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NRC NEWS U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION III 801 Warrenville Road, Lisle IL 60532

NRC PROHIBITS FORMER CLERICAL WORKER AT D. C. COOK PLANT
FROM WORKING IN NRC-LICENSED ACTIVITIES

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has issued an order prohibiting a former clerical worker at the D. C. Cook Nuclear Power Station from being involved in NRC-licensed activities for three years as a result of her providing false information at the time of her employment. The plant is located near Bridgman, Michigan.

The worker, Gail C. VanCleave, was employed by a contractor at D. C. Cook from September 17 to November 18 of last year and had unescorted access to the plant.

NRC regulations require that employees with unescorted access to a nuclear plant undergo a security screening to assure that they do not represent a threat to plant safety.

The NRC Office of Investigations determined that she provided a false social security number in an attempt to conceal the fact that she had been denied unescorted access previously to the Cook plant in January 1999 and to a Tennessee nuclear plant in November 1998. In each case, she had been denied access because of a misdemeanor conviction for theft from a Department of Energy contractor.

When the false social security number was discovered, the Cook security department terminated her unescorted access to the plant.

In addition to the prohibition from NRC-licensed activities for three years, she is required to notify the NRC if she is employed in NRC-licensed work during the subsequent three years.

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