[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 131 (Monday, July 8, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35732-35733]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-17293]


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FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

Notice of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Intent To 
Conduct a Strategic Review of Its Radiological Emergency Preparedness 
Activities

AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to announce FEMA's intent to 
conduct a strategic review of its Radiological Emergency Preparedness 
(REP) activities and to request specific suggestions for accomplishing 
this review.

DATES: Comments from the public on this review of the REP Program are

[[Page 35733]]

encouraged and invited on or before August 22, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be addressed to the Rules Docket 
Clerk, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Emergency Management 
Agency, room 840, 500 C Street SW., Washington, DC 20472; 
(facsimile)(202) 646-4536.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: O. Megs Hepler, III, Director, 
Exercises Division, Preparedness, Training, and Exercises Directorate, 
Federal Emergency Management Agency, Washington, DC 20472, (202) 646-
2867.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The mission of FEMA's REP Program, which was 
established in 1979, is to protect the health and safety of the public 
residing in the vicinity of a commercial nuclear power plant by 
ensuring that all levels of government have planned and prepared for 
their response to a possible radiological incident at the plant. As the 
REP Program has matured, a number of REP Program stakeholders have 
recommended that the program be restructured in order to become more 
streamlined and efficient. In light of stakeholders' recommendations 
and the fact that the REP Program has been in existence for over 16 
years, FEMA intends to initiate a comprehensive strategic review of the 
way its offsite radiological emergency planning and preparedness 
responsibilities are performed.
    This comprehensive strategic review will examine the various 
mechanisms, policies, procedures, guidance documents, and processes now 
used to carry out FEMA's REP Program, with a view to improving the 
efficiency and effectiveness of the program by implementing new 
policies, procedures, processes and guidance, if necessary. The review 
will further National Performance Review goals, will be closely 
coordinated with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and will 
provide for extensive input from all stakeholders in the REP 
community--States, utilities, Public Interest Research Groups, 
interested citizens, other Federal agencies, Congress, etc. The 
strategic review will also ensure that REP activities are consistent 
with the current requirements of the Government Performance Review Act.
    As a first step, FEMA is publishing this Federal Register notice 
announcing its intent to conduct the comprehensive strategic review and 
requesting comments from any interested parties. FEMA welcomes 
suggestions as to approaches to take in performing this review, as well 
as specific suggestions on how to streamline the REP program and make 
it more cost-effective.
    When submitting recommendations, commenters should note that the 
resulting REP Program must still accomplish the program's original 
mission, i.e., it must continue to ensure that measures can be taken to 
protect the health and safety of the public in the vicinity of 
commercial nuclear power plants in the event of a radiological 
incident.

    Dated: June 28, 1996.
James Lee Witt,
Director.
[FR Doc. 96-17293 Filed 7-5-96; 8:45 am]
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