Democratic members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission told lawmakers Wednesday that it’s a possibility they could be fired by President Donald Trump at any moment for their regulatory decisions, while questioning recent White House executive orders to accelerate reactor design approvals.
Also during the hearing, NRC Chair David Wright confirmed a meeting in which an administration official told NRC it would be expected to “rubber-stamp” any reactors approved by the Departments of Energy or Defense, according to reporting by POLITICO’s E&E News.
Democratic appointee Matthew Marzano told senators during a Senate Environment and Public Works Committee oversight hearing that it was a “possibility” that he could be fired if he refuses to approve an administration-favored nuclear reactor design due to safety concerns.
Bradley Crowell, the other Democratic commissioner, went even further. “I think on any given day, I could be fired by the administration for reasons unknown,” Crowell told lawmakers.
The remarks highlighted concerns that administration actions are eroding NRC’s independence, which was designed to insulate safety decisions from industry and political pressure.
Earlier this year, the White House removed Democratic Commissioner Christopher Hanson before his term expired, citing the president’s authority to dismiss executive branch officials.
Crowell criticized Executive Order 14300 — a sweeping overhaul of NRC’s regulatory approval process — warning that parts of the order would undermine its own goal of accelerating reactor deployment.
He said administration–led staff reductions at the agency would make it extremely difficult to meet aggressive licensing timelines while maintaining safety standards.
“I worry that select elements of this EO and other executive orders will be counterproductive to achieving the goals of EO 14300 itself,” Crowell said.
Both Crowell and Marzano cautioned that curtailing transparency and public engagement in reactor approvals could weaken public confidence in nuclear power.
Wright didn’t answer directly on whether he would get fired if he made a decision the administration didn’t like, saying he would stand by the “right decision.”
All of the commissioners, however, expressed optimism that the administration and the NRC would in the end work together to successfully and safely deploy new reactors.
“While I have concerns, our shared goals across the government for a stable, safe and prosperous energy future give me optimism and measured confidence that we can stay on the high end of this slippery slope and the right side of history,” Crowell said.
‘We don’t rubber-stamp’
Wright said there were seven Department of Government Efficiency employees currently at NRC. Of those, he said one had experience at a nuclear plant and one, Adam Blake, did not have an NRC supervisor.
Wright said Department of Energy officials this spring wanted to discuss Trump’s executive orders. He said Blake, DOE attorney Seth Cohen and another attorney joined the meeting.
“It was actually Seth Cohen that used the ‘rubber-stamp’ comment,” Wright told the senators. “I said, ‘We were just talking about the executive order for DOE, DOD,’ and that’s when the comment was made. He said, ‘Oh well, y’all are basically going to put in a practice that’s going to sort of rubber-stamp what they do.’”
“But we pushed back and said, ‘We don’t rubber-stamp,’” said Wright.
