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Notice2026-16224

Plan of Action Under the Defense Production Act (Human Mobilization Committee)

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Published

August 10, 2026

Issuing agencies

Energy Department

Abstract

On October 23, 2025, the Department of Energy held a public meeting to discuss the development of voluntary agreements and plans of action under the Defense Production Act. As part of that meeting, a draft voluntary agreement was released to the accompanying docket and published in the Federal Register for comment. This notice publishes the plan of action for the Human Mobilization Committee under the "Nuclear Fuel Cycle Consortium" Voluntary Agreement, approved by the Secretary of Energy, after consultation by the Attorney General and Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission.

Full Text

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 152 (Monday, August 10, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 152 (Monday, August 10, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51480-51482]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-16224]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[DOE-HQ-2026-0694]

Plan of Action Under the Defense Production Act (Human
Mobilization Committee)

AGENCY: Office of Nuclear Energy, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: On October 23, 2025, the Department of Energy held a public
meeting to discuss the development of voluntary agreements and plans of
action under the Defense Production Act. As part of that meeting, a
draft voluntary agreement was released to the accompanying docket and
published in the Federal Register for comment. This notice publishes
the plan of action for the Human Mobilization Committee under the
``Nuclear Fuel Cycle Consortium'' Voluntary Agreement, approved by the
Secretary of Energy, after consultation by the Attorney General and
Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert Rova, U.S. Department of
Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585. Telephone:
(301) 903-9096. Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f0b4a0b1939f9e839f828499859db09e85939c959182de959e95829789de979f86"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="cd899d8caea2a3bea2bfb9a4b8a08da3b8aea1a8acbfe3a8a3a8bfaab4e3aaa2bb">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority and Background

On August 25, 2025, the Department of Energy (``DOE'') published an
interim final rule to codify standards and procedures for developing
and implementing voluntary agreements pursuant to section 708 of the
Defense Production Act of 1950 (``DPA''), Public Law 81-774 (Sept. 8,
1950) (codified at 50 U.S.C. 4558). See 90 FR 41279. As explained in
that interim final rule, DOE's procedures were developed in accordance
with the DPA statute and are consistent with recent Executive Orders
related to nuclear energy and a Presidential declaration of a national
energy emergency. See Executive Order (``E.O.'') 14302 (Reinvigorating
the Nuclear Industrial Base), 90 FR 22595 (May 29, 2025) and E.O. 14156
(Declaring a National Energy Emergency), 90 FR 8433 (Jan. 29, 2025).
E.O. 14302 charges DOE with developing and maintaining a resilient,
secure, and sustainable nuclear fuel supply chain, from mining through
the management of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste,
for purposes of national security and energy independence.
Consistent with this charge, the DPA, and DOE's related rule, DOE
held a public meeting on October 23, 2025, to discuss the development
of voluntary agreements and plans of action pursuant to section 708 of
the DPA. See 90 FR 48268 (Oct. 15, 2025). At that meeting, DOE
presented for discussion and comment a draft voluntary agreement
concerning the nuclear fuel cycle that set out the broad framework to
be followed with respect to furthering the goals of E.O. 14302. That
draft agreement was placed in the public docket and made available for
public comment. DOE also reproduced that draft agreement in the Federal
Register and solicited further public comment. See 90 FR 51208 (Nov.
17, 2025).
From January 2026 to March 2026, Consortium members met to develop
plans of action to implement the Voluntary Agreement. Proposals were
reviewed in a closed Steering Committee session on March 26, 2026. See
91 FR 17958 (April 9, 2026). Three plans of action were finalized in
advance of the second public meeting of the Consortium that was held on
April 23, 2026, where panels were held to discuss the goals of the
plans of action. See 91 FR 20420 (April 16, 2026).
The text of the final version of the plan of action for The Human
Mobilization Committee follows at the end of this document.

Signing Authority

This document of the Department of Energy was signed on July 28,
2026, by Theodore Garrish, Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy,
pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. The
document with the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For
administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of
the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal
Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the
document in electronic format for publication, as an official document
of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no way
alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the
Federal Register.

Signed in Washington, DC, on August 6, 2026.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.

Set forth below is the full text of the final version of the plan
of action for the Human Mobilization Committee.

DOE Nuclear Fuel Cycle DPA Consortium Plan of Action Human Mobilization

Authorities

Section 708, Defense Production Act (50 U.S.C. 4558); Section 161,
Atomic Energy Act (42 U.S.C. 2201); Section 123, Atomic Energy Act (42
U.S.C. 2153); Section 124, Atomic Energy Act (42 U.S.C. 2154);
Executive Order (E.O.) 14156, Declaring a National Energy Emergency (90
FR 8433); E.O. 14302, Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base (90 FR
22595). Pursuant to Defense Production Act section 708(f)(1)(A), the
Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy certifies that this Agreement is
necessary to help provide for the national defense.
Participants acknowledge and agree to comply with all provisions of
the Defense Production Act (DPA) section 708, as amended, and
regulations related thereto which are promulgated by the Department of
Energy (DOE), the Attorney General, and the Federal Trade Commission
(FTC). DOE has promulgated standards and procedures pertaining to
voluntary agreements in 10 CFR part 821. The Chairperson shall inform
Participants of new rules and regulations as they are issued. Further
information on definitions for terms in this Plan of Action are
available in the Voluntary Agreement under ``Definitions.''

[[Page 51481]]

Mission Statement

As the implementing body of the Nuclear Dominance-3 by 33 moonshot
challenge, ``Americans Power Nuclear,'' the Human Mobilization
Committee and its subcommittees, are focused on how to align workforce,
capital, and industry practices to address material sufficiency &
market integrated fuel utilization at speed.

Scope of Activities

The Workforce Development Subcommittee activities will focus on
ways to align government, industry, and education partners to identify
workforce gaps, and develop a workforce strategy and implementation
plan to double the nuclear fuel cycle workforce.
The Supply Chain Subcommittee activities will focus on ways to
strengthen the entire domestic nuclear fuel supply chain by identifying
vulnerabilities, developing remedies for those vulnerabilities, and
coordinating the efforts across all fuel cycle elements.
The Economics and Finance Subcommittee will focus on ways to
identify, evaluate, and leverage government funding and private capital
to finance expansion of the domestic nuclear fuel supply chain.
Further information on effective dates and duration of
participation, modification and amendment, rules and regulations,
expenses, withdrawal and removal is available in the Voluntary
Agreement under ``Committee Participation.''

Participation Criteria

The Human Mobilization Committee members shall actively participate
in designated working groups, providing subject matter expertise, data,
and/or other resources as defined in their company's approved
capability statement. Failure to meet participation requirements,
defined as no less than 75% of scheduled meetings and timely submission
of accepted deliverables, may result in suspension of membership
privileges, including loss of voting rights and removal from the
Committee.
The Human Mobilization Committee will have one DOE Committee Chair
who will convene the group, convey DOE priorities and concerns,
coordinate activities between Participants, and ensure administration
of the Plan of Action (POA). Each Committee will report through the
Committee Chair all milestones and achievements.
The Human Mobilization Committee will have two Industry Co-leads,
as voted on by the other participants. This role will be staggered and
rotate every six months among the members of each Committee, as
identified in Appendix 1 of the Voluntary Agreement.
Each company in the Human Mobilization Committee will submit a
short ``capability statement'' that maps their contribution to the
Human Mobilization Committee's goals.
The Human Mobilization Committee intends to coordinate with the
National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the Department of War
(DoW), and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to ensure the
highest level of collaboration and communication.
The Human Mobilization Committee intends to regularly engage
Consortium Advisory Forum members in this POA as follows:
Thought Partner: DOE Office of Energy Jobs (OEJ), North Carolina
State University (NCSU), Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear
(GAIN), Center for Energy Workforce Development (CEWD).
Reviewer: DOE Office of Energy Dominance Financing (EDF), Small
Business Administration (SBA), Department of Labor (DOL), OEJ, Energy
Communities Alliance (ECA), Purdue University, CEWD, North America's
Building Trades Unions (NABTU), American Nuclear Society (ANS),
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL).
Data Provider: EDF, Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), NCSU, Oak Ridge
Associated Universities (ORAU), George Mason University (GMU), Purdue
University, National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), Idaho National
Laboratory (INL), NABTU, ANS.
Contributor: NEI, ORAU, ECA, GMU, NLR, GAIN, INL.
Workforce SME: NEI, NCSU, ORAU, GMU, GAIN, NABTU, ANS.
Supply Chain: Nuclear Energy Institute.
Supply Chain: Nuclear Innovation Alliance.
A representative of the Department of Justice (DOJ) or FTC must be
in attendance at each Human Mobilization Committee meeting to provide
oversight and guidance.
Committee working groups are at the discretion of the Human
Mobilization Committee leadership but should be identified. The
Secretary of Energy, the appropriately delegated DOE official, or their
federal representative, must approve in advance any substantive meeting
among Participants to ``discuss problems, determine policies, recommend
actions, and make decisions necessary to carry out the agreement.'' 10
CFR 821.4(c)(1). A representative from the federal government must be
in attendance at all substantive working group meetings, as required by
50 U.S.C. 4558(h)(5) and 10 CFR 821.4(c)(4). This representative may be
an appropriately delegated DOE official. DOJ and FTC must be notified
of any such meetings and may also attend, at their discretion. 10 CFR
821.4(c)(4).
Further information on effective dates and duration of
participation, modification and amendment, rules and regulations,
expenses, withdrawal and removal is available in the Voluntary
Agreement under ``Committee Participation.''

Roles and Responsibilities

Subcommittees will identify their members and contributions through
identification of specific actions or activities in support of the
moonshot goal. For specific information on deliverables, see Timelines
and Milestones.

Critical Workforce Development Gap & Strategic Options Report

Members will identify their expected contribution to this 60-day
deliverable and subsequent follow-on actions identified in advance of
the final Steering Committee meeting of 2026 as follows:
Reviewer: Constellation, Oklo.
Contributor: 3M.

Supply Chain Vulnerability Assessment

Within 60 days, the committee will provide a report that provides a
detailed picture of the domestic nuclear fuel cycle supply chain,
identifying dependencies, vulnerabilities, sole sources, single points
of failure, and foreign-sourcing risks. This includes assessing gaps in
specialized equipment and services for the following subcommittees,
supported by Participants as follows:
Mining & Milling: Companies to be identified.
Conversion: Companies to be identified.
Enrichment: Companies to be identified.
Fuel Fabrication & Deconversion: Companies to be identified.

Reporting & Record Keeping

Each Committee, Subcommittee, and working group meeting shall
produce a record of participants, objectives, outcomes, and next steps.
All such meetings will be recorded with transcripts on Microsoft Teams.
The DOE Chair will keep this record.
Any substantive meeting including more than one industry
participant that is not inclusive of the DOE Chair is subject to the
same record keeping and reporting requirements as a regular committee,
subcommittee, or working group meeting.

[[Page 51482]]

See ``Record Keeping'' under ``Committee Participation'' and
``Information Management and Responsibilities'' in the Voluntary
Agreement for more details on record keeping.

Timelines and Milestones

The original moonshot goals have been prioritized based upon near-
term needs and opportunities as stated below. As the Consortium's work
progresses, additional goals may be defined and assigned across
subcommittees to address emerging priorities, gaps, and areas of
opportunity. All subcommittees are expected to contribute to current
priority goals while remaining positioned to support or lead future
goals as identified. In addition to the 60-day deliverables below,
subcommittees are authorized to take any follow-on actions to brief,
clarify, supplement, or respond to Steering Committee direction arising
from those deliverables, including the development of subsequent POAs.

Critical Workforce Development Gap & Strategic Options Report

By the end of 2026, the Committee will provide a Critical Workforce
Development Gap & Strategic Options Report identifying the most urgent
near-term and long-term actions federal agencies, industry, national
laboratories and academia can take to build a robust domestic nuclear
fuel cycle workforce. It will propose strategies to close skill gaps,
strengthen workforce resilience, and meet strategic national
objectives.
Within 60 days, the Committee will provide a Fuel Cycle Workforce
Development Capacity Snapshot and Preliminary Demand Outlook report as
a first step to complete the report.
The report will provide a clear baseline for the domestic nuclear
workforce across the entire fuel cycle. It will also project the
national workforce needs over 5-10 years, covering existing and
advanced reactor needs.
It will identify vulnerabilities and integrate expanded datasets to
determine granular workforce requirements under short, medium, and
long-term scenarios. The Snapshot report will support the development
of the Critical Workforce Development Gap & Strategic Options Report.

Supply Chain Vulnerability Assessment

Antitrust Defense

Under the provisions of DPA subsection 708(j), each Participant in
this Plan shall have available as a defense to any civil or criminal
action brought for violation of the antitrust laws (or any similar law
of any State) with respect to any action to develop or carry out this
Plan, insofar as such action was taken by the Participant in the course
of developing or carrying out this Plan, that the Participant fully
complied with the provisions of DPA section 708 and the rules
promulgated thereunder, and that the Participant acted in accordance
with the terms of the Voluntary Agreement and this Plan. Except in the
case of actions taken to develop this Plan, this defense shall be
available only if and to the extent the Participant asserting the
defense demonstrates that the action was specified in, or was within
the scope of, this Plan and within the scope of the appropriate
Committee(s), including being taken at the direction and under the
active supervision of DOE.
This defense shall not apply to any action occurring after the
termination of this Plan. Immediately upon modification of this Plan,
no defense to antitrust claims under DPA section 708 shall be available
to any subsequent action that is beyond the scope of the modified Plan.
The Participant asserting the defense bears the burden of proof to
establish the elements of the defense. The defense shall not be
available if the person against whom the defense is asserted shows that
the action was taken for the purpose of violating the antitrust laws.
Prior to participation in this Agreement or a POA, Participants
agree to consult with internal or external antitrust or compliance
counsel about the scope of the antitrust defense as outlined herein or
in any subsequent POA, as needed.

Information Sharing

Participants in this POA are bound by the requirements outlined in
the Voluntary Agreement under ``Information Management and
Responsibilities,'' which also addresses CSI and Oversight.
All CSI provided by a Participant as described in the Voluntary
Agreement is deemed CSI, except for information that:

is published or has been made publicly available at the time of
disclosure by the Participant;
was in the possession of, or was lawfully and readily available to, DOE
from another source at the time of disclosure without breaching any
obligation of confidentiality applicable to the other source; or
was independently developed or acquired without reference to or
reliance upon the Participant's CSI.

Where information deemed CSI is required to be disclosed by law,
regulation, or court order, the ``Competitively Sensitive'' (or
substantially similar) label will continue to attach to all information
and portion(s) of documents that are not made public through the
required disclosure.

Resources Required

Execution of this Plan of Action and its follow-on actions in
advance of the final Steering Committee meeting of 2026 may require the
following assets and legal mechanisms:
Direct Assets: In-kind labor, materials, and operational resources
from Consortium participants.

Signatures

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)

Signature:-------------------------------------------------------------

Date:------------------------------------------------------------------

Theodore Garrish,
Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy.

Signature:-------------------------------------------------------------

Date:------------------------------------------------------------------

Josh Jarrell,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Fuel Cycle.

[FR Doc. 2026-16224 Filed 8-7-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P

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