The Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council voted on July 16 to approve clarifying amendments to Policy 16-01, which delegates authority to the FSEC director to approve certain construction and operation plans identified in site certification agreements.

“This policy is a long standing policy,” Director Sanjay Bapas told the council during the July 16 briefing, saying the update aligns the policy with statutory changes that took effect when FSEC became an independent agency and clarifies the specific plans now commonly required in recent site certification agreements. “I am not creating new standards, new policies, new requirements when I review these plans. They exist in rule,” he said.

Council members spent substantial time discussing public comment opportunities for plans that are reviewed post‑issuance of a site certification agreement. “At Department of Ecology, I would say our average minimum for a public comment period is usually two weeks,” Eli Levitt, representing the Department of Ecology on the council, said during the discussion and offered to help staff consider improvements to the council’s public comment procedures.

Legal staff told the council that many plan contents are prescribed by existing rules and permitting processes (for example, stormwater plans tied to NPDES/permit requirements) and that the director’s review is intended to confirm consistency with those rules and with SCA terms. The policy also retains discretion for the director to refer particular plans to the full council if third‑party concerns or interagency issues arise; such referrals would trigger public comment opportunities under the Open Public Meetings Act, council members were told.

Council member Nate Hamplin moved to approve the revisions; Lenny Young seconded the motion. The council voted to adopt the clarifying amendments; the clerk recorded one abstention by Eli Levitt. No recorded votes against were announced at the meeting.

Council members and staff also discussed improving the length and notice of public comment periods across FSEC’s siting work; staff said they are actively considering procedural changes and intend to prioritize improvements in the coming months.