development program, and his determination to double the
total federal commitment to energy research and development for fiscal year 1975, were in line with the recommen-
dations made by the Commission chairman. The Ray
report also supported the President’s recommendation to
establish an Energy Research and Development Administration.(41)
Reactor Safety
In December 1973 the Commission announced new requirements for the performance of the emergency core
cooling systems (ECCS) installed in light-water-cooled
powerreactors. Such systems provided the capability for
emergency removal of heat from the reactor core in the
event of a loss of the normal reactor coolant water. The
Commission's action concluded a two-year public rulemaking hearing which had served as a foca! point for
public discussion of opposing viewpoints on the safety of
nuclear powerplants. Six months of hearing sessions, between January 27, 1972 and July 25, 1973, had produced a
voluminous transcript, a clear witness to the complexity of
the technical issues involved in nuclear safety. A constant
advocate of the public’s right to know and fully understand
the possible dangers of radiation, the Joint Committee on
Atomic Energy had also held a hearing in early 1973 on the
safety of nuclear powerplants.
Clearly the handwriting on the wail was spelling out the
numbered days of the AEC in 1973. Although nuclear
power constituted a significant part of the answer to the
Nation's need for additional sources of energy, it was by
no means the only answer as had been predicted in the
early decades of the Commission's existence.
Summary
When President Ford signed the Energy Reorganization
Act of 1974 on October 11, the Atomic Energy Commission’s twenty-eight year stewardship of the Nation’s
nuclear energy program came to an end. On January 19,
1975, the Commission's research and development responsibilities were assumed by the Energy Research and
Development Administration, and the regulatory and licensing functions by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Six
thousand, three hundred and twenty Commission
employees went to ERDA while one thousand nine hundred and seventy former regulatory personnel becamepart
of the new Nuclear Regulatory Commission. In the preceding twenty-eight years the Atomic Energy
Commission had accomplished a large partion of the mission established by the Congress in 1946. First, through its
weapon laboratories and production contractors, it had
developed and stockpiled an array of sophisticated nuclear
weapons which for nearly three decades had served as an
important element in national defense. Also in the area of
defense, the Commission had supported the development
of nuclear propulsion reactors which made possible the
creation of a fleet of reliable nuclear submarines and surface ships.
Although for many years military related programs commanded the major portion of the budget, the Commission
had initiated and supported extensive research in the
nuclear sciences. The research contract and the national
laboratory had become keyinstruments in the widespread
development and application of nuciear technology for
scientific, medical, and industrial purposes. Through participation in the International Atomic Energy Agency,international conferences and bilateral agreements, the United
States shared the new technologywith other nations.
The congressional mandate of 1946 also called for the
use of atomic energy in a way that would strengthen free
competition in private enterprise. Although the severe
restrictions of the 1946 Act made atomic energy virtually a
government monopoly, the Commission in less than a
decade advanced nuclear technology to the point where
industrial participation was feasible, and then encouraged
the passage of new legislation in 1954 which made a
nuclear industry possible. By the eariy 1970’s nuclear
poweroffered a promising option for meeting national and
world energy needs.
in carrying out the Congressional mandate of 1946, the
Atomic Energy Commission essentially worked its way out
of existence. After concentrating on defense commitments in the early years, the Commission then focused
on the development of a viable nuclear industry, only to
come underfire in the late 1960's and 1970's for being in
the position of regulating the same industry it helped to
create.
This difficulty had been foreseen in 1961 when the functions of the agency were divided between the General
Managerand the Director of Regulation. Then in 1963 the
two functions were physically separated by being housed
in different geographical locations. Finally, the legal
separation of the developmental and requlatory functions,
requested in 1973 by the Commission itself, was accomplished by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974. The
regulatory and licensing responsibilities became the exclusive focus of a new agency headed by a five-member
board, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, while the
developmental functions were placed under a single administrator in a second agency, the Energy Research and
Development Administration.
In the preceding decade the Atomic Energy Commission
had lost muchofits privileged status with Congress and
the American public. The exclusive monopoly ard the
mantle of secrecy had been largely removed, and no longer
did atomic energy seemingly provide the perfect formula
for both military defense and civilian energy needs.
Regulatory restrictions and environmental concerns were a
large part of the reason for the demise of the AEC, but
more important was the recagnition that a_ single
technology should not be the exclusive focus of one agency. The energy crisis would now require the coordination
of all major energy programs in a new research and
development agency, whose primary purpose would be to
assist the Nation in achieving energy independence.
Asa legacy to the new agency, the Atomic Energy Commission passed on its unique production facilities, its
valuable network of national {aboratories, and the proven
technological skills, resourcefulness, and experience of its
personnel. Three years later the Energy Research and
Development Administration, like the Atomic Energy Commission before it, became part of an even larger organiza-
tion. On October 1, 1977 Congress created a cabinet-level
Department of Energy to coordinate Federal energy
policies and programs.