The Board is composed of eleven members who serve on a part-time basis and are appointed by the President from a list of nominees submitted by the National Academy of Sciences.
Nominees to the Board must be eminent in a field of science or engineering and are selected solely on the basis of established records of distinguished service.
According to the Legislative History of the NWPAA, Congress provided such access to allow the Board to review and comment on DOE decisions as they occur, not after the fact.
In August 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit ruled that NRC must resume its review of the Yucca Mountain license application.
The Board continues to evaluate the validity of DOE activities related to implementing the NWPA and reports the results of its review to Congress and the Secretary of Energy.