Agencies and Commissions May 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with Section 610(b)(2) of the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 (Pub. L. 108-199, Division D), the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is publishing a summary and the complete text of the Millennium Challenge Compact between the United States of America, acting through the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and the Republic of Zambia. Representatives of the United States Government and the Republic of Zambia executed the Compact documents on May 10, 2012.

The Commission is noticing a recently-filed Postal Service request to add First-Class Package Service Contract 2 the competitive product list. This notice addresses procedural steps associated with this filing.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission) is issuing for public comment four (4) draft regulatory guides (DGs), DG-1285, ``An Approach for Probabilistic Risk Assessment in Risk- Informed Decisions on Plant-Specific Changes to the Licensing Basis,'' (proposed Revision 3 of Regulatory Guide [RG] 1.174); DG-1286, ``An Approach for Plant-Specific, Risk-Informed Decisionmaking: Inservice Testing,'' (proposed Revision 1 of RG 1.175); DG 1287, ``An Approach for Plant-Specific, Risk-Informed Decisionmaking: Technical Specifications'' (proposed Revision 2 of RG 1.177); and DG-1288, ``An Approach for Plant-Specific Risk-Informed Decisionmaking for Inservice Inspection of Piping'' (proposed Revision 2 of RG 1.178). These guides describe methods the NRC staff considers acceptable for plant-specific, risk-informed decisionmaking on specific licensee activities.

Notice is hereby given of the final approval of proposed information collections by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) under OMB delegated authority, as per 5 CFR 1320.16 (OMB Regulations on Controlling Paperwork Burdens on the Public). Board-approved collections of information are incorporated into the official OMB inventory of currently approved collections of information. Copies of the Paperwork Reduction Act Submission, supporting statements and approved collection of information instrument(s) are placed into OMB's public docket files. The Federal Reserve may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, an information collection that has been extended, revised, or implemented on or after October 1, 1995, unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

The Denali Commission (Commission) is an independent federal agency based on an innovative federal-state partnership designed to provide critical utilities, infrastructure and support for economic development and in training in Alaska by delivering federal services in the most cost-effective manner possible. The Commission was created in 1998 with passage of the October 21, 1998 Denali Commission Act (Act) (Title III of Pub. L. 105-277, 42 U.S.C. 3121). The Denali Commission Act requires that the Commission develop proposed work plans for future spending and that the annual Work Plan be published in the Federal Register, providing an opportunity for a 30-day period of public review and written comment. This Federal Register notice serves to announce the 30-day opportunity for public comment on the Denali Commission Draft Work Plan for Federal Fiscal Year 2012.

The Copyright Office proposes to amend its regulations governing the definition of a ``claimant'' for purposes of copyright registration by eliminating the footnote to the definition of a ``claimant'' in Sec. 202.3(a)(3)(ii). The footnote currently extends the definition of a claimant to include individuals or entities that have obtained the contractual right to claim legal title to copyright in an application for copyright registration. This amendment would clarify that the copyright claimant must be either the author of the work, or a person or organization that has obtained ownership of all of the exclusive rights initially belonging to the author. The Copyright Office believes that the footnote creates considerable legal uncertainty while offering no clear benefits to the registration system. Removing it will foster the use of other available registration options that create a more meaningful public record.

On July 14, 2011, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (``CFTC'' or the ``Commission'') issued a final order (``July 14 Order'') that granted temporary exemptive relief from certain provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (``CEA'') that otherwise would have taken effect on the general effective date of title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the ``Dodd- Frank Act'')July 16, 2011. On December 23, 2011, the Commission amended the July 14 Order to extend the potential latest expiration date of the July 14 Order from December 31, 2011 to July 16, 2012, and added provisions to account for the repeal and replacement (as of December 31, 2011) of part 35 of the Commission's regulations (the ``First Amended July 14 Order''). In this Notice of Proposed Amendment (``Notice''), the Commission proposes to further modify the temporary exemptive relief provided in the First Amended July 14 Order by: (1) Removing references to the entities terms, including ``swap dealer,'' ``major swap participant,'' and ``eligible contract participant'' in light of the final, joint CFTC-SEC rulemaking further defining them issued on April 18, 2012; (2) extending the potential latest expiration date of the July 14 Order to December 31, 2012, or, depending on the nature of the relief, such other compliance date as may be determined by the Commission; (3) allowing the clearing of agricultural swaps, as described herein; and (4) removing any reference to the exempt commercial market (``ECM'') and exempt board of trade (``EBOT'') grandfather relief previously issued by the Commission. Only comments pertaining to these proposed amendments to the First Amended July 14 Order, as amended (the ``Second Amended July 14 Order''), will be considered.