The Donald Trump administration’s nuclear executive orders are a “significant step forward” for accelerated nuclear deployment, but could undermine the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, an American Nuclear Society expert group said recently.
On May 23, the Trump administration released a handful of executive orders to speed up new reactor licensing and construction and generally bolster the nuclear industry’s industrial base in the United States.
In the executive action “Ordering the Reform of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission”, the White House orders to overhaul the NRC within 18 months in order to expedite approval of advanced nuclear projects.
Along with the reorganization, the Trump administration seeks to reduce the NRC workforce and create a team of “at least 20 officials” to draft new regulations.
The ANS expert advisory group, made up of experts from various sectors of the U.S. nuclear technology space, cautioned against slashing NRC staff.
“This approach would likely jeopardize NRC timeline commitments to existing applicants and create a chilled environment within the NRC, and an environment of regulatory uncertainty within the nuclear industry,” the ANS expert advisory group said in its recent findings.
Paul Dickman, who formerly served in the DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration and NRC, said on his LinkedIn page this past weekend many of the reforms mentioned in the order were from the Advance Act of 2024, passed by Congress with bipartisan support.
Many of the changes from the Advance Act are already being implemented by the NRC, Dickman added.
The ANS expert group’s biggest concern with the NRC executive action was the agency’s ability to remain independent. Any loss of independence would undermine NRC credibility of the regulatory process, the ANS expert group said.
The advisory group generally supported the other executive actions. However, it acknowledged that implementing the orders could be tough due to the skinny budget for fiscal 2026.
