10 C.F.R. §§ 53.725–53.745

7 sections in range

§53.725. General staffing, training, personnel qualifications, and human factors requirements.

10 C.F.R. § 53.725

(a)

Two classes of commercial nuclear plants. Commercial nuclear plants licensed under this part are either of the class of self-reliant-mitigation facilities or of interaction-dependent-mitigation facilities, based upon the similarity of operating and technical characteristics of the plants in the class. A commercial nuclear plant is a self-reliant-mitigation facility if the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) determined as part of its approval of the OL or COL for that plant that its design demonstrates compliance with the criteria of § 53.800(a)(1) through (a)(5). Otherwise, the commercial nuclear plant is an interaction-dependent-mitigation facility.

(b)

Purpose and applicability. The regulations in §§ 53.725 through 53.830 address areas related to staffing, training, personnel qualifications, and human factors engineering for applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs under this part. These regulations are organized as follows:

(1)

Sections 53.725 through 53.745 address general requirements for staffing, training, personnel qualifications, and human factors engineering. The regulations within these sections are applicable to all applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs under this part, except where specifically stated otherwise.

(2)

Sections 53.760 through 53.795 address operator and senior operator licensing requirements. The regulations within these sections are applicable to those applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs under this part for interaction-dependent-mitigation facilities that have not yet certified the permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel as described under § 53.1070.

(3)

Sections 53.800 through 53.820 address generally licensed reactor operator requirements. The regulations within these sections are in lieu of §§ 53.760 through 53.795 for those applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs under this part for self-reliant-mitigation facilities that have not yet certified the permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel as described under § 53.1070.

(4)

Section 53.830 provides general personnel training requirements. The regulations within this section are applicable to all applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs under this part.

(c)

Definitions. When used in §§ 53.725 through 53.830, applicant refers to an applicant for an operator or senior operator license; licensee refers to the holder of an operator, senior operator, or generally licensed reactor operator license; and facility licensee refers to the licensee for the commercial nuclear plant where the applicant would be licensed or the licensee is licensed. As also used in §§ 53.725 through 53.830—

Automation means a device or system that accomplishes (partially or fully) a function or task.

Auxiliary operator means any individual who operates components of a commercial nuclear plant but does not manipulate controls or direct the manipulation of controls of the plant and is not required to be licensed under the provisions of this part.

Controls when used with respect to a nuclear reactor means apparatus and mechanisms, the manipulation of which directly affects the reactivity or power level of the reactor.

Generally licensed reactor operator means any individual licensed under the provisions of § 53.810 to manipulate controls of a self-reliant-mitigation facility and to direct the licensed activities of generally licensed reactor operators.

Interaction-dependent-mitigation facility means a commercial nuclear plant design other than one that demonstrates compliance with the operating and technical characteristics defined under § 53.800.

Load following means a commercial nuclear plant automatically changing its output to match expected demand in response to externally originated instructions or signals.

Operator means any individual licensed under the provisions of §§ 53.760 through 53.795 to manipulate controls of an interaction-dependent-mitigation facility.

Performance testing means testing conducted to verify a simulation facility's performance as compared to actual or predicted reference plant performance.

Reference plant means the specific commercial nuclear plant, or plant design for facilities which are not yet constructed, on which a simulation facility's configuration, system control arrangement, and design data are based.

Self-reliant-mitigation facility means a commercial nuclear plant design that demonstrates compliance with the operating and technical characteristics defined under § 53.800.

Senior operator means any individual licensed under the provisions of §§ 53.760 through 53.795 to manipulate controls of an interaction-dependent-mitigation facility and to direct the licensed activities of operators.

Simulation facility means an interface designed to provide a realistic imitation of the operation of a commercial nuclear plant used for the administration of examinations, for training, and/or to demonstrate compliance with experience requirements for applicants or licensees. A simulation facility may rely, in whole or part, upon the physical utilization of the reference plant itself.

Systems approach to training means a training program that includes the following five elements:

(i)

Systematic analysis of the jobs to be performed.

(ii)

Learning objectives derived from the analysis which describe desired performance after training.

(iii)

Training design and implementation based on the learning objectives.

(iv)

Evaluation of trainee mastery of the objectives during training.

(v)

Evaluation and revision of the training based on the performance of trained personnel in the job setting.

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.

§53.726. Communications.

10 C.F.R. § 53.726

(a)

An applicant or licensee or facility licensee must submit any communication or report required by the regulations contained within §§ 53.725 through 53.830 and must submit any application filed under these regulations to the Commission.

(b)

Each facility licensee that is required to comply with the requirements of §§ 53.760 through 53.795 (i.e., interaction-dependent-mitigation facilities) must notify the appropriate NRC contact within 30 days of the following in regard to a licensed operator or senior operator:

(1)

Permanent reassignment from the position for which the facility licensee has certified the need for a licensed operator or senior operator under § 53.775(a)(1);

(2)

Termination of any operator or senior operator; or

(3)

Permanent disability or illness as required under § 53.770.

Notes, amendments, and revision history

Authority

Source

Source: 91 FR 15794, Mar. 30, 2026, unless otherwise noted.

§53.728. Completeness and accuracy of information.

10 C.F.R. § 53.728

Information provided to the Commission by an applicant for an operator or senior operator license or by a licensee or information required by statute or by the Commission's regulations, orders, or license conditions to be maintained by the applicant or the licensee must be complete and accurate in all material respects.

Notes, amendments, and revision history

Authority

Source

Source: 91 FR 15794, Mar. 30, 2026, unless otherwise noted.

§53.730. Defining, fulfilling, and maintaining the role of personnel in ensuring safe operations.

10 C.F.R. § 53.730

Each applicant for or holder of an OL or COL for a commercial nuclear plant under this part must comply with the following:

(a)

Human factors engineering design requirements. The plant design must reflect state-of-the-art human factors engineering principles for safe and reliable performance in all locations that human activities are expected for performing or supporting the continued availability of plant safety or emergency response functions.

(b)

Human system interface design requirements. The plant design must provide for the following to support operating personnel in monitoring plant conditions and responding to plant events:

(1)

Features for displaying to operating personnel a minimum set of parameters that define the safety status of the plant and are capable of displaying both the full range of important plant parameters and data trends on demand, as well as indicating when process limits are being approached or exceeded;

(2)

Automatic indication of the bypassed and operable status of safety systems;

(3)

Direct indication of SSC status that relates to the ability of the SSC to perform its safety function, such as relief and safety valve position (i.e., open or closed) for barriers important to fulfilling safety functions with such devices, and ultimate heat sink and cooling system status and availability;

(4)

Instrumentation to measure, record, and display key plant parameters related to the performance of SSCs and the integrity of barriers important to fulfilling safety functions to support operators in monitoring plant conditions and responding to plant events. Examples include temperatures and pressures within important systems or structures, core or fuel system conditions (including possible damage states), temperatures and levels associated with cooling functions, combustible gas concentrations, radiation levels in systems and within structures, and radioactive effluent releases;

(5)

Leakage control and detection in the design of systems that pass through barriers important to fulfilling safety functions for the release of radionuclides. An example is an SSC that penetrates a containment structure that might contain radioactive materials that could contribute to the source term during an accident;

(6)

Monitoring of in-plant radiation and airborne radioactivity as appropriate for a broad range of normal operating and accident conditions; and

(7)

For self-reliant-mitigation facilities, the plant design must also provide the generally licensed reactor operators with the capability to do the following:

(i)

Receive plant operating data, including reactor parameters and information needed for the evaluation of emergency conditions.

(ii)

Promptly dispatch operations and maintenance personnel.

(iii)

Immediately implement responsibilities under the facility emergency plan, as applicable.

(8)

For both interaction-dependent and self-reliant mitigation facilities, the plant design must provide licensed operators with the capability of immediately initiating a reactor shutdown from their location.

(c)

Concept of operations. A concept of operations that is of sufficient scope and detail to address the following must be provided:

(1)

Plant goals;

(2)

The roles and responsibilities of operating personnel and automation (or any combination thereof) that are responsible for completing plant functions;

(3)

Staffing, qualifications, and training;

(4)

The management of normal operations;

(5)

The management of off-normal conditions and emergencies;

(6)

The management of maintenance and modifications; and

(7)

The management of tests, inspections, and surveillances.

(d)

Functional requirements analysis and function allocation. A functional requirements analysis and a function allocation must be provided that are sufficient to demonstrate compliance with the following:

(1)

The functional requirements analysis must address how safety functions and functional safety criteria are satisfied; and

(2)

The function allocation must describe how the safety functions will be assigned to human action, automation, active safety features, passive safety features, and/or inherent safety characteristics.

(e)

Operating experience. A program, during construction and during operation, as applicable, for evaluating and applying operating experience must be developed, implemented, and maintained.

(f)

Staffing plan. A staffing plan must be developed and comply with the following:

(1)

The staffing plan must include a description of how engineering expertise will be available to the on-shift operating personnel during all plant conditions, to assist if they encounter a situation not covered by procedures or training. Engineering expertise includes familiarity with the operation of the plant for which the expertise is provided and one of the following:

(i)

A bachelor's degree in engineering, engineering technology, or physical science from an institution accredited by a U.S. Government recognized accrediting body or equivalent; or

(ii)

A Professional Engineer's license from a U.S. State or territory.

(2)

Applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs for interaction-dependent-mitigation facilities must include within their staffing plans a description of how the proposed numbers, positions, and qualifications of operators and senior operators across all modes of plant operations will be sufficient to ensure that plant safety functions will be maintained. This description must be supported by human factors engineering analyses and assessments.

(3)

Applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs for self-reliant-mitigation facilities must include within their staffing plans a description of how generally licensed reactor operator staffing that is both sufficient to continually monitor the operations of fueled reactors and to provide for a continuity of responsibility for facility operations at all times during the operating phase will be maintained.

(4)

Applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs under this part must include within their staffing plans a description of how the positions and responsibilities of personnel contained within those plans will adequately satisfy necessary support functions within areas such as plant operations, equipment surveillance and maintenance, radiological protection, chemistry control, fire brigades, engineering, security, and emergency response.

(5)

The staffing plan must be approved by the NRC as part of its approval of the OL or COL for the plant. The approved staffing plan is subject to the requirements of § 53.1565.

(g)

Training, examination, and proficiency programs. Develop, implement, and maintain programs that comply with the following requirements. These programs must be approved by the NRC as part of its approval of the OL or COL for the plant:

(1)

For those applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs for interaction-dependent-mitigation facilities—

(i)

The operator licensing initial training program required under § 53.780(a);

(ii)

The operator licensing initial examination program required under § 53.780(b);

(iii)

The operator licensing requalification program required under § 53.780(c); and

(iv)

The operator proficiency program required under § 53.780(g).

(2)

For those applicants for or holders of OLs or COLs for self-reliant-mitigation facilities, the generally licensed reactor operator training, examination, and proficiency programs required under § 53.815.

(3)

The operator licensing requalification programs required under § 53.780(c) or § 53.815(b) must be implemented upon commencing the administration of initial examinations under the operator licensing examination program required under § 53.780(b) or § 53.815(b), respectively.

Notes, amendments, and revision history

Authority

Source

Source: 91 FR 15794, Mar. 30, 2026, unless otherwise noted.

§53.735. General exemptions.

10 C.F.R. § 53.735

The regulations in §§ 53.725 through 53.830 do not require a license for an individual who—

(a)

Under the direction and in the presence of an operator or senior operator or a generally licensed reactor operator, as appropriate, manipulates the controls of a commercial nuclear plant as a part of the individual's training in a facility licensee's training program as approved by the Commission to qualify for an operator or senior operator license or a generally licensed reactor operator license there, as appropriate, under these regulations; or

(b)

Under the direction and in the presence of a senior operator or generally licensed reactor operator, as appropriate, manipulates the controls of a commercial nuclear plant to load or unload the fuel into, out of, or within the reactor vessel while the reactor is not operating.

Notes, amendments, and revision history

Authority

Source

Source: 91 FR 15794, Mar. 30, 2026, unless otherwise noted.

§53.740. Facility licensee requirements—general.

10 C.F.R. § 53.740

(a)

Facility licensees must demonstrate compliance with the requirements of either §§ 53.760 through 53.795 for interaction-dependent-mitigation facilities or §§ 53.800 through 53.820 for self-reliant-mitigation facilities.

(b)

The facility licensee must maintain the staffing complement described under its approved facility staffing plan until such time as the permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel has been certified as described under § 53.1070. The approved staffing plan is subject to the requirements of § 53.1565.

(c)

Except as provided under § 53.735, the facility licensee may not permit the manipulation of the controls of a commercial nuclear plant by anyone who is not an operator or senior operator or generally licensed reactor operator, as appropriate.

(d)

Facility licensees for interaction-dependent-mitigation facilities that have not yet certified the permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel as described under § 53.1070 must designate senior operators to be responsible for supervising the licensed activities of operators.

(e)

Apparatus and mechanisms other than controls, the operation of which may affect the reactivity or power level of a reactor, must be manipulated only while plant conditions are being monitored by an individual who is an operator or senior operator or a generally licensed reactor operator, as appropriate.

(f)

(1)

Load following is permitted if at least one of the following is immediately capable of refusing demands when they could challenge the safe operation of the plant or when precluded by the plant equipment conditions:

(i)

The actuation of an automatic protection system that utilizes setpoints more conservative than those otherwise credited for the purposes of reactor protection; or

(ii)

An automated control system; or

(iii)

An operator or senior operator or a generally licensed reactor operator, as appropriate.

(2)

The provisions of paragraph (e) of this section do not apply during load following operations.

(g)

(1)

Facility licensees for interaction-dependent-mitigation facilities must have present during alteration of the core (including fuel loading or transfer) an individual holding a senior operator license, or a senior operator license limited to fuel handling to directly supervise the activity and, during this time, the facility licensee must not assign other duties to this person.

(2)

Facility licensees for self-reliant-mitigation facilities must have present during alteration of the core (including fuel loading or transfer) an individual holding a generally licensed reactor operator license to directly supervise the activity and, during this time, the facility licensee must not assign other duties to this person.

(3)

The provisions of paragraphs (g)(1) and (2) of this section do not apply to core alterations performed as part of refueling operations while a facility that is capable of online refueling is operating at power.

(h)

Facility licensees may take reasonable action that departs from a license condition or a technical specification (contained in a license issued under this part) in an emergency when this action is immediately needed to protect the public health and safety and no action consistent with license conditions and technical specifications that can provide adequate or equivalent protection is immediately apparent. Such facility licensee action must be approved, as a minimum, by a senior operator or a generally licensed reactor operator, as applicable, or, after certifying the permanent cessation of operations and permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel as described under § 53.1070 by a certified fuel handler, senior operator, or generally licensed reactor operator, as applicable, prior to taking the action.

Notes, amendments, and revision history

Authority

Source

Source: 91 FR 15794, Mar. 30, 2026, unless otherwise noted.

§53.745. Operator license requirements.

10 C.F.R. § 53.745

A person must be authorized by a license issued by the Commission to perform the function of an operator, senior operator, or generally licensed reactor operator as defined in this part.

Notes, amendments, and revision history

Authority

Source

Source: 91 FR 15794, Mar. 30, 2026, unless otherwise noted.

10 C.F.R. §§ 53.725–53.745

§53.725. General staffing, training, personnel qualifications, and human factors requirements.

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§53.726. Communications.

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§53.728. Completeness and accuracy of information.

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§53.730. Defining, fulfilling, and maintaining the role of personnel in ensuring safe operations.

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§53.735. General exemptions.

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§53.740. Facility licensee requirements—general.

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§53.745. Operator license requirements.

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