Regulators Grapple With Meeting Nuclear’s ‘Now or Never’ Moment

US nuclear regulators are facing thorny questions around licensing, staffing, and public outreach as they prepare for a long-promised nuclear renaissance that has failed to materialize in the past.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, based in Rockville, Md., is poised to play an outsize role in shaping the trajectory of that renaissance—should it happen. The commission, with nearly 3,000 employees and an annual budget of nearly $1 billion, is tasked with licensing and overseeing reactor safety.

The nuclear industry says technology has progressed to build smaller reactors, and bipartisan political support is coalescing around extending the life of the ...