NRC OIG Releases Two Reports on Findings Regarding Counterfeit, Fraudulent, and Suspect Items in U.S. Nuclear Power Plants

NRC OIG Releases Two Reports on Findings Regarding
Counterfeit, Fraudulent, and Suspect Items in U.S. Nuclear Power Plants

ROCKVILLE, MD—Today, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG), Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued two reports on its audit and investigation findings regarding concerns that counterfeit, fraudulent, and suspect items (CFSI) are present in most, if not all, U.S. nuclear power plants. 

The OIG found that CFSI are present in operating plants, but the extent of CFSI is unknown because the NRC does not require licensees to track CFSI unless a situation rises to the level of being a significant condition adverse to quality, despite concern in the nuclear community about the potential dangers of CFSI. 

The OIG recommended that the NRC should improve its oversight of CFSI by clarifying and communicating how the agency collects, assesses, and disseminates information regarding CFSI, and by improving staff awareness of CFSI and its applicability to reactor inspections.

“The simultaneous issuance of these two reports represents the first time that our Audits and Investigations Divisions have collaborated so closely on a reporting program of this magnitude,” said NRC Inspector General Robert J. Feitel.  “These comprehensive reports are but one example of a new era for the OIG, where our superb teams of auditors and investigators will continue to work together in an integrated way, to fulfill our mission to ensure the integrity, efficiency and effectiveness of the NRC.”

The OIG reports also identified potential gaps in the NRC’s regulatory framework, such as those resulting from a 2011 NRC working group that have since not been resolved. 

The OIG has sent these reports to the NRC’s executive leadership for review and response.  The OIG has a responsibility to independently and objectively conduct audits and investigations to help improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the NRC’s programs and operations.

PR_CFSI_021022.pdf​​​​​​​