Trump names Republican Kristine Svinicki NRC chairwoman
WASHINGTON (AP)
President Donald Trump has named Republican Kristine Svinicki chairwoman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Svinicki has served on the panel since 2008. She replaces Democrat Stephen Burns, who led the panel the past two years.
Burns is expected to stay on as a commissioner, along with Democrat Jeff Baran. Two seats on the five-member panel are vacant.
The NRC oversees the nation’s fleet of commercial nuclear power plants, as well as storage and disposal of nuclear waste and other issues related to nuclear power.
In 2011, Svinicki and three other NRC commissioners accused the panel’s then-chairman, Gregory Jaczko, of intimidating employees, withholding information and creating a hostile work environment, especially for women. Svinicki and other commissioners say work conditions at the agency have improved under Jaczko’s two successors.
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