NRC Proposes $96,000 Civil Penalty to the U.S. Air Force

Nuclear Regulatory Commission - News Release
No: IV-22-013 September 23, 2022
Contact: Victor Dricks, 817-200-1128

NRC Proposes $96,000 Civil Penalty to the U.S. Air Force

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has proposed a $96,000 civil penalty to the U.S. Air Force for 14 violations of NRC requirements associated with their use of radioactive materials.

The NRC identified 14 apparent violations of NRC requirements during inspections conducted Oct. 26-28, 2021, at the Air Force Medical Readiness Agency’s facility in Falls Church, Virginia; and Sept. 27-30 and Oct. 22, 2021, at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico. These inspections reviewed activities authorized under the Department of the Air Force’s Master Materials License.

The violations involved: four failures related to the implementation of the Master Materials License; seven failures related to the environmental use of thorium-232 source material at Kirtland Air Force Base; and three failures related to NRC’s security requirements.

The NRC held a regulatory conference with Air Force officials on June 30, during which they had an opportunity to provide additional information about the inspection findings and answer questions from NRC staff. Based on all the information gathered, NRC officials determined all the apparent violations were appropriately characterized and merited a $96,000 civil penalty.

The NRC made its enforcement decision after reviewing the circumstances surrounding the event, the immediate actions taken in response, the apparent cause and corrective actions taken to prevent recurrence.

The Air Force has 30 days to pay the fine, dispute the fine, or request involvement from a neutral third-party mediator to resolve the issue.

Security related information will not be publicly available. However, the non-security related information is posted on the NRC website.

22-013-iv.pdf