| (a) It is the policy of the Commission to:
(1) promote the health, safety, and welfare of the
citizens and the environment of Texas and Vermont;
(2) limit the number of facilities needed to effectively,
efficiently, and economically manage low-level radioactive waste;
(3) distribute the costs, benefits, and obligations
among the party states; and
(4) refuse to allow the importation of low-level radioactive
waste of international origin for disposal at the Compact Facility.
(b) Vermont's disposal capacity reserve is 20% of the
Compact Facility maximum volume as stated in the Compact, and this
capacity shall not be reduced by non-party waste. The Commission will
utilize the volumetric and curie limits set out in Texas Health and
Safety Code (THSC), §401.207, as guidelines with respect to authorizing
the importation of waste.
(c) If any state other than Texas or Vermont becomes
a member of the Compact in accordance with Article VII of the Compact,
the waste from that state or states shall be deposited in space reserved
for non-party compact waste, to the extent such space is available
at the time the waste is to be deposited; in no event shall waste
from that state be deposited in space reserved for waste generated
in Texas or Vermont.
(d) Agreement Required. No person shall import any
low-level radioactive waste for disposal that was generated in a non-party
state unless the Commission has entered into an agreement for the
importation of that waste pursuant to this section. No radioactive
waste of international origin shall be imported into the Compact Facility
for disposal. Violations of this subsection may result in prohibiting
the violator from disposing of low-level radioactive waste in the
Compact Facility, or in the imposition of penalty surcharges on shipments
to the facility, as determined by the Commission.
(e) Form of Import Application and Terms of Import
Agreement. Annex A in paragraph (1) of this subsection sets out the
form that must be completed by an applicant to import low-level radioactive
waste. The form will also be posted on the Commission's website and
may contain minor modifications. The act of submitting an application
means that the applicant is willing to enter into an agreement with
the Commission containing at a minimum the terms set forth in the
Term Sheet which is Annex B in paragraph (2) of this subsection.
(1) Annex A.
Attached Graphic
(2) Annex B.
Attached Graphic
(f) Submission of an Application for an Import Agreement.
A person who is a generator, a broker acting on behalf of one or more
small quantity generators, or an authorized representative of the
Department of Defense shall submit an application to the Commission
by electronic mail; an additional copy of the application must also
be sent to the Commission through the United Parcel Service (UPS)
or FedEx delivery service. The applicant may not ship any waste for
disposal under the importation agreement sought until the Commission
has formally elected to enter into an agreement with the applicant
and both parties have executed the agreement. In addition, the applicant
shall:
(1) certify that the waste acceptance criteria promulgated
by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) will be met
for the proposed waste importation; and
(2) deliver to the Compact Facility Operator and TCEQ
a copy of the application (and any supplements or amendments thereto)
by electronic mail at the same time the applicant submits the application
to the Commission. The applicant must also send a hard copy of the
application to the Compact Facility Operator and TCEQ through the
UPS or FedEx delivery service.
(g) Notice of Applications for Import Agreements. All
applications for import agreements will be posted to the Commission's
website within five business days of their submission.
(h) Comments on Applications for Import Agreements.
Any person may submit comments on an application for an import agreement
by electronic mail or by use of the UPS or FedEx delivery service
after the application is posted on the Commission's website. The Commission
will consider all comments received at least one week before the meeting
at which it considers action on the application. The Commission may,
but shall not be bound to, consider comments submitted less than one
week before such a meeting.
(i) Review of Applications for Import Agreements. The
Commission, a committee of the Commission, or other persons employed
or retained by the Commission shall, after the posting of the application
for an import agreement on the Commission's website, review the application
for an import agreement utilizing the following factors:
(1) The volume, type, physical form, and total radioactivity
of the waste proposed for importation;
(2) The policy and purpose of the Compact, as set out
in Public Law 105-236, a federal law known as the "Texas Low-Level
Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Consent Act"; in THSC, §403.006,
the Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact; and 10 V.S.A. §7069,
the Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact;
(3) The economic impact, including both potential benefits
and liabilities, on the host county, the host state, other party states,
the in-compact generators, and the Compact Facility Operator of entering
into the import agreement;
(4) Whether the Compact Facility Operator has obtained
authorization from TCEQ to dispose of the proposed waste;
(5) The effect of the Commission's approval of the
proposed import agreement on the Compact Facility's total annual volume;
(6) The existence of unresolved violations associated
with radioactive waste receipt, storage, handling, management, processing,
or transportation pending against the applicant with any other regulatory
agency with jurisdiction to regulate radioactive material, and any
comments by the regulatory agency with which the applicant has unresolved
violations;
(7) Any unresolved violation, complaint, unpaid fees,
or past due report that the applicant has with the Commission;
(8) Any relevant comments received from any person;
(9) The generator of the waste and any necessary authorization
of an applicant to export;
(10) The projected effect on the rates to be charged
for disposal of party-state compact waste;
(11) Whether by acceptance of the waste for disposal,
the Compact Facility will remain below the applicable annual and total
volume and curie capacity disposal limits set forth in THSC, §401.207;
(12) To the extent applicable, compliance with the
rules related to commingling adopted by TCEQ in coordination with
the Commission pursuant to THSC, §401.207(k); and
(13) Any other factor the Commission deems relevant
to carry out the policy and purpose of the Compact.
(j) Decision by the Commission. No earlier than 35
days after an application is posted and no later than 100 days after
it is received, the Commission shall take one of the following actions
on the application for a proposed importation agreement, in whole
or in part: approve the proposed agreement; deny the proposed agreement;
approve the proposed agreement subject to terms and conditions as
determined by the Commission; or request additional information needed
for a decision. The Commission's decision to approve in whole or in
part, deny, or approve subject to terms and conditions is final without
the filing of a motion for rehearing. However, after the Commission
has acted on an applicant's proposed importation agreement, an applicant
immediately may file another application. The Commission may deny
an application for any of the following reasons:
(1) Lack of current or anticipated capacity beyond
that required by party-state generators;
(2) The waste destined for the facility is not in accord
with the license issued by TCEQ to the Compact Facility;
(3) The shipment potentially contains waste of international
origin as defined in THSC, §401.2005(9); or
(4) Any other relevant issue.
(k) Terms and Conditions. The Commission may include
any terms or conditions in the import agreement reasonably related
to furthering the policy and purpose of the Compact including, but
not limited to, the policies referenced in subsection (a) of this
section.
(l) Importation Agreement Duration, Amendment, Revocation,
Indemnification, Reporting, and Assignment.
(1) An importation agreement shall remain in effect
for the term specified in the agreement, which term shall end on August
31 of the fiscal year for which the agreement is approved. The importation
agreement shall remain in effect as approved unless amended by agreement
of the Commission and the applicant, or revoked by the Commission
prior to importation. A condition of every importation agreement shall
be that any generator of low-level radioactive waste must agree to
comply with Cont'd... |
