Executive Orders

Executive Order 12657--Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance in emergency preparedness planning at commercial nuclear power plants

Source: The provisions of Executive Order 12657 of Nov. 18, 1988, appear at 53 FR 47513, 3 CFR, 1988 Comp., p. 611, unless otherwise noted.

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and laws of the United States of America, including the Federal Civil Defense Act of 1950, as amended (50 U.S.C. App. 2251 et seq.), the Disaster Relief Act of 1974, as amended (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.), Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1958, Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1973, and Section 301 of Title 3 of the United States Code, and in order to ensure that plans and procedures are in place to respond to radiological emergencies at commercial nuclear power plants in operation or under construction, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. Scope. (a) This Order applies whenever State or local governments, either individually or together, decline or fail to prepare commercial nuclear power plant radiological emergency preparedness plans that are sufficient to satisfy Nuclear Regulatory Commission ("NRC") licensing requirements or to participate adequately in the preparation, demonstration, testing, exercise, or use of such plans.
(b) In order to request the assistance of the Federal Emergency Management Agency ("FEMA") provided for in this Order, an affected nuclear power plant applicant or licensee ("licensee") shall certify in writing to FEMA that the situation described in Subsection (a) exists.

Sec. 2. Generally Applicable Principles and Directives. (a) Subject to the principles articulated in this Section, the Director of FEMA is hereby authorized and directed to take the actions specified in Sections 3 through 6 of this Order.

(b) In carrying out any of its responsibilities under this Order, FEMA:

(1) shall work actively with the licensee, and, before relying upon its resources or those of any other Department or agency within the Executive branch, shall make maximum feasible use of the licensee's resources;

(2) shall take care not to supplant State and local resources. FEMA shall substitute its own resources for those of the State and local governments only to the extent necessary to compensate for the nonparticipation or inadequate participation of those governments, and only as a last resort after appropriate consultation with the Governors and responsible local officials in the affected area regarding State and local participation;

(3) is authorized, to the extent permitted by law, to enter into interagency Memoranda of Understanding providing for utilization of the resources of other Executive branch Departments and agencies and for delegation to other Executive branch Departments and agencies of any of the functions and duties assigned to FEMA under this Order; however, any such Memorandum of Understanding shall be subject to approval by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget ("OMB") and published in final form in the Federal Register; and

(4) shall assume for purposes of Sections 3 and 4 of this Order that, in the event of an actual radiological emergency or disaster, State and local authorities would contribute their full resources and exercise their authorities in accordance with their duties to protect the public from harm and would act generally in conformity with the licensee's radiological emergency preparedness plan.

(c) The Director of OMB shall resolve any issue concerning the obligation of Federal funds arising from the implementation of this Order. In resolving issues under this Subsection, the Director of OMB shall ensure:

(1) that FEMA has utilized to the maximum extent possible the resources of the licensee and State and local governments before it relies upon its appropriated and lawfully available resources or those of any Department or agency in the Executive branch;

(2) that FEMA shall use its existing resources to coordinate and manage, rather than duplicate, other available resources;

(3) that implementation of this Order is accomplished with an economy of resources; and

(4) that full reimbursement to the Federal Government is provided, to the extent permitted by law.

Sec. 3. FEMA Participation in Emergency Preparedness Planning. (a) FEMA assistance in emergency preparedness planning shall include advice, technical assistance, and arrangements for facilities and resources as needed to satisfy the emergency planning requirements under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and any other Federal legislation or regulations pertaining to issuance or retention of a construction permit or an operating license for a nuclear power plant.

(b) FEMA shall make all necessary plans and arrangements to ensure that the Federal Government is prepared to assume any and all functions and undertakings necessary to provide adequate protection to the public in cases within the scope of this Order. In making such plans and arrangements,

(1) FEMA shall focus planning of Federal response activities to ensure that:

(A) adequate resources and arrangements will exist, as of the time when an initial response is needed, given the absence or inadequacy of advance State and local commitments; and

(B) attention has been given to coordinating (including turning over) response functions when State and local governments do exercise their authority, with specific attention to the areas where prior State and local participation has been insufficient or absent;

Sec. 4. Evaluation of Plans. (a) FEMA shall consider and evaluate all plans developed under the authority of this Order as though drafted and submitted by a State or local government.
(b) FEMA shall take all actions necessary to carry out the evaluation referred to in the preceding Subsection and to permit the NRC to conduct its evaluation of radiological emergency preparedness plans including, but not limited to, planning, participating in, and evaluating exercises, drills, and tests, on a timely basis, as necessary to satisfy NRC requirements for demonstrations of off-site radiological emergency preparedness.

Sec. 5. Response to a Radiological Emergency. (a) In the event of an actual radiological emergency or disaster, FEMA shall take all steps necessary to ensure the implementation of the plans developed under this Order and shall coordinate the actions of other Federal agencies to achieve the maximum effectiveness of Federal efforts in responding to the emergency.
(b) FEMA shall coordinate Federal response activities to ensure that adequate resources are directed, when an initial response is needed, to activities hindered by the absence or inadequacy of advance State and local commitments. FEMA shall also coordinate with State and local governmental authorities and turn over response functions as appropriate when State and local governments do exercise their authority.
(c) FEMA shall assume any necessary command-and-control function, or delegate such function to another Federal agency, in the event that no competent State and local authority is available to perform such function.
(d) In any instance in which Federal personnel may be called upon to fill a command-and-control function during a radiological emergency, in addition to any other powers it may have, FEMA or its designee is authorized to accept volunteer assistance from utility employees and other nongovernmental personnel for any purpose necessary to implement the emergency response plan and facilitate off-site emergency response.

Sec. 6. Implementation of Order. (a) FEMA shall issue interim and final directives and procedures implementing this Order as expeditiously as is feasible and in any event shall issue interim directives and procedures not more than 90 days following the effective date of this Order and shall issue final directives and procedures not more than 180 days following the effective date of this Order.
(b) Immediately upon the effective date of this Order, FEMA shall review, and initiate necessary revisions of, all FEMA regulations, directives, and guidance to conform them to the terms and policies of this Order.
(c) Immediately upon the effective date of this Order, FEMA shall review, and initiate necessary renegotiations of, all interagency agreements to which FEMA is a party, so as to conform them to the terms and policies of this Order. This directive shall include, but not be limited to, the Federal Radiological Emergency Response Plan (50 Fed. Reg. 46542 (November 8, 1985)).
(d) To the extent permitted by law, FEMA is directed to obtain full reimbursement, either jointly or severally, for services performed by FEMA or other Federal agencies pursuant to this Order from any affected licensee and from any affected nonparticipating or inadequately participating State or local government.

Sec. 7. Amendments. This Executive Order amends Executive Order Nos. 11490 (34 Fed. Reg. 17567 (October 28, 1969)), 12148 (44 Fed. Reg. 43239 (July 20, 1979)), and 12241 (45 Fed. Reg. 64879 (September 29, 1980)), and the same are hereby superseded to the extent that they are inconsistent with this Order.

Sec. 8. Judicial Review. This Order is intended only to improve the internal management of the Executive branch, and is not intended to create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by a party against the United States, its agencies, its officers, or any person.

Sec. 9. Effective Date. This Order shall be effective November 18, 1988.