Agencies and Commissions August 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

On July 20, 2009, the FDIC published in the Federal Register a final rule amending part 363 of its regulations concerning annual independent audits and reporting requirements for certain insured depository institutions, which implements section 36 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDI Act), largely as proposed, but with certain modifications made in response to the comments received and making a technical amendment to its rules and procedures (part 308, subpart U) for the removal, suspension, or debarment of accountants and accounting firms. The publication of the final rule corrected certain errors in the original publication of the final rule, which had been published in the Federal Register on July 7, 2009. It has come to the attention of the FDIC that the July 20 re-publication included one additional error. This correction will rectify that oversight.

The Commission is adding Express Mail & Priority Mail Contract 8 to the Competitive Product List. This action is consistent with changes in a recent law governing postal operations. Republication of the lists of market dominant and competitive products is also consistent with new requirements under the law.

In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), the Board, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) (collectively, the agencies) may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.

The Federal Communications Commission, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the following information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid control number. No person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) that does not display a valid control number. Comments are requested concerning (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Commission, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the Commission's burden estimate; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on the respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is confirming the effective date of August 17, 2009, for the direct final rule that was published in the Federal Register on June 2, 2009 (74 FR 26285). This direct final rule amended the NRC's spent fuel storage regulations in 10 CFR 72.214 to revise the HI-STORM 100 dry cask storage system listing to include Amendment No. 6 to Certificate of Compliance (CoC) Number 1014.

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (``PBGC'') intends to request that the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') extend its approval of a collection of information under the Paperwork Reduction Act. The purpose of the information collection, which will be conducted through focus groups and surveys over a three-year period, is to help PBGC assess the efficiency and effectiveness with which it serves its customers and to design actions

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (the Councils) are hosting a public meeting to continue a dialogue with industry and Government agencies about ways to develop greater assurance around information technology (IT) products acquired by the Government. The public meeting will include dialogues on the impact of counterfeit IT products on matters of performance and security; contractor liability and consequential damages; the competition aspects of procuring IT products from the original manufacturer or authorized distributors; viable means of representing authenticity of IT products; and contractor supply chain risk management requirements as an evaluation factor in the procurement of IT products.

This document makes amendments to the Federal Acquisition Regulation in order to make editorial changes.

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) have agreed on a final rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to update the procedures for the acceptance of a bond with a security interest in real property.

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) have agreed on an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to add Taiwan (known in the World Trade Organization as ``the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu (Chinese Taipei))'' as a designated country, due to the accession of Taiwan to membership in the World Trade Organization Agreement on Government Procurement.

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) are issuing a final rule to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to reflect that FedTeDS capabilities have been incorporated into the Governmentwide Point of Entry (GPE). References to FedTeDS are amended to reflect the GPE i.e., FedBizOpps system.

The Commission today is providing notice that an NRSRO subject to the disclosure provisions of paragraph (d) of Rule 17g-2 can satisfy the requirement to make publicly available ratings history information in an XBRL format by using an XBRL format or any other machine-readable format, until such time as the Commission provides further notice.

The Farm Credit Administration (FCA or Agency), through the FCA Board (Board), issued a final rule under parts 619, 620, and 621 on June 17, 2009, amending FCA's regulations related to disclosure and reporting practices of Farm Credit System institutions. In accordance with 12 U.S.C. 2252, the effective date of the final rule is 30 days from the date of publication in the Federal Register during which either or both Houses of Congress are in session. Based on the records of the sessions of Congress, the effective date of the regulations is August 5, 2009.

The Commission is amending its rules to delegate authority to the Director of the Division of Enforcement to issue formal orders of investigation. These orders designate the enforcement staff authorized to issue subpoenas in connection with investigations under the federal securities laws. This action is intended to expedite the investigative process by removing the need for enforcement staff to seek Commission approval prior to performing routine functions. The Commission is adopting this delegation for a one-year period, and at the end of the period will evaluate whether to extend the delegation (though any formal orders issued during this period will remain in effect).

In this document, we amend our Schedule of Regulatory Fees to collect $341,875,000 in regulatory fees for Fiscal Year (FY) 2009, pursuant to section 9 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (the Act). These fees are mandated by Congress and are collected to recover the regulatory costs associated with the Commission's enforcement, policy and rulemaking, user information, and international activities.