Lawrence Kokajko

Director, Division of Policy and Rulemaking 2013 – 2016

Director, Division of Spent Fuel Alternative Strategies 2011 – 2013

Director, Division of High-Level Waste Repository Safety 2006 – 2011

Deputy Director, Technical Review, Division of High-Level Waste Repository Safety 2004 – 2006

Branch Chief, Environmental and Performance Assessment, Division of Waste Management 2002 – 2004

Section Chief, NMSS Risk Task Group 2000 - 2004

Detailed Positions: Commissioner’s Assistant, OEDO Regional Technical Coordinator, Divisional Technical Assistant, Senior Project Manager, Project Manager and Engineer

Rulemaking: Led staff activities associated with developing regulations and guidance associated with operating reactors; e.g., mitigating beyond design basis, containment protection/release reduction, security, emergency core cooling, and fitness for duty; responsible for rulemaking petitions; Managed regulatory analysis process and updating cost-benefit guidance, including assessing qualitative factors for decision-making; Provided leadership for cumulative effects of regulation team to use risk information to find a balance of safety regulation and regulatory burden; Led staff activities associated with generic communications, and oversaw activities associated licensing processes.

Research and Test Reactors: Led interoffice licensing program for the proposed Molybdenum-99 production facilities (e.g., SHINE); oversaw relicensing of research and test reactors, including security, inspection, and operator examinations; Assured appropriate regulatory outcomes on risk, safety systems, security, and lessons learned from the Japanese earthquake/tsunami; Directed the division's engagement with organizations within the US government and internationally.

High-Level Waste and Spent Fuel: Led the regulatory review of the Nation’s first license application for a spent nuclear fuel geologic facility; managed diverse multidisciplinary technical staff and contractors, budget development and execution, requirements for environmental, technical, legal, adjudication, and stakeholder outreach with Federal partners, and State, Local, and Tribal representatives, and the public;Closed program due to National policy changes, which included using effective knowledge management practices to capture more than three decades of accumulated regulatory and technical knowledge, culminating in the development of Technical Evaluation Reports on proposed geologic repository performance;Managed USNRC’s only federally-funded research and development center for nuclear waste regulatory analyses for geologic disposal; Led technical efforts associated with preparing for the review of the proposed geologic repository license application, including work on preparatory technical studies across 293 key technical issues; Led efforts to address radioactive facility decommissioning and waste issues from a performance assessment perspective; led  environmental review efforts, including oversight of environmental impact statements and assessment; Led multidisciplinary task group to assess feasibility and propose strategies to risk-inform material, waste, and fuel facilities regulatory programs.

Additional experiences: USG representative on the IAEA planning committee for the April 2016 International Conference on Effective Nuclear Regulatory Systems in Vienna, Austria; Detailed as Nuclear Safety Attaché to the US Department of State’s Mission to International Organizations in Vienna, Austria; Deputy Team Leader for original and follow-up IAEA Integrated Regulatory Review Service missions in Stockholm, Sweden; Commissioner’s Assistant for Commissioner Dicus when Commissioner and interim Chairman; Co-led South Texas Allegations Review Team, culminating in NUREG-1517 publication; Led first large-scale licensing action to risk-inform technical specifications for South Texas Project; Led first licensing action on steam generator tube plugging criteria at Trojan Nuclear Plant.