10 NRC Rulemakings to Watch

A sweeping modernization effort is now underway at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The agency is advancing dozens of rulemakings touching nearly every aspect of the licensing process: hearings, environmental reviews, fusion, fee recovery, radiation protection, microreactors and more. This moment is not just a burst of regulatory activity. It is the convergence of sustained efforts across multiple timelines driven by years of bipartisan policy, recent executive action and more than a decade of internal NRC Commission and staff modernization activities.

That convergence matters for three reasons. First, it helps explain why the rulemaking docket feels so crowded. Second, much of the current rulemaking reflects the need to be more efficient, effective and predictable. Third, most of these rules have broad, longstanding consensus and have been in process across multiple Congresses and Administrations.

Seen that way, the current moment is about more than regulatory housekeeping. It is a test of whether the United States can translate nearly 10 years of bipartisan legislative and policy momentum into a licensing system capable of enabling predictable deployment timelines and project costs. Many of the rules initiated by one piece of legislation were also affected by subsequent legislation or executive direction. Here are the 10 rules to watch most closely:

Initiated by Federal Legislation

These rulemakings largely establish regulations for new commercial technologies such as advanced reactors, fusion machines and microreactors. A predictable, durable pathway for these technologies is necessary to enable broad deployment.

Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act of 2019 (NEIMA)

1. Risk-Informed, Technology-Inclusive Regulatory Framework for Advanced Reactors (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: The creation of a modern licensing pathway for advanced reactors, 10 CFR Part 53, that can accommodate different technologies, designs and operating models.
• Why it matters: The new Part 53 of the NRC’s regulatory code is the opportunity for the NRC to turn risk-informed regulation into a workable path for advanced reactor deployment.
• What’s next: The NRC published the final rule in March 2026.

2. Regulatory Framework for Fusion Machines (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: A proposed rule to establish a dedicated licensing approach for fusion machines rather than regulating fusion like fission.
• Why it matters: Fission and fission are inherently different technologies, and accordingly require different regulatory frameworks. 
• What’s next: The NRC published the proposed rule in February 2026. The final rule is expected by the end of 2027.

Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (FRA)

3. Implementation of FRA of 2023 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Amendments (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: A proposed rule, resulting from a legislatively directed review of the NRC’s environmental review process to align NRC’s regulations with current NEPA requirements.
• Why it matters: The process improvements under the FRA should reduce the review’s timeline and cost by focusing the NRC’s analysis on what falls within the scope of the agency, authorizing the applicant to prepare their own environmental report and only requiring the appropriate level of environmental review. 
• What’s next: The NRC is expected to publish the proposed rule in late April 2026.

Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act of 2024 (ADVANCE)

4. Licensing Requirements for Microreactors and Other Reactors with Comparable Risk Profiles (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: A proposed rule that would modify many parts of NRC regulations to create a new, more flexible regulatory framework with licensing options for microreactors and other smaller, factory-built, low-risk reactors.
• Why it matters: Microreactors and similar reactors, whose manufacturing and operating profiles do not fit within the traditional large-reactor licensing process, should have a regulatory framework that ensures safety and provides flexibility for that business model.  
• What’s next: The NRC is expected to publish the proposed rule in May 2026.

5. Streamlining Contested Adjudications in Licensing Proceedings (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: An effort to restructure the contested hearings process at NRC so legal challenges reach timely resolutions that benefit the public, applicants and other stakeholders.
• Why it matters: Contested hearings ensure that major safety and environmental issues are fully considered; process improvements could significantly increase licensing predictability while maintaining the integrity of that process. 
• What’s next: The NRC published the proposed rule in March 2026. The final rule is expected late 2026.

Initiated by Executive Order 14300

These rulemakings, initiated by EO 14300 signed in May 2025, reflect the administration’s interest in the widespread deployment of new nuclear reactors.

6. Modernizing Reactor Licensing, Safety Oversight, and Siting Practices (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: An umbrella modernization effort to revisit how a multitude of NRC rules and guidance documents interact across the full reactor lifecycle.
• Why it matters: A holistic rewrite could matter more than any single rule if it successfully reduces friction or differences between licensing, oversight and siting requirements.
• What’s next: The NRC is expected to publish the proposed rule in June 2026.

7. NRC Reviews of Reactor Designs Previously Authorized by U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) or Department of War (DOW) (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: An effort to allow the NRC to better leverage safety reviews and operational data from existing DOE or DOW reactor authorization records when licensing through an NRC process.
• Why it matters: Leveraging prior technical reviews and operational experience could reduce duplicative review activities and enable commercial applicants to move through the licensing process more efficiently. 
• What’s next: The NRC published the proposed rule in April 2026. The final rule is expected late 2026.

8. Reforming and Modernizing the NRC’s Radiation Protection Framework (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: A broad reevaluation of the NRC’s radiation protection framework, including the assumptions and standards that shape design and operation requirements for all radiation-related activities required by the NRC.
• Why it matters: Because radiation protection underpins many NRC regulatory requirements, this rule could affect the cost, operations and public perception of all activities regulated by the NRC.
• What’s next: The NRC is expected to publish the proposed rule in June 2026.

9. A Focused Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS) (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: The ACRS is another layer of safety within, but separate from, the NRC staff that reviews reactor license applications and other regulatory activities. A focused ACRS process would reduce the number of routine reviews and concentrate committee attention on novel or safety-significant issues.
• Why it matters: Without focusing the ACRS on the most consequential issues related to new reactor licensing, the committee’s expertise and resources would be spread too thin and the committee’s review process could become a procedural bottleneck to new reactor deployment.
• What’s next: The NRC is expected to publish the final rule in August 2026.

Initiated Internally by the NRC

The NRC is not just reacting to outside mandates. It is also trying to reshape the broader regulatory framework on its own terms.

10. Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for Licensing of New Nuclear Reactors (NRC Rule Page)

• What it is: For any new reactor, a GEIS addresses the recurring environmental issues for all plants and enables the site-specific analysis to focus only on unique issues. 
• Why it matters: Initiated in 2020, the NRC staff estimate that this would significantly reduce analysis, increase predictability and reduce the costs of environmental reviews by between 20% and 45%, depending on the project.
• What’s next: The NRC published the final rule in April 2026.