The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission today announced the
selection of Carrie M. Safford as the new Secretary of the Commission,
effective Nov. 5. She is the fifth person in the 48-year history of the
NRC to hold this position.
Safford has been serving as a Deputy Director in the Division
Fuel Management, which has regulatory responsibility for nuclear fuel
cycle activities in the Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
She succeeds Brooke Poole Clark, who assumed her new
position as the agency’s General Counsel in mid-October.
In her new role, Safford will provide executive management services to support the
Commission and implement Commission decisions. The Office of the Secretary serves a critical
role with its responsibilities for scheduling Commission meetings, managing the Commission's
decision-making process, codifying Commission decisions in memoranda, processing and
controlling Commission correspondence, and maintaining the Commission’s historical records,
among other duties.
“Carrie has served in a variety of capacities and brings extensive legal and regulatory
experience,” said NRC Chair Christopher T. Hanson. “Her proven executive leadership and vast
knowledge of the agency’s policies and procedures well positions her to keep the Commission’s
business functioning smoothly.”
Safford joined the NRC in 2008 as an attorney, and later was selected as Deputy
Assistant General Counsel in the Division of Materials Litigation and Enforcement within the
Office of the General Counsel. She has served in leadership positions across the agency,
including as Deputy Director of the Waste Confidence Directorate in NMSS; and as Assistant
General Counsel in OGC in the Division of High-Level Waste, Fuel Cycle and Nuclear Security,
and in the Division of Legislation, Ethics, and Administrative Law.
Before joining the NRC, Safford practiced energy law in Washington, D.C. She earned a
Bachelor of Science in Biology-Geology from the University of Rochester and her Juris Doctor
from Pace University School of Law. Safford is a graduate of the NRC’s Senior Executive
Service Candidate Development Program.
