[DSE LETTERHEAD]
March 31, 2003
MEMORANDUM FOR DISTRIBUTION
FROM: KYLE
E. MCSLARROW
SUBJECT: Responsibilities for Increased
Performance in Meeting DOE Commitments to DNFSB
The Secretary of Energy and I recognize the
need to improve DOE’s performance in meeting our commitments to the Defense
Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB), and to ensure the effectiveness of
actions taken in response to recommendations.
First and foremost, the Secretary has approved the Departmental
Representative reporting directly to the Secretary of Energy. The attached letter, which was sent to the
DNFSB on March 18, 2003, outlines the general responsibilities of the Office of
the Assistant Secretary for Environment, Safety and Health (EH) and the Office
of Independent Oversight and Performance Assurance (OA) in enhancing the
Department’s performance, especially in addressing cross-cutting issues.
The increased responsibilities for EH and
OA, as outlined in the attached letter, are intended to build upon the
continuing role of the Departmental Representative to the DNFSB as described in
DOE Manual 140.1-1B, Interface with the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety
Board. The Departmental
Representative will continue to represent the Secretary in regular and
continuing interactions between the Department and the Board and will advise
the Secretary and other senior managers regarding the Board’s priorities,
concerns, actions and plans. The
Departmental Representative will facilitate communication and cooperation
between Departmental elements and the Board, and will coordinate Departmental
correspondence with the Board. The
Departmental Representative will continue to manage the Safety Issues
Management System for Board related issues, commitments and actions, and
monthly status reports. The
Departmental representative will also serve as the initial point for receipt
and management of Board recommendations and other correspondence; where related
to cross-cutting safety concerns, recommendations and/or correspondence will be
routed to the Assistant Secretary, EH; where specific to a site or facility,
the Departmental Representative will route those directly to the affected
program office with a copy to EH.
Effective coordination between EH and the
Departmental Representative will be needed to ensure that cross-cutting issues
are effectively addressed and resolved in a timely manner. To ensure that Department-wide efforts are
effectively designed and implemented, EH will focus on identifying, evaluating,
monitoring, managing, and resolving cross-cutting safety issues and she will
act as my agent on those commitments. In this role, EH-1 will regularly monitor
line management’s progress in meeting commitments related to identified
cross-cutting safety issues, and will work with line management and program
offices to identify and address obstacles that arise in the course of
implementing corrective actions. She
will coordinate planning for Departmental actions in response to issues that
require action by multiple organizations, and is charged with evaluating
planned actions to ensure that collectively they are responsive to the DNFSB
concerns and the underlying causes.
For cross-cutting issues, the Assistant
Secretary will identify tasks that need to be completed and work with line management
to ensure that necessary tasks are assigned to the proper organization. She will also review resource/budget
allocations and sources of funding to ensure that DOE has assigned sufficient
resources to complete the needed tasks.
Particular emphasis will be placed on tasks that support multiple
organizations and/or require funding from multiple organizations. EH will also review all new issues
identified by the DNFSB to identify cross-cutting aspects. For those that have cross-cutting aspects,
EH will be involved in all stages of the development of the DOE response and
development of corrective action plans.
EH-1 will keep me informed on the status on
a monthly basis and identify any problems that require resolution at the Office
of the Secretary’s level. EH-1 will
also coordinate with the DOE Representative to the DNFSB and senior line
managers, including those within the National Nuclear Security Administration
(NNSA), to ensure that the DNFSB is briefed on a regular basis on the status of
DNFSB operational concerns with the DOE.
I expect all DOE program offices and field
elements to provide their full support to DOE
Office of the Departmental Representative to the DNFSB, EH, and OA as they work to ensure we meet all of our commitments to the DNFSB in response to their recommendations in an effective manner.
DISTRIBUTION LIST
NNSA
US (ESE)
EH
SC
EM
NE
OA
DNFSB Representative