§2273 — Title 42 The Public Health and Welfare | U.S. Code

Summary

Breaking or trying to break any rule in this part, or any order under sections 2095 or 2201(b), (i), or (o), is a crime if done on purpose. A person convicted can be fined up to $5,000, or go to jail up to 2 years, or both. If the act was done on purpose to hurt the United States or to help a foreign country, the fine can be up to $20,000, or jail up to 20 years, or both. If a company director, officer, or employee who is building or supplying parts for a licensed reactor knowingly causes a violation that results in, or could have caused, serious harm to a basic component, they can be fined up to $25,000 for each day the violation continues, jailed up to 2 years, or both. After a first conviction under this rule, the fine can be up to $50,000 per day, with the same jail limit. "Basic component" means parts or systems needed to keep the reactor pressure boundary intact, to shut down and keep the plant safe, or to prevent or lessen accidents that would release dangerous radioactive material. Similar penalties apply to directors, officers, or employees of parties covered by an indemnity under section 2210(d) (and their subcontractors or suppliers) who knowingly cause violations of Energy Department nuclear safety rules that result in, or could have caused, a nuclear incident; the first conviction can bring up to $25,000 or 2 years in jail, and a later conviction can bring up to $50,000 or 5 years in jail, or both.

Title 42, §2273

The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Whoever willfully violates, attempts to violate, or conspires to violate, any provision of this chapter for which no criminal penalty is specifically provided or of any regulation or order prescribed or issued under section 2095 or 2201(b), (i), or (o) of this title shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not more than $5,000 or by imprisonment for not more than two years, or both, except that whoever commits such an offense with intent to injure the United States or with intent to secure an advantage to any foreign nation, shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not more than $20,000 or by imprisonment for not more than twenty years, or both.

(b)Any individual director, officer, or employee of a firm constructing, or supplying the components of any utilization facility required to be licensed under section 2133 or 2134(b) of this title who by act or omission, in connection with such construction or supply, knowingly and willfully violates or causes to be violated, any section of this chapter, any rule, regulation, or order issued thereunder, or any license condition, which violation results, or if undetected could have resulted, in a significant impairment of a basic component of such a facility shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine of not more than $25,000 for each day of violation, or to imprisonment not to exceed two years, or both. If the conviction is for a violation committed after a first conviction under this subsection, punishment shall be a fine of not more than $50,000 per day of violation, or imprisonment for not more than two years, or both. For the purposes of this subsection, the term “basic component” means a facility structure, system, component or part thereof necessary to assure—

(1)the integrity of the reactor coolant pressure boundary,

(2)the capability to shut-down the facility and maintain it in a safe shut-down condition, or

(3)the capability to prevent or mitigate the consequences of accidents which could result in an unplanned offsite release of quantities of fission products in excess of the limits established by the Commission.

(c)Any individual director, officer or employee of a person indemnified under an agreement of indemnification under section 2210(d) of this title (or of a subcontractor or supplier thereto) who, by act or omission, knowingly and willfully violates or causes to be violated any section of this chapter or any applicable nuclear safety-related rule, regulation or order issued thereunder by the Secretary of Energy (or expressly incorporated by reference by the Secretary for purposes of nuclear safety, except any rule, regulation, or order issued by the Secretary of Transportation), which violation results in or, if undetected, would have resulted in a nuclear incident as defined in section 2014(q) of this title shall, upon conviction, notwithstanding section 3571 of title 18, be subject to a fine of not more than $25,000, or to imprisonment not to exceed two years, or both. If the conviction is for a violation committed after the first conviction under this subsection, notwithstanding section 3571 of title 18, punishment shall be a fine of not more than $50,000, or imprisonment for not more than five years, or both.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This chapter, referred to in text, was in the original “this Act”, meaning act Aug. 1, 1946, ch. 724, as added by act Aug. 30, 1954, ch. 1073, § 1, 68 Stat. 919, known as the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 2011 of this title and Tables.

Amendments

1988—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 100–408 added subsec. (c). 1980—Pub. L. 96–295 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and added subsec. (b). 1969—Pub. L. 91–161 limited application of section to instances where no criminal penalties have been provided. 1967—Pub. L. 90–190 substituted “(o)” for “(p)”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1988 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 100–408 effective Aug. 20, 1988, but inapplicable to any violation occurring before Aug. 20, 1988, see section 20 of Pub. L. 100–408, set out as a note under section 2014 of this title.

§2273 Violation of Sections