On May 23, Trump signed two executive orders aimed at getting more nuclear reactor projects approved and mitigating nuclear-related safety regulation.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission took the brunt of Trump’s executive orders. If the executive orders remain, their ability to evaluate and license new nuclear reactor projects will take a blow. Though the Commission approves projects on a slow basis, it is considered the gold-standard with regard to nuclear safety regulation.
The licensing review process will also consist of a fixed deadline of 18 months rather than the “milestones” process the agency had used before the executive order. The administrative hearing process is to be streamlined as well, with its public deliberation period potentially at risk.
According to Friday’s order, the White House will direct the Department of Government Efficiency to reorganize the commission — a process which it acknowledged could result in layoffs but which the administration said could also increase the size of some of the commission’s functions, such as new reactor licensing.
Courthouse News
The legality of the executive orders is highly questionable. The Commission is an independent agency created by Congress. It is highly unlikely that the President can unilaterally change its role or reshape the agency itself.
The Commission’s Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards was directed to reduce its workforce “to the minimum necessary” to only accomplish what federal law tasks it to do. The Committee is critical to nuclear safety, as it analyzes “potential hazards at existing or proposed nuclear facilities” around the country.
If nuclear reactors are constructed in a haphazard fashion, a disaster comparable to the Three Mile Island meltdown may occur, further diminishing trust in nuclear power.
