Four Nuclear Regulatory commissioners from both parties say they have "grave concerns" about the panel's chairman, charging that the actions of Gregory Jaczko are "causing serious damage" to the commission and creating a "chilled work environment at the NRC."
In a letter to the White House, the commissioners say Jaczko's bullying style could adversely affect the agency's mission to protect health and safety at the nation's 104 commercial nuclear reactors.
The two-page letter, signed by four of Jaczko's colleagues on the five-member panel, stops short of calling for the chairman to resign. But it says he "intimidated and bullied" senior career staff, ordered staff to withhold information and ignored the will of the panel's majority.
The letter was signed by Democrats William Magwood and George Apostolakis, as well as Republicans Kristine Svinicki and William Ostendorff.
"We believe that his actions and behavior are causing serious damage to this institution and are creating a chilled work environment at the NRC," the four commissioners said in the letter to White House Chief of Staff William Daley.
'Not for public disclosure'
The letter was stamped "not for public disclosure," but it was made public by Rep. Darrell Issa, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
Jaczko, in a detailed response also sent to the White House, said problems at the agency were not his fault but instead stem from "lack of understanding" on the part of the other four commissioners. Copies of the letters were obtained by The Associated Press.
Jaczko said in his letter that his "sole and passionate focus" since joining the agency in 2005 has been on nuclear safety and security.
"Unfortunately, all too often, when faced with tough policy calls, a majority of this current commission has taken an approach that is not as protective of public health and safety as I believe is necessary," Jaczko wrote.
Jaczko denied there is a "chilled work environment around me" and said he never attempted to intimidate anyone.
He also apologized to the White House for the "distraction" caused by the internal bickering at the agency.
Commission members and staffers have long complained about Jaczko's brusque style, particularly when it comes to a decision he made last year to shut down the technical review of a proposed nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain in Nevada.
GOP lawmakers also complained that Jaczko may have acted illegally when he declared in March that Japan's nuclear crisis constituted an emergency in the United States.
Breach of trust
Issa, R-Calif., said the letter from the four NRC commissioners shows a serious breach in trust among the five-member commission. Issa's committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on the NRC on Wednesday.
President Barack Obama "has the authority to take action to address these concerns," Issa wrote in a letter Friday to Daley. "The public deserves to understand what actions have been taken, and whether the president still believes that Chairman Jaczko is capable of leading the NRC."
Also on Friday, Democratic Representative Edward Markey made public a 23-page report accusing the four commissioners of trying to impede U.S. nuclear safety reviews after Fukushima.
"The actions of these four commissioners since the Fukushima nuclear disaster has caused a regulatory meltdown that has left America's nuclear fleet and the general public at risk," said Markey, a Democrat and a long-time nuclear critic.
Jaczko was once an aide to Markey, and also worked as an aide to Nevada Senator Harry Reid, who successfully fought to stop the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump.
Markey said NRC commissioners engaged in a "concerted effort" to "undermine" the NRC task force that studied and proposed new safety steps for the U.S. nuclear power industry, "conspired" to delay the release of task force findings and worked to block the new safety recommendations.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
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