Re: DOE regulation

[LIPTONW@dteenergy.com]

This is precisely the reason why NRC (or other external) regulation is
needed 
for DOE contractors.  DOE should NOT have the option of allowing a
substandard 
operation to continue because it doesn't want to spend the money to fix it. 
 
The opinions expressed are strictly mine. 
It's not about dose, it's about trust. 
 
Bill Lipton 
liptonw@dteenergy.com 
 
You wrote: 
 
>The most cogent reason why DOE should not be regulated by the NRC is 
>because there is a huge difference between the DOE contractors and the 
>NRC licensees: The NRC licensees do not get their funding from the NRC.  
>They are, for the most part, private companies (DOD licensees are again 
>different, but more like DOE contractors, in this instance, than like 
>NRC licensees.) and do not get operating or other money from the NRC.  
>DOE contractors, on the other hand, get all their money from DOE.  
>Therefore, if the NRC found a violation and the contractor said it would 
>take a million dollars to fix it, and if the DOE did not agree and 
>didn't give the contractor the money, the fix could not be made unless 
>the contractor used its own money to do it, an unlikely occurance.  The 
>contractor is in an impossible position between two federal agencies.  
>That is very different from the NRC case where the licensee has no other 
>governmental agency supplying the money.  Until there is an agreement 
>between the NRC and DOE concerning the money for regulatory fixes, I 
>would never contemplate being a DOE contractor, regulated by the NRC, if 
>I were a potential DOE contractor.  I do understand that some DOE and 
>DOD facilities are already regulated by the NRC.  Perhaps some of those 
>facilities could enlighten radsafe members as to how it really works in 
>today's world.  Al Tschaeche antatnsu@pacbell.net
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