§53.1070. Termination of license.
10 C.F.R. § 53.1070
For each holder of an OL or COL under this part—
When the licensee has determined to permanently cease operations the licensee must, within 30 days, submit a written certification to the NRC, consistent with the requirements of § 53.040(b)(8);
When appropriate to support decommissioning activities and the eventual permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel, the licensee must develop defueled technical specifications by reviewing the operational technical specifications and determining which specifications no longer apply during decommissioning and which ones should remain applicable. The licensee must make the appropriate submittals to the NRC in accordance with § 53.1510 to request changes to the technical specifications; and
Once fuel has been permanently removed from the reactor vessel, the licensee must submit a written certification to the NRC that meets the requirements of § 53.040(b)(9); and
The licensee must establish and maintain staffing consisting of certified fuel handlers, as defined under § 53.020, and other non-licensed personnel with appropriate qualifications, and in sufficient numbers, to ensure support for facility operations and radiological control activities, as required by the facility defueled technical specifications. These personnel must be subject to the training requirements of § 53.830.
Upon docketing of the certifications for permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel, or when a final legally effective order to permanently cease operations has come into effect, the license issued under this part no longer authorizes operation of the reactor or emplacement or retention of fuel into the reactor vessel.
Decommissioning will be completed within 60 years of permanent cessation of operations. Completion of decommissioning beyond 60 years will be approved by the Commission only when necessary to protect public health and safety. Factors that will be considered by the Commission in evaluating an alternative that provides for completion of decommissioning beyond 60 years of permanent cessation of operations include unavailability of waste disposal capacity and other site-specific factors affecting the licensee's capability to carry out decommissioning, including presence of other nuclear facilities at the site.
Prior to or within 2 years following permanent cessation of operations, the licensee must submit a PSDAR and site-specific DCE in accordance with § 53.1060(e).
The NRC must notice receipt of the PSDAR and make the PSDAR publicly available and publish notice of its availability for public comment in the Federal Register. The NRC must also schedule a public meeting readily accessible to individuals in the vicinity of the licensee's facility. The NRC must publish a notice in the Federal Register and in a forum, such as local newspapers, that is readily accessible to individuals in the vicinity of the site, announcing the date, time, and location of the meeting, along with a brief description of the purpose of the meeting.
Licensees must not perform any major decommissioning activities, as defined in § 53.020, until 90 days after the NRC has received the licensee's PSDAR submittal and until certifications of permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel, as required under paragraph (a) of this section, have been submitted.
Licensees must not perform any decommissioning activities, as defined in § 53.020, that—
Foreclose release of the site for possible unrestricted use;
Result in significant environmental impacts not previously reviewed; or
Result in there no longer being reasonable assurance that adequate funds will be available for decommissioning.
In taking actions permitted under § 53.1540 following submittal of the PSDAR, the licensee must notify the NRC in writing, and send a copy to the affected State(s), before performing any decommissioning activity inconsistent with, or making any significant schedule change from, those actions and schedules described in the PSDAR, including changes that increase the decommissioning cost by more than 20 percent from the previously provided DCE.
Licensees may use decommissioning trust funds consistent with the limitations of § 53.1045(a). Licensees must report on the status of decommissioning trust funds consistent with the requirements of § 53.1060.
Licensees must submit an application for termination of license in accordance with § 53.1070. The application for termination of license must be accompanied or preceded by a license termination plan to be submitted for NRC approval.
The license termination plan must be a supplement to the Final Safety Analysis Report or equivalent and must be submitted at least 2 years before termination of the license date.
The license termination plan must include—
A site characterization;
Identification of remaining dismantlement activities;
Plans for site remediation;
Detailed plans for the final radiation survey;
A description of the end use of the site, if restricted;
An updated site-specific estimate of remaining decommissioning costs;
A supplement to the environmental report, pursuant to § 51.53 of this chapter, describing any new information or significant environmental change associated with the licensee's proposed termination activities; and
Identification of parts, if any, of the facility or site that were released for use before approval of the license termination plan.
Following receipt of the license termination plan, the NRC must make the license termination plan publicly available and publish notice of its availability for public comment in the Federal Register. The NRC must also schedule a public meeting readily accessible to individuals in the vicinity of the licensee's facility upon receipt of the license termination plan. The NRC must publish a notice in the Federal Register and in a forum, such as local newspapers, that is readily accessible to individuals in the vicinity of the site, announcing the date, time, and location of the meeting, along with a brief description of the purpose of the meeting.
If the license termination plan demonstrates that the remainder of decommissioning activities will be performed in accordance with the regulations in this chapter, will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public, and will not have a significant effect on the quality of the environment and after notice to interested persons, the Commission will approve the plan, by license amendment, subject to such conditions and limitations as it deems appropriate and necessary and authorize implementation of the license termination plan.
The Commission will terminate the license if it determines that—
The remaining dismantlement has been performed in accordance with the approved license termination plan; and
The final radiation survey and associated documentation, including an assessment of dose contributions associated with parts released for use before approval of the license termination plan, demonstrate that the facility and site have met the criteria for decommissioning in subpart E of 10 CFR part 20.
Notes, amendments, and revision history
Authority
Authority: Atomic Energy Act of 1954, secs. 11, 101, 103, 108, 122, 147, 161, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 186, 187, 189, 223, 234 (42 U.S.C. 2014, 2131, 2132, 2133, 2134, 2135, 2138, 2152, 2167, 2169, 2201, 2231, 2232, 2233, 2234, 2235, 2236, 2237, 2239, 2273, 2282); Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, secs. 201, 202, 206, 211 (42 U.S.C. 5841, 5842, 5846, 5851); Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, sec. 306 (42 U.S.C. 10226); National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332); 44 U.S.C. 3504 note; Pub. L. 115-439, 132 Stat. 5571.
Source
Source: 91 FR 15794, Mar. 30, 2026, unless otherwise noted.