 As the industry continued to expand, the Atomic Energy Commission's development and regulatory functions were separated in 1974; the Department of Energy absorbed research and development, while the regulatory branch was spun off and turned into an independent commission known as the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC or simply NRC).There has been considerable opposition to the use of nuclear power in the United States.The first U.S. reactor to face public opposition was Enrico Fermi Nuclear Generating Station in 1957.