Energy Secretary Chris Wright has announced several reforms to address burdensome permitting rules and regulations for construction projects at the Department of Energy’s 17 national laboratories as part of efforts to accelerate critical infrastructure improvement initiatives at those labs.
“Unfortunately, over the years, burdensome regulations delayed the important work being done at our National Labs. Currently, many of our nation’s most critical weapons development sites rely on aging facilities, some even dating back to the Manhattan Project,” Wright said in a statement published Thursday.
“By reforming DOE’s permitting rules and regulations for our National Labs, we can speed up critical infrastructure improvements and make the Energy Department a better steward of taxpayer dollars,” he added.
Actions for Immediate Implementation
Wright has directed the department to amend delegated project authority within DOE Order 413.3B from $50 million to $300 million specific to the national labs run via management and operating contracts.
Other required actions are expanding the use of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s “OSHA-Plus” framework for subcontracted construction projects at national labs and evaluating the benefits and risks of removing construction labor agreement provisions from national lab contracts.
The secretarial order requires the revision of national lab contract clauses on Employee Compensation: Pay and Benefits to remove requirements that are not mandated by regulation or are not needed to track the department’s financial liabilities related to defined benefit plans.
Establishment of a Working Group
Wright is also directing the director of the Laboratory Operations Board to create a working group to help identify opportunities to streamline and establish new timelines and procedures to ensure greater accountability and efficiency for strategic partnership projects and cooperative research and development agreements.
Proposed improvements and initiatives to streamline processes should be submitted to the Office of the Secretary within 30 days.
The board will coordinate the necessary actions outlined in the order and monitor the implementation of such measures.
