Capito warned against “rapid and disruptive change” to the regulatory framework, urging the NRC to balance efficiency with predictability and safety. “Experienced leadership at the commission is crucial to achieve these objectives,” she said.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D., R.I.), the committee’s top Democrat, opened Wednesday’s hearing with sharp criticism of the Trump administration’s handling of the NRC, calling recent actions “flamingly partisan.” He condemned the unprecedented removal of former NRC Chair Chris Hanson, labeling it “illegal and baseless,” and warned that such interference threatens the agency’s credibility. “The NRC is a pillar of America’s nuclear renaissance,” Whitehouse said, emphasizing that public trust and safety are essential to the future of nuclear energy.
Despite his concerns, Whitehouse expressed support for David Wright’s renomination, citing Wright’s professionalism and experience as a stabilizing force on the commission.
Wright was then given the opportunity to provide his opening remarks before questioning began. Wright, who has served on the commission since 2018 and was designated chair earlier this year, told senators he is committed to maintaining the NRC’s role as the “gold standard” in nuclear safety regulation.
“Safety is and always will be our North Star,” Wright said. “It is imperative that the NRC facilitate pathways for the safe licensing of nuclear technology, not impede its progress.”
He highlighted recent agency actions under his leadership, including the approval of NuScale’s small modular reactor design and a new framework for licensing microreactors and mine waste remediation technologies. Wright also pledged to continue implementing the ADVANCE Act and Executive Order 14300, both of which aim to streamline nuclear licensing and reassert U.S. leadership in nuclear energy.
Wright concluded by reaffirming his commitment to the NRC’s mission and to leading the agency through what he called a “pivotal moment for nuclear power.”
Following Wright’s statement, committee members asked questions that were focused on the implementation of the ADVANCE Act, maintaining the independence of the agency, the firing of Commissioner Hanson, the implementation of the recent EOs, and employee retention.
NRC’s new milestones: President Trump’s May 23 EO 14300, “Ordering the Reform of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission,” directs the NRC to replace nonbinding “generic milestone schedules” with fixed deadlines to complete licensing activities that would be “enforced by fixed caps on the NRC’s recovery of hourly fees.”
The EO specifies, for example, “a deadline of no more than 18 months for final decision on an application to construct and operate a new reactor of any type, commencing with the first required step in the regulatory process.” All revised regulations “must allow a reasonably diligent applicant to navigate the licensing process successfully in the time allotted.”
Much is still to be interpreted, including what is considered “the first required step in the regulatory process,” and whether formal approval or a completed final safety evaluation marks the finish line, but the new deadlines would demand much quicker review processes. (The standard design approval for NuScale’s US460 SMR mentioned by Chair Wright during the hearing, for example, took 26 months from acceptance to the issuance of a final safety evaluation report last month, which was an improvement on NuScale’s US600 SMR design certification, with 41 months between the same two milestones.)
While EO 14300 orders the NRC to issue final rules and guidance to conclude the revision process within 18 months of the order, the NRC’s NEIMA Milestone Schedules of Requested Activities of the Commission have already been updated to show that more than 20 activity types are taking no longer than 18 months.
Here are a few key licensing activities and their current “NEIMA milestone schedules for issuance of the final safety evaluation”:
- Design certifications and standard design approvals: 18 months.
- Licenses for reactors, uranium recovery, and fuel cycle facilities: 18 months.
- Construction permits, early site permits, and limited work authorizations: 18 months.
- Restart activities: 18 months.
- License renewals for all reactors, uranium recovery, and fuel cycle facilities: 12 months.
- Various license amendments (including power uprates): 1–12 months.
Letter to the NRC: On Tuesday, 28 past NRC employees, including former NRC Chair Stephen Burns, sent a letter to the four current NRC commissioners strongly criticizing the “unprecedented decision” by President Trump to fire Christopher Hanson, characterizing the move as one that puts politics above safety.
The letter, a copy of which was also sent to members of the NRC’s congressional oversight committees, said that the firing “endangers the independence of the NRC as it raises the specter of political considerations carrying greater weight than public health and safety.” It cited the agency’s organizational values of remaining “trustworthy, reliable, ethical, [and] unbiased” and said that those tenets are “incompatible with capricious politics.”
The importance of adhering to those values, the letter explained, rests on the fact that the nuclear industry’s credibility and safety rely on an effective, independent regulatory body.
The former officials concluded the letter by calling on the current commissioners to follow the advice of Edward McGaffigan, the longest-serving commissioner in the NRC’s history, who, in 2006, called on regulators to conduct themselves with honor and be guided by the facts alone, which “often involves telling people, perhaps colleagues, perhaps supervisors, what they do not want to hear.”
