NRC PROPOSED FY 2010 BUDGET OF $1.07 BILLION SENT TO CONGRESS

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has released its proposed Fiscal Year 2010 budget to Congress, requesting $1.07 billion to effectively regulate nuclear power plants and other users of nuclear materials in order to protect people and the environment. Details of the budget are available in NUREG-1100, Vol. 25, on NRC’s Web site at the Budget and Performance link at the bottom left-hand corner.

The budget includes $800 million for nuclear reactor safety, $205 million for nuclear materials and waste safety; $56 million for the high-level waste repository, and $10 million for the Inspector General. Compared to the FY 2009 budget, resources in FY 2010 for reactor safety increased by 1.5 percent and materials and waste safety increased by 6 percent. The budget breakdown is as follows:

Nuclear Reactor Safety - $248.3
Licensing Tasks - $237.4
License Renewal - $35.7
International Activities - 15.1
Reactor Oversight - $242.1
Incident Response - 21.1
Fuel Facilities - $49.5
Nuclear Material Users - $90.6
Decommissioning and Low-Level Waste - $37.3
Spent Fuel Storage & Transportation - $27.8
High-Level Waste Repository - $56.0

By law, the NRC recovers approximately 90 percent of its budget from user fees less an appropriation from the Nuclear Waste Fund (NWF) and other activities which are not fee recoverable. As a result the NRC’s FY 2010 budget request will be financed with approximately $887.2 million from user fees and the NWF, resulting in a net appropriation of approximately $183.9 million. This is an increase of $9 million over FY 2009.

Budget highlights are available in slides on NRC’s Web site. A hard copy of the detailed budget –sometimes called “The Green Book”– is available from the Office of Public Affairs, by calling (301) 415-8200 or e-mailing (Source: NRC)