OF DEVELOPMENTS SUBSEQUENT TO THE 1975 EXTENSION. SECTION II OF THE REPORT EXAMINES ISSUES THAT THE COMMISSION WAS REQUIRED BY IN SECTION III OF THE REPORT, THE COMMISSION FOCUSES ON OTHER ISSUES THAT ARE CONSIDERED RELEVANT TO THE PRICE-ANDERSON SECTION IV OF THE REPORT CONTAINS THE COMMISSION'S CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS. I WILL BRIEFLY EXPLAIN OUR MAJOR RECOMMENDATIONS. (1) THE COMMISSION RECOMMENDS THAT THE CONGRESS EXTEND THE PRICE-ANDERSON ACT. THE COMMISSION BELIEVES THAT THE ACT PROVIDES A VALUABLE PUBLIC BENEFIT BY ESTABLISHING A SYSTEM FOR THE PROMPT AND EQUITABLE SETTLEMENT OF PUBLIC LIABILITY CLAIMS RESULTING FROM A NUCLEAR ACCIDENT. THE ACT SHOULD BE EXTENDED TO ENSURE THAT THE SAME AMOUNT, TYPE AND TERMS OF PUBLIC LIABILITY PROTECTION WILL BE PROVIDED FOR FUTURE NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS AS WELL AS EXISTING NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS. (2) THE COMMISSION RECOMMENDS THAT THE CONGRESS AMEND THE PRICE ANDERSON ACT TO SUBSTITUTE AN ANNUAL LIMITATION ON LIABILITY FOR ACCIDENTS AT LARGE COMMERCIAL NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS FOR THE PRESENT ABSOLUTE LIMITATION ON LIABILITY IN THE ACT. INSTEAD OF THE COLLECTION OF A SINGLE RETROSPECTIVE PREMIUM PER REACTOR FOR EACH ACCIDENT AS UNDER THE PRESENT SYSTEM, RETROSPECTIVE PREMIUMS WOULD BE COLLECTED YEAR AFTER YEAR UNTIL ALL OF THE PUBLIC LIABILITY CLAIMS RESULTING FROM AN ACCIDENT ARE PAID. THIS APPROACH SHOULD ENSURE THE AVAIL ABILITY OF SUFFICIENT INSURANCE FUNDS TO PAY CLAIMS EVEN FOR HIGH-CONSEQUENCE ACCIDENTS WHILE AVOIDING THE IMPOSITION OF POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC LOSSES ON UTILITIES OR SUPPLIERS TO THE INDUSTRY. THIS SYSTEM WOULD ALSO PROVIDE A MECHANISM FOR COMPENSATING LATENT INJURY CLAIMS, THEREBY ELIMINATING THE NEED, AS UNDER THE PRESENT SYSTEM, TO RESERVE A PORTION OF THE INITIAL INSURANCE FUNDS COLLECTED TO PAY SUCH CLAIMS SHOULD THEY ARISE. THE ANNUAL LIMITATION ON LIABILITY SHOULD APPLY TO EXISTING AS WELL AS FUTURE PLANTS. (3) THE COMMISSION RECOMMENDS THAT THE CONGRESS AMEND THE PRICE ANDERSON ACT TO RAISE THE MAXIMUM RETROSPECTIVE PREMIUMS THAT CAN BE CHARGED FROM THE PRESENT $5 MILLION PER REACTOR PER INCIDENT PER YEAR TO $10 MILLION PER REACTOR PER INCIDENT PER YEAR. AN INCREASE IN THE SIZE OF THE RETROSPECTIVE PREMIUMS TO $10 MILLION WOULD SUBSTANTIALLY INCREASE FUNDS AVAILABLE TO PAY PUBLIC LIABILITY CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF AN ACCIDENT. MOREOVER, THIS FUND WOULD ALSO BE ROUGHLY COMPARABLE TO THE AMOUNT OF INSURANCE COVERAGE NOW PROVIDED FOR MOST LARGE COMMERCIAL NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS TO PAY ON-SITE PROPERTY DAMAGE CLAIMS. AN INCREASE IN THE RETROSPECTIVE PREMIUMS TO $10 MILLION WILL NOT, IN THE COMMISSION'S VIEW, JEOPARDIZE THE FINANCIAL VIABILITY OF THE PARTICIPATING UTILITIES. (4) WHEN THE COMMISSION DETERMINES THAT A NUCLEAR INCIDENT IS AN "EXTRAORDINARY NUCLEAR OCCURRENCE," WHICH IS DEFINED AS AN OFF-SITE DISPERSAL OF NUCLEAR MATERIALS IN AMOUNTS CAUSING RADIATION LEVELS THAT THE NRC DETERMINES HAS RESULTED, OR WILL PROBABLY RESULT, IN SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO PERSONS OR PROPERTY OFF-SITE, THEN THE WAIVER OF DEFENSES PROVISION OF THE PRICE-ANDERSON SYSTEM IS ACTIVATED. UNDER AN ESSENTIALLY "NO-FAULT" RECOVERY SCHEME, CLAIMANTS WOULD NEED ONLY PROVE (A) PERSONAL INJURY OR PROPERTY DAMAGE, (B) MONETARY AMOUNT OF LOSS, AND (C) A VERIFIABLE LINK BETWEEN THE INJURY OR DAMAGE AND THE RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL RELEASED. COMMISSION NOTES THAT IT INTENDS TO REDEFINE, BY RULEMAKING, THE CRITERIA FOR AN EXTRAORDINARY NUCLEAR OCCURRENCE. (5) THE COMMISSION RECOMMENDS THAT THE CONGRESS EXTEND THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR FILING A PUBLIC LIABILITY CLAIM ARISING FROM A NUCLEAR ACCIDENT FROM 20 TO 30 YEARS. THIS CHANGE SHOULD PROVIDE GREATER ASSURANCE THAT LATENT INJURIES CAUSED BY A NUCLEAR ACCIDENT ARE PROVIDED PROTECTION UNDER |