The US Senate has confirmed Ho Nieh to serve as a commissioner on the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for the remainder of a term that will expire on 30 June 2029. In a 66–32 vote all present Republicans, 15 Democrats and one Independent, cast their votes in favour of Nieh, who was nominated by President Trump in July. He fills the seat left vacant following the dismissal of former commissioner Christopher Hanson. The American Nuclear Society (ANS) welcomed the Senate’s confirmation of Ho Nieh.
The NRC commission now comprises four members. Nieh joins Chair David Wright and commissioners Bradley Crowell and Matthew Marzano. One place remains unfilled after the resignation of Annie Caputo in July. President Trump nominated Douglas Weaver earlier in November to fill Caputo’s seat.
Nieh joins the NRC at a time of change resulting from President Trump’s May Executive Order 14300, Ordering the Reform of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. At the recent ANS Winter Conference & Expo, NRC Chairman David Wright noted: “This is the new NRC; the old NRC is gone. We’re going to have to look now coming out the other side to be the type of agency that the NRC needs to be for the future.” He gave assurances that the NRC will maintain its independence despite concerns that some of its functions are being taken over by the Department of Energy (DOE).
Nieh also pledged to maintain NRC independence during his hearing with the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee in October. “If confirmed, I will 100 percent stay committed to the independent safety mission of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to ensure that all the decisions NRC makes are, in fact, made independently with the right technical input,” he said.
Nieh has been the Vice President of Regulatory Affairs at Southern Nuclear since 2021, although at the time of his confirmation he had been working on loan to the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations for more than a year.
His nuclear career began at Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory, where he worked primarily as a nuclear plant engineer and as a civilian instructor in the US Navy’s Nuclear Power Programme. He first joined NRC in 1997 as a project engineer, where he stayed for more than 19 years serving in a variety of leadership roles, including Division Director of Reactor Projects, Division Director of Inspection & Regional Support, and Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
During that period he took leave twice. In 2008, he joined the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as a communication advisor, where he supported the International Nuclear Safety Group. In 2015, he joined the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency as the head of the Nuclear Safety Technology & Regulation Division.
