WASHINGTON, D.C. – Members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission told Democrats on a House Energy and Commerce panel that NRC can remain independent despite the chance of commissioners being terminated by the White House.
Wednesday’s hearing of the House Energy and Commerce’s Energy subcommittee came four months after the NRC regained a full five-member contingent. Concerns about NRC independence still linger, as several House Democratic lawmakers questioned NRC’s role during the Donald Trump administration.
Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce’s Energy subcommittee Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) and Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) said during the fiscal 2027 budget request hearing that the Trump administration’s changes to NRC, including the firing of former commissioner Chris Hanson, has undermined public safety and trust.
“I want to end my remarks by reiterating a warning I issued last week when we had the energy secretary in front of us here and ‘I said it would be impossible for us to move forward on nuclear legislation as long as the NRC’s independence is in question’,” Pallone said in his opening remarks. “We simply cannot put the independence of the NRC at risk.”
Castor said since January 2025, over 400 NRC staffers have left and only 65 replacements have been hired. NRC Chair Ho Nieh said that the agency has a dedicated workforce and through the hiring authority granted by the Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act – or the ADVANCE Act, NRC is working to bring in qualified staff members.
Both Castor and Pallone pressed commissioners Bradley Crowell and Matthew Marzano on if they were concerned about being fired by the Trump administration for refusing to approve an “administration-favored” reactor technology over safety concerns. Crowell and Marzano said that the possibility of being removed from their position still remains a reality.
In a September 2025 Senate Environment and Public Works committee hearing, Crowell and Marzano previously said they realized there is always a chance of being fired. The hearing then was held almost three months after Hanson was fired and nearly a month after Annie Caputo resigned from NRC.
Rep. Rob Menendez (D-N.J.) asked Crowell and Marzano if it was normal for a bipartisan independent agency to fear retribution from the president. Both commissioners said that it was not. Menendez soon went down the line of the commissioners and asked if they believed Trump’s “attacks on NRC” have hurt NRC independence and public trust in nuclear safety.
Crowell told Menendez it could be a possibility, while Marzano said undermining NRC independence could hurt national energy goals. Commissioners Doug Weaver, David Wright and Nieh said they did not feel like the NRC was under attack.
“A commissioner was fired before his term ended, would not consider that an attack on the independence of the NRC,” Menendez said to Nieh.
“Sir, that was a decision by the president of the United States,” Nieh told Menendez.
When questioned by Pallone, all five commissioners agreed NRC independece is key to the future of nuclear energy.
Since the May 23, 2025 executive orders issued by the Trump administration, Democratic lawmakers have been apprehensive about DOE and NRC’s roles in the nuclear sector. In August 2025, Castor, Pallone and Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) sent a letter to Energy Secretary Chris Wright requesting more information about the two agency’s roles.
The Democrats’ concerns came from the Department of Government Efficiency and Department of Energy staffers’ involvement with NRC, the independent regulator of commercial nuclear power.