The Secretary of Energy did not deny any written requests for information from the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board in the six months ended June 30, the chair of the independent federal board reported recently to Congress.
“The Board has no denials of access to information to report in the past six months,” Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) chair Joyce Connery wrote in a mandatory report delivered to Congress on DNFSB stationary and dated June 30.
After the Donald Trump administration in 2018 moved to limit DNFSB interactions with DOE and contractor personnel at defense nuclear sites, Congress required that the board report periodically about any instances where the Secretary of Energy refuses formal requests for information from the nominally five-member board.
DNFSB has a staff of about 100 people, including around a dozen on-site inspectors, who oversee health and safety at defense nuclear sites, except naval reactors sites. The board can make health and safety recommendations about DOE sites to protect members of the public outside the sites. The Secretary of Energy must publicly accept or reject such recommendations.