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Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2026
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Fusion Science and Technology
August 2026
Latest News
The transformation of the NRC: 50 years of commissioners
The dust is beginning to settle following the whirlwind of changes at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission over the past year, and 2025 ultimately may be viewed as a transformative year, as well as the year the NRC celebrated its golden anniversary. The 12 months of that milestone year brought more change to the agency in its composition, its mandate, and its relationship to the executive branch than any comparable period in the preceding four decades.
Now at 51 years and counting, the NRC is working with a full commission and issuing new rulemakings to both regulate and support the next round of nuclear deployments. With the turbulence of 2025 still fresh in our minds, Nuclear News decided it was a good time to revisit the professional backgrounds of all 42 NRC commissioners who have served over the agency’s 50-year history to see how the composition of the commission has evolved over time.
2025
James S. Baker
2024
Larry L. Wetzel
2023
Jean-Francois Lucchini
2022
Douglas G. Bowen
2021
Stanley H. Levinson
2020
George FlanaganN. Prasad Kadambi
2019
James FlorenceIan B. Wall
2018
Dr. Robert D. Busch
2017
Dr. Abraham Weitzberg
2016
Andrew O. Smetana
2015
Jerry E. HicksDonald J. Wakefield
2014
Steven L. Stamm
2013
Carl A. Mazzola
2012
Patricia A. SchroederElizabeth Briggs Johnson (posthumously)
2010
Allen CampThomas McLaughlin
2009
Calvin M. Hopper
2008
Donald J. Spellman
2007
William L. Whittemore posthumously
2006
Robert J. Budnitz
2005
James F. Mallay
2004
Charles H. Moseley
2003
Wade J. Richards
2002
Francis M. Alcorn
2001
Michael J. Wright
2000
William C. Hopkins
1999
Dimitrios Cokinos
1998
Marilyn D. Weber
1997
David R. Smith
1996
Tawfik M. Raby
1995
Hugh K. Clark
1994
George L. Wessman
1993
Joseph T. Thomas
1992
J. Ed Smith posthumously
1991
David K. Trubey
1990
1989
Walter H. D'Ardenne
1988
A. Dixon CallihanRalph G. ChalkerMiles C. Leverett
