Departmental Representative to the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board

5.0 BOARD PUBLIC HEARINGS, PUBLIC MEETINGS AND OTHER BRIEFINGS/MEETINGS

Public Hearings, Public Meetings, and other formal Board briefings/meetings should be consistent with authorities granted under the Board’s enabling statute. For any of these activities, the Board may or may not have a “quorum” as defined in 42 U.S.C. § 2286(e) Quorum ¹. The Board may hold such hearings, meetings or conduct site visits with or without a quorum in order to better understand issues, gain insights into ongoing areas of interest to the Board, or to gain insights into other topics covered by 42 U.S.C. § 2286a. Missions and Functions of the Board.

The Board’s Public Hearings and Public Meetings are also governed by the provisions of the Government in the Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. 552b), to include the Board’s notification and publication of such events in the Federal Register. Public Hearings and Public Meetings are intended to provide the public with an open forum to discuss particular nuclear safety matters at DOE’s defense nuclear facilities. Alternatively, the Board may conduct Closed Meetings by invoking the exemptions to close a meeting as described in 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(3) and (9)(B) and 10 C.F.R. 1704.4(c) and (h). The Public hearings, public meetings, and closed meetings provide venues in which the quorum of Board members may discuss, deliberate, and vote on a particular issue.

5.1 Public Hearings

42 U.S.C. § 2286b(a), Hearings, addresses specifics on how the Board handles Hearings, to include the subpoena or invitation of witnesses and the production of such evidence as the Board or an authorized member may find advisable. During Public Hearings, the Board has typically received testimonies from DOE personnel and DOE contractor personnel in accordance with the defined scopes and lines-of-inquiry for such Hearings. Any and all written or verbal testimonies, as well as question-and-answer exchanges between the witnesses and Board members and staff are recorded by a court reporter and made a part of the record of the Hearing and posted on the DNFSB’s website. The Board also invites members of the public to provide comments during such Hearings. Coordination of these tasks are addressed further below.

In addition to the following sections for coordination and preparation of Board interactions, general guidelines for preparing for a Public Hearing include:

1. The Board members approve, via notational vote, to conduct a Public Hearing for a particular topic.
   
   
1. The approval vote would also typically include the desired Hearing participants and timeframe, as well as, the Board’s direction for the staff to develop an agenda and lines-of-inquiry for the Hearing.
   
   
2. The DNFSB Technical Director (TD) or other Board staff informs the DR and/or other DOE staff of the Board’s approval and intent to conduct a Public Hearing.
   
   
3. DR and DOE staff should inform the appropriate Headquarters and Field Office personnel of the Board’s intent to conduct a Public Hearing for a particular topic, to include personnel whom the Board has identified as potential participant in the Hearing.
   
   
2. DOE should anticipate receiving formal letters of invitation from the Board for each potential Hearing participant.
   
   
3. DR and/or other DOE staff should coordinate advance discussions via meeting/call to determine appropriate DOE response and representation/speakers for the Hearing.
   
   
1. From this discussion, DR and/or other DOE staff should inform the DNFSB TD of the DOE/NNSA participants.
   
   
4. DR and/or other DOE/NNSA staff should obtain the scope and lines-of-inquiry from the DNFSB TD as soon as they are available in order to facilitate the DOE participants’ preparation for the Hearing.
   
   
1. DOE/NNSA should request the Board staff provide the Hearing agenda, to include the objectives for each session, and the LOIs at a minimum of two weeks prior to the Hearing date.
   
   
5. DR and DNFSB TD discussions to ensure that the Department and DNFSB are in sync and define any “boundaries” in advance of the hearing.
   
   
6. DR and/or DOE/NNSA staff should coordinate on the development of individual testimony and coordination of overall messaging
   
   
1. Conduct coordination calls in-development calls as needed
   
   
2. Conduct mock-Hearings as needed
   
   
3. Determine whether any handouts are needed and ensure they receive appropriate reviews for public disclosure.
   
   
7. Questions for the record (QFRs) - during the Hearing, there may be questions for which DOE participants would like to take “for the record” and provide a response in writing following the conclusion of the Hearing.
   
   
1. DNFSB TD or staff should provide a list of QFRs to the DR and/or other DOE/NNSA staff to coordinate on providing written response.
   
   
2. DNFSB TD may also ask questions in order to clarify any points of ambiguity during the Hearing.
   
   
8. Errata Review of Hearing Transcript - following the Hearing, the DNFSB should provide to the DR and/or other DOE staff a draft written transcript of the Hearing for DOE participants to conduct an errata review.
   
   
1. DR and/or other DOE/NNSA staff should provide the draft transcript to DOE participants for review.
   
   

5.2 Public Meetings

The Board has typically conducted Public Meetings in order to receive testimonies from its technical staff and/or from DOE/NNSA personnel. DOE personnel are invited to attend these meetings, but DOE’s participation is not required. In Public Meetings, the Board has received testimonies from DOE/NNSA personnel and the Board staff on issues of interest (e.g., Recommendations 2019-1, 2019-2 and 2014-1, and proposed Fiscal Year work plans) followed by the Board’s vote to take action, such as approval of FY Work Plans or closure of a recommendation.

5.3 Closed Meetings

The Board conducts Closed Meetings in order to discuss issues dealing with potential Board Recommendations to the Secretary of Energy. In its publication of the Closed Meeting in the Federal Register, the Board may provide a justification of the need to close the meeting.

5.4 Internal Notice of Public Hearings and Public Meetings

1. The designated DOE/NNSA personnel for meetings with the Board should prepare and distribute a written notice containing a meeting agenda. The agenda information should be developed by the designated DOE personnel for the meeting through discussions with the lead Board staff member for the meeting and with Departmental organizations expected to support the meeting. If the schedule or agenda requested by the Board cannot be accommodated, the DOE personnel should resolve any issues or conflicts with the lead Board staff member. The DOE/NNSA personnel should provide a notice and agenda which include the following information:
   
   
1. Date, time, and location of the meeting;
   
   
2. Subject of the meeting;
   
   
3. Board and key Board staff participants;
   
   
4. DOE personnel and other participants, including contractor participants;
   
   
5. Specific topics to be discussed; and
   
   
6. Other special requirements, as applicable.
   
   
2. The DOE/NNSA personnel should distribute the notice to the cognizant Secretarial Officer, the DR, affected Operations/Field Office Managers, and affected POC. The DR’s office should make any additional internal distribution determined to be necessary to ensure that interested parties are notified of the meeting in advance.
   
   
3. If changes in the schedule or agenda topics arise after the notice is issued, the designated DOE/NNSA personnel should modify and redistribute the notice. If there is insufficient advance notice of a substantive change in the schedule or agenda to reissue the notice, the DOE/NNSA personnel should contact the affected participants to advise them of the changes as soon as possible.
   
   

5.5 Notice to the Board of Expected Public Hearing and Public Meeting Attendees

The DR should provide the DNFSB staff with advance notice of the expected meeting attendees for meetings at the Board’s facilities. This allows the Board and its staff to ensure the proper Board representation and meeting arrangements. The cognizant manager or associated DOE/NNSA personnel should assist the DR in developing an accurate list of expected attendees.

5.6 Other Briefings/Meetings

DOE and DOE Contractor personnel may participate in other Board briefings and meetings, either at the Board’s or the Departments Headquarters offices in Washington, DC, or at a DOE site. Such briefings and meetings may be in response to a Board reporting requirement (42 U.S.C. § 2286b(a), Reporting Requirements) or when the Department would like to provide information of interest to the Board. For Board briefings in response to reporting requirements, the Board may request that a pre-brief occur with DNFSB staff prior to accepting the briefing to the Board. Pre-briefings may be provided by personnel other than who would provide the brief to the Board, however, the key elements of the brief should be communicated.

When the Board requests a briefing, they typically provide an agenda or set of topics to be addressed. DOE may provide briefings either with or without a quorum of Board members and the DNFSB is not necessarily obliged to specify this ahead of time. As a general practice, DOE should prepare for Board briefings as if it is being provided in a quorum atmosphere and that any and all briefing materials and handouts, if any, be reviewed and marked per DOE classification requirements. An example of a Board briefing request form is provided as Attachment 3.

DOE should ensure that handling caveats (e.g., Official Use Only, Draft, Pre-decisional, etc.) are indicated on all hand-outs, as appropriate, that are provided to the Board during briefings. On June 14, 2016, the Board members voted to implement the practice of posting all briefings materials provided to the Board by DOE and any other outside source (e.g., contractor, entity, group, individual) to the DNFSB public website. The posting to the website includes briefing agenda, briefing handouts and the list of briefing attendees.

5.6.1 Coordination, Preparation, and Participation in Board Meetings and Briefings

The DR or a designated DOE personnel should serve as the Departmental lead for coordinating the Department’s participation in meetings or briefings with the Board members. Coordination responsibilities include ensuring the following:

1. Appropriate participants are selected (with sufficient technical knowledge, accomplished presentation skills, and of appropriate organizational position);
   
   
2. Participants are adequately prepared; dry-runs are recommended;
   
   
3. Consensus is reached prior to the meeting to the extent possible on major technical or policy issues that are identified as the subjects of the meeting;
   
   
4. Views presented as the Department’s views will indeed represent those adopted by the responsible Department managers, or else these views will be clearly identified as opinions of specific individuals;
   
   
5. Information provided is responsive to the Board’s requests; and
   
   
6. As appropriate, ensure that handling caveats (e.g., Official Use Only, Draft, Predecisional, etc.) are indicated on all hand-outs provided to the Board and staff during briefings.
   
   

Requests from Board members for meetings with the Department are routinely made through the DR. Other Departmental elements that receive such requests from the Board or its staff should immediately notify the DR and the appropriate DOE POC.

Requests by Departmental elements for meetings with Board members should be made through the appropriate DOE/NNSA personnel, who in turn should coordinate with the DR. Departmental elements initiating or participating in meetings with the Board members should keep the DR informed of the schedule and content of the meetings. Departmental personnel should use the Briefing Request format for such requests.

5.7 Briefings, Discussions, Telephone Communications, and Other Informal Interactions

For discussion of complex issues, Departmental personnel should request prior notification and scheduling to allow adequate preparation of a mutually agreeable agenda and briefing materials. Prior notification and scheduling allows both parties to be prepared and improves the quality of communications.

Departmental personnel should handle briefings and discussions with members of the Board or its staff in a similar manner to that described for formal meetings with the Board. The Departmental lead should notify the affected Departmental POC, the DR’s office, and any other affected Departmental personnel, and provide information about the time, place, and content of the interaction.

The Departmental lead should reach agreement with the Board staff lead on the agenda, expectations, and participants. The Departmental lead should provide feedback on substantive information and actions discussed to the affected organizations and the DR. Departmental personnel should be mindful of their organizational authority and not agree to take actions outside their immediate level of authority. The Departmental lead should identify any resultant action items, responsibilities, and due dates and provide tracking and follow-up of these items through completion.

Discussions may happen routinely, on basic operations at a site that is within the DNFSB purview and at a site or DNFSB Headquarters staff level with local DOE/NNSA or site contractors. It is important for these interactions to be coordinated with the DOE Departmental Representative (DR) as the DR is the designated DOE Secretarial Interfaces. Because interactions between DNFSB staff and DOE frequently involve the DNFSB Enabling Legislation and DOE requirements contained therein, local DOE should be aware of interactions directly between DNFSB staff and local contractors and coordinate actions with the DR, as appropriate. Also, it is vital for local DOE/NNSA to ensure appropriate markings for any materials provided to the DNFSB.

Subsequent to any discussions or interactions, Departmental elements should notify the appropriate POC of the substantive information and actions discussed. The DR, in conjunction with the POC, should evaluate the information, request the individual submit a written summary if the information is of wider interest, and distribute the information to interested parties.

An example of a meeting attendance log is provided as Attachment 5. The Board’s practice is to post this attendance log on its public website as a record of meetings and briefings between the Board and DOE/NNSA or other external organizations.

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¹ Three members of the Board shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold hearings. (42 U.S.C. § 2286(e))