Commission from 2004 to 2013, including as vice chairman and chairman. During that period he also served as president of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners from 2011-2012.
Wright has been a member of the Advisory Council for the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Nuclear Waste Initiative, according to his official NRC biography. He was also an ex-officio member and chairman emeritus of the Nuclear Waste Strategy Coalition.
The state of Nevada in 2018 filed a petition in federal court seeking to force Wright to recuse himself from any NRC decision-making on the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. Wright’s previous actions and statements showed an unfair bias in favor of the repository that would be built about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, the state argued after unsuccessfully requesting that he voluntarily recuse himself. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected the petition last December.
There was no word as of Monday morning when Wright would be formally nominated.
The commission nominally has five members, who serve staggered terms ending June 30. There are currently four members: Chairman Kristine Svinicki and Commissioners Wright, Baran, and Annie Caputo.
The fifth spot has been vacant since the retirement of Stephen Burns in April. An industry source on Monday said Christopher Hanson, a Democratic staffer on the Senate Appropriations Committee, is still expected to be nominated.
