[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 179 (Monday, September 16, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56868-56869]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-22494]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Adjustment of Indemnification for Inflation
AGENCY: Office of General Counsel, U.S Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of adjusted indemnification amount.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Energy (DOE) is announcing the adjusted
[[Page 56869]]
amount of indemnification provided under subsection 170d. of the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954 (AEA), 42 U.S.C. 2210d., commonly known as the
Price-Anderson Act. Subsection 170t. of the AEA requires an inflation
adjustment of the indemnification amount at least once during each 5-
year period following July 1, 2003, in accordance with the aggregate
percentage change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) . This notice
announces $12,697,798,000 as the second inflation-adjusted amount based
on the aggregate percentage change in the CPI during the 5-year period
from July 2008 to July 2013.
DATES: This action is effective September 16, 2013.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sophia Angelini, Attorney Advisor (GC-
52), Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000
Independence Ave. SW., Washington, DC 20585, (202) 586-0319.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Price-Anderson Act, section 170 of the
AEA (42 U.S.C. 2210), establishes a system of financial protection for
persons who may be liable for a ``nuclear incident,'' as defined at
section 11q. of the AEA (42 U.S.C. 2014q.). The Price-Anderson Act is
administered by the DOE with respect to the nuclear activities of
contractors acting on DOE's behalf. Subsection 170d. provides that the
Secretary of Energy shall enter into agreements of indemnification with
any person who may conduct activities under a contract with DOE that
involve the risk of public liability and that are not subject to the
financial protection requirements of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
system. DOE's Price-Anderson Act indemnification contract provisions
are codified in the Department of Energy Acquisition Regulation (DEAR),
which sets forth a standard nuclear indemnification clause, the Nuclear
Hazard Indemnity Clause at 48 CFR 952.250-70, that is incorporated into
all DOE contracts and subcontracts involving source, special nuclear,
or by-product material.
Subsection 170t.(2) of the AEA requires that the Secretary adjust
for inflation the amount of indemnification provided under an
indemnification agreement pursuant to subsection 170d. at least once
during each 5-year period following July 1, 2003, in accordance with
the aggregate percentage change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The
CPI is defined in subsection 170t.(3) to mean the CPI for all urban
consumers published by the Secretary of Labor. DOE's initial adjustment
increased the indemnification amount to $11.961 billion, 74 FR 52793
(October 14, 2009).
This notice announces DOE's second periodic inflation adjustment
for the 5-year period following July 1, 2013 based on the aggregate
percentage change in the CPI between July 1, 2008 and July 1, 2013.
The CPI in July 2008 was 219.964. In June 2013, the CPI was
233.504. This difference represents an increase of approximately 6.16%.
Application of this increase to the initial inflation-adjusted $11.961
billion DOE indemnification amount results in an inflation-adjusted
indemnification amount rounded to the nearest thousand of
$12,697,798,000.
The inflation adjustment under AEA, subsection 170t., applies only
to a nuclear incident within the United States. There is no
corresponding inflation adjustment for a nuclear incident outside the
United States. Accordingly, the indemnification amount for a nuclear
incident outside the United States continues to be $500 million.
The next inflation adjustment will be based on the incremental
change in the CPI between July 1, 2013 and the date of the adjustment,
which will be no later than July 1, 2018.
This notice of indemnification inflation adjustment is a ``rule''
as defined in the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 551(4)).
However, the APA (5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B)) does not require an agency to use
the public notice and comment process ``when the agency for good cause
finds (and incorporates the finding and a brief statement of reasons
therefore in the rules issued) that notice and public procedure thereon
are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.''
In this instance, DOE has concluded that solicitation of public comment
is unnecessary. Congress has required DOE to adjust the amount of
indemnification provided under an agreement of indemnification pursuant
to section 170d. to reflect inflation in the initial and each
subsequent 5-year period following July 1, 2003. The statute provides
no discretion regarding the substance of the adjustment. DOE is
required only to perform a ministerial computation to determine the
relevant amount. On the same basis, DOE finds good cause, pursuant to 5
U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to waive the requirement for a 30-day delay in the
effective date for this rule. As such, this rule is effective September
16, 2013.
DOE has determined that this notice of indemnification inflation
adjustment is the type of action that does not individually or
cumulatively have a significant impact on the human environment as set
forth in DOE's regulations implementing the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). Specifically, the rule is
covered under the categorical exclusion in paragraph A6 of Appendix A
to subpart D, 10 CFR part 1021, which applies to rulemakings that are
strictly procedural. Accordingly, neither an environmental assessment
nor an environmental impact statement is required.
Issued in Washington, DC, on September 6, 2013.
Ernest J. Moniz,
Secretary of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2013-22494 Filed 9-13-13; 8:45 am]
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