A temporary order to show cause why its license should not be suspended was issued to Ae " ' . Advanced Industrial X-Ray Laboratories, Los Angeles, on June 13 as the result of apparent violations of license conditions and regulations involving a radiation incident and the loss of a 28-curie irjdium-192 source. A hearing was scheduled at Los Angeles for July 8. Reactor Safety a “st LICENSING AND REGULATION ferring Mcensed material to persons not Mcensed to receive it. The company had waived a hearing. take Nat A PEPEGata UNCLASSIFIED Safety reviews were conducted by the AEC staff on a number of licensed and Government- eee ry” tee f ay owned reactors, The staff also provided advisory service to the Governments of Israel and Puerto Rico with respect to the hazards analysis of reactors planned by the governments of those countries. The Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards met in May to discuss various projects referred to it by AEC for review and advice. The committee also met in June at Hanford to consider the Wahluke Slope problem. Cooperation with States and Other Agencies States and local public bodies continue to exhibit growing interest in regulation of atomic energy activities. Current information indicates that the legislatures of a number of states will be considering atomic energy legislation at their 1959 sessions. A series of meetings is continuing with representatives of the Civil Aeronautics Board, the Interstate Commerce Commission, the Coast Guard, and the Post Office Department to review existing transportation regulations and to develop amendments, where needed, to as- sure public health and safety in thetransportation of radioactive materials. Financial Protection and Indemnity. A number of state-owned educational institutions have expressed concern that they are unable to comply with the financial protection requirements of Public Law 85-256 (the Price- Anderson Act). All of these assert that they are immunefrom tort liability and now lack authority to waive that immunity. Most of them also lack authority to purchase nuclear energy liability insurance policies. As the Joint Committee has previously been informed, the Commission has not exercised the authority granted under the Price-Anderson Act to require Waiver of immunity or to enforce the financial protection requirement as to these institutions since to do so would result in shutting down their research reactors. The AEC is currently examining various means to deal with the immunity problem. These include possible state legislation or, as an alternative, Federal legislation amending the Price- Anderson Act to remove the requirement of financial protection. DOE ARCHIVES Three proposed amendments to the temporary indemnity regulation (10 CFR Part 140) are in the final stages of development. They concern (1) fixing the amount of financial protection which reactor licensees must have and maintain, (2) the proposed form of indemnity agreement to be entered into with licensees, and (3) whether or not the standard nuclear liability insurance policy issued by Nuclear Energy Liability Insurance Association (NELIA) and Mutual Atomic Energy Liability Underwriters (MAELU) constitutes financial protection as that term is defined in the Act. These proposed amendments will be published as notices of proposed rules and public comment will be invited. (End of UNCLASSIFIED section.) i ment of Energy osttorian’s Cifice 1 UNCLASSIFIED QCHIVE Dane eeree ee Eton ae ee ee ee 7 Tete aE TAS aeer ET ar ore