Regulations Amending the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations: SOR/2025-197

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 159, Number 21

Registration
SOR/2025-197 September 26, 2025

NUCLEAR SAFETY AND CONTROL ACT

P.C. 2025-683 September 25, 2025

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations under paragraphs 44(1)(k) and (l)footnote a of the Nuclear Safety and Control Act footnote b.

Ottawa, February 12, 2025

Pierre Tremblay
President of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Natural Resources, under paragraphs 44(1)(k) and (l)footnote a of the Nuclear Safety and Control Act footnote b, approves the annexed Regulations Amending the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations, made by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission.

Regulations Amending the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations

Amendments

1 (1) The portion of subsection 15.04(1) of the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations footnote 1 before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

15.04 (1) The Commission, or a designated officer authorized under paragraph 37(2)(b) of the Act, shall certify a person for the position of radiation safety officer if

(2) Paragraphs 15.04(1)(a) and (b) of the French version of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

(3) Subsection 15.04(1) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (a), by adding “and” at the end of paragraph (b) and by adding the following after paragraph (b):

2 Section 15.08 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following before subsection (1):

15.08 (0.1) The Commission or a designated officer authorized under paragraph 37(2)(b) of the Act may decertify a person if the conditions set out in subsection 15.04(1) are no longer met.

Coming into Force

3 These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Issues

In November 2016, the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations (the Committee) identified two provisions with language discrepancies in the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations (C2NFPER) and two provisions, subsections 15.04(1) and 15.08(1), which relate to the certification and decertification of a radiation safety officer. The Committee emphasized that changes to subsections 15.04(1) and 15.08(1) were needed to reflect the legislative power delegated to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) by Parliament under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act (NSCA).

The CNSC addressed the language discrepancies in the C2NFPER under the miscellaneous program in February 2022 [Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 156, Number 4: Regulations Amending the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations (Miscellaneous Program)]. However, as communicated to the Committee, amendments to subsection 15.04(1) and section 15.08 would be conducted during the wider regulatory review and amendment package given that proposed amendments do not have a safety impact. Rather these amendments are intended to help improve clarity of the Regulations, which is consistent with the CNSC’s broader regulatory modernization efforts.

The wider regulatory review project was delayed by the pandemic, which impacted the CNSC’s normal operations. While these amendments will improve clarity, the delay did not affect the safety of Canadians, as the CNSC has maintained effective oversight of the certification and decertification processes, as outlined in CNSC regulatory document REGDOC-2.2.3, Personnel Certification: Radiation Safety Officers.

Objective

The objectives of the C2NFPER are to clarify and align the CNSC’s and designated officers’ powers to certify and decertify radiation safety officers in the Regulations with the grant of authority by Parliament to the CNSC in the NSCA.

Description and rationale

The Committee expressed concern about leaving room for undue discretion in relation to the refusal to certify a person even if they successfully passed an exam and can perform the duties of the position. The Committee noted that Parliament, at subsection 44(1) of the NSCA, delegated to the CNSC a legislative power to make regulations respecting certification and decertification of radiation safety officers, but the wording of section 15.04 of the C2NFPER implies an administrative power to decide on a case-by-case basis what is relevant to an individual’s certification. As a result, text will be added to clarify that, if the conditions of subsection 15.04(1) are met, then the CNSC shall certify the person for the position of radiation safety officer. Those conditions are that the person has successfully completed a certification examination recognized by the CNSC, and that the person is capable of performing the duties of the position. The CNSC will also add a paragraph to subsection 15.04(1) to enumerate among those conditions that certification is consistent with the purpose of the NSCA.

The Committee also expressed concern about section 15.08, which relates to the decertification of a radiation safety officer, but gives no indication as to the circumstances that might lead the CNSC to make such a decision. The CNSC added text that will provide additional clarity on what situations could lead to decertification by making specific reference to the conditions in subsection 15.04(1).

The amendments to the provisions of sections 15.04 and 15.08 of the C2NFPER will improve clarity and align the CNSC and designated officers’ powers delegated to them under the NSCA with the C2NFPER as follows:

  1. In subsection 15.04(1), “may” was changed to “shall” to require that the CNSC or the designated officer must certify a person as a radiation safety officer if the requirements of the provision are met.
  2. In subsection 15.08(1), the criteria for decertification will be linked to the certification requirements of subsection 15.04(1). This provides clarity to the radiation safety officer to understand the conditions under which they could be decertified.

One-for-one rule

The one-for-one rule does not apply to these amendments, as there is no change in administrative costs.

Contact

Sarah Graham
Acting Director
Regulatory Framework Division
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission
280 Slater Street
P.O. Box 1046, Station B
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5S9
Email: Consultation@cnsc-ccsn.gc.ca