Increased Flexibility in the Mandatory Hearing Process

Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 10 CFR Parts 2, 50, 51, 52, and 53 [NRC-2025-1502] RIN 3150-AL59 ( printed page 20063) AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is revising the agency's rules of practice and procedure and other procedural regulations to increase the flexibility in conducting mandatory hearings in NRC licensing proceedings in response to the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act of 2024 (ADVANCE Act) and Executive Order 14300 , Ordering the Reform of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. DATES: This final rule is effective on May 15, 2026. ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2025-1502 when contacting the NRC about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain publicly available information related to this action by any of the following methods: Federal Rulemaking Website: Electronically at https://www.regulations.gov . Search for Docket ID NRC-2025-1502. Address questions about NRC dockets to Helen Chang; telephone: 301-415-3228; email: Helen.Chang@nrc.gov . For technical questions, contact the individuals listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document. NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS): You may obtain publicly available documents online in the ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/​reading-rm/​adams.html . To begin the search, select “Begin ADAM…