Podcast - Hot Topics in Nuclear Waste
The NRC is codifying a sea change to its regulations regarding foreign ownership, control, or domination (FOCD) of utilization or production facilities. On April 26, 2026, the NRC issued a direct final rule and a companion...more
On April 2, 2026, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued a proposed rule to leverage prior Department of Energy (DOE) and Department of War (DOW) reactor authorizations for commercial reactor deployment. ...more
On January 26, 2026, the State of New York filed its brief to the Second Circuit in Holtec International v. State of New York. New York challenges a district court’s declaratory judgment that a 2023 statute prohibiting the...more
The federal government’s renewed push to deploy advanced nuclear technologies has brought fresh attention to a long-standing but often misunderstood question: which agencies have authority to build and operate nuclear...more
For decades, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) contested hearing process has been widely viewed as one of the most procedurally complex, resource-intensive and time-consuming aspects of nuclear licensing,...more
Here are curated AG and federal regulatory news stories highlighting key areas in which state and federal regulators’ decisions are having an impact across the US: • FL AG Energized About Reducing Regulatory Burdens on...more
Florida AG James Uthmeier and Last Energy, Inc. filed a petition with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) seeking a declaratory order stating that the licensing requirements under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 are...more
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) unveiled its Reactor Pilot Program – also known as the 10 Reactor Fleet Program – in reaction to one of the May 23, 2025 Executive Orders directed at nuclear energy. Section 5 of Executive...more
The U.S. Supreme Court on June 18, 2025, decided Nuclear Regulatory Commission v. Texas, 605 U.S. ___ (2025), which involved challenges to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC or Commission) decision to grant a...more
On Wednesday, June 18, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States issued its opinion in NRC v. Texas to resolve a circuit split over the storage of spent nuclear fuel between the Tenth Circuit, D.C. Circuit, and Fifth...more
On Friday, May 23, 2025, President Trump signed four executive orders related to nuclear energy, three of which seek to expedite approval processes for permitting new nuclear reactors. The orders, which build upon...more
As part of an ongoing spate of litigation, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) filed a motion to dismiss, on procedural grounds, in a case that challenges its authority to require construction and operating licenses...more
The U.S. Supreme Court on March 5, 2025, heard oral argument in two cases related to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) authority to license temporary spent fuel storage facilities that are not co-located with a...more
In this episode of our "An Energized Exchange" podcast series by our Energy & Natural Resources Industry Sector Group, attorneys Andy Kriha and Liz Craddock sit down for a conversation about hot topics in nuclear waste. This...more
Today, the Supreme Court announced that it is taking up a case related to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (“NRC”) ability to license away-from-reactor interim storage of spent nuclear fuel. By hearing the case in the...more
On July 18, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (“NRC”) approved a new process to help streamline the agency’s mandatory hearings. The new process will go into effect immediately and should dramatically shorten the time...more
The US Supreme Court’s recent Loper Bright decision overturned its 1984 Chevron decision, which, over the last 40 years, had become a fundamental doctrine in administrative law. That doctrine, known as the “Chevron...more
The landmark nuclear legislation will help drive development, innovation, investment and deployment of advanced nuclear technologies. The ADVANCE Act takes substantial steps to help expedite the development and deployment...more
On June 18, 2024, the U.S. Senate passed the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (ADVANCE) Act by a vote of 88-2. The Act was signed into law by President Biden on July 9, 2024. The ADVANCE...more
On Tuesday, July 9, 2024, President Biden signed into law the most comprehensive energy-related bill since the Inflation Reduction Act—and it’s all about nuclear energy. This new law will support the deployment of nuclear...more
On February 28, 2024, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill containing a package of nuclear licensing reforms aimed at speeding the deployment of advanced nuclear reactors. The bill, which had strong bipartisan...more
The NRC’s Office of Investigations (OI) recently published its Annual Report for fiscal year 2023, summarizing its activities from October 1, 2022 through September 30, 2023. According to the annual report, OI opened 82 new...more
The DOE proposes to update and streamline its policies, procedures, provisions and clauses applicable to its contracts. The changes include revisions related to facility clearances, Agreements for Commercializing...more
In a Federal Register Notice published September 5, 2023, the NRC amended its regulations to be effective October 5, 2023, to adjust for inflation the maximum total and annual deferred premium amounts for the “secondary...more
The US Department of Energy (DOE) published on January 31 two secretarial determinations in the Federal Register that change the countries that are eligible for general authorizations under 10 CFR Part 810 (Part 810). The...more