Department of Homeland Security – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the U.S. Coast Guard intends to submit an Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), requesting an extension of its approval for the following collection of information: 1625-0109, Drawbridge Operation Regulations; without change. Our ICR describes the information we seek to collect from the public. Before submitting this ICR to OIRA, the Coast Guard is inviting comments as described below.

The Coast Guard is establishing two temporary safety zones to protect personnel, vessels, and the marine environment from potential hazards created by commercial spaceflight activities. One safety zone is in the navigable waters of South Bay, TX and the other is in the navigable waters of the Gulf of Mexico, within 12 nautical miles. Entry of vessels or persons into these zones are prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port, Sector Corpus Christi (COTP) or a designated representative.

In this final rule, DHS codifies in final form the procedures that apply to appeals before the Transportation Security Oversight Board concerning Federal Aviation Administration Airmen Certificates. The final rule addresses comments stakeholders submitted in response to an interim final rule DHS published on August 9, 2022, on the same topic. DHS amends the IFR rule text to permit parties to consent to electronic service of documents, include a definition of the standard of review that applies to the proceedings, and provide a process to seek remand for good cause shown.

Comments are requested on proposed flood hazard determinations, which may include additions or modifications of any Base Flood Elevation (BFE), base flood depth, Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) boundary or zone designation, or regulatory floodway on the Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), and where applicable, in the supporting Flood Insurance Study (FIS) reports for the communities listed in the table below. The purpose of this notice is to seek general information and comment regarding the preliminary FIRM, and where applicable, the FIS report that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has provided to the affected communities. The FIRM and FIS report are the basis of the floodplain management measures that the community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of having in effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

The National Navigation Safety Advisory Committee (Committee) will conduct a series of meetings over 2 days in Bronx, New York to discuss matters relating to maritime collisions, allisions, and groundings; Inland Rules of the Road; International Rules of the Road; navigation regulations and equipment; routing measures; marine information; and aids to navigation systems. All meetings will be open to the public.

This notice announces that the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary) is suspending certain regulatory requirements for F-1 nonimmigrant students whose country of citizenship is Venezuela, regardless of country of birth (or individuals having no nationality who last habitually resided in Venezuela), and who are experiencing severe economic hardship as a direct result of the crisis in Venezuela. The Secretary is taking action to provide relief to these Venezuelan students who are in lawful F-1 nonimmigrant student status, so the students may request employment authorization, work an increased number of hours while school is in session, and reduce their course load while continuing to maintain their F-1 nonimmigrant student status. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will deem an F-1 nonimmigrant student granted employment authorization by means of this notice to be engaged in a ``full course of study'' for the duration of the employment authorization, if the nonimmigrant student satisfies the minimum course load requirement described in this notice.

The Coast Guard is revising existing regulations for a Regulated Navigation Area in Tampa Bay, Florida by updating the geographic boundaries of Egmont Channel in the Gulf of Mexico. The change is designed to align the coordinates in the regulation with the coordinates needed to properly control traffic in the Captain of the Port St. Petersburg Zone. The current coordinates do not reflect the Regulated Navigation Area that the Coast Guard intended to put in place.

The Coast Guard is altering operating regulations of the Monroe Street Highway Bridge, mile 0.4 and the Norfolk Southern Railroad Bridge, mile 1.5, over the Portage River at Port Clinton, Ohio.

The Coast Guard will enforce the Lake Havasu Triathlon special local regulations on the waters of the Colorado River on March 17, 2024. These special local regulations are necessary to provide for the safety of the participants, crew, spectators, sponsor vessels, and general users of the waterway. During the enforcement period, persons and vessels are prohibited from anchoring, blocking, loitering, or impeding within this regulated area unless authorized by the Captain of the Port, or his designated representative.

The Department of Homeland Security, United States Coast Guard, is establishing a Regulated Navigation Area for certain waters of the Duluth-Superior Harbor and the St. Louis River in Duluth, MN. This action is necessary to prevent disruption of an engineered sediment remediation project within one of the Great Lakes designated Areas of Concern (AOC); the St. Louis River. This interim rulemaking prohibits anchoring, spudding, dredging, dragging, or any other activity which could potentially disturb the riverbed in the designated area unless authorized by the District Commander or the Captain of the Port. We invite your comments on this interim rulemaking.

This document adopts as a final rule, with no changes, interim amendments to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) regulations that were published in the Federal Register on December 30, 2022, as CBP Decision 22-26. Pursuant to these changes, the responsibility for administering refunds, reduced tax rates, and tax credits on imported alcohol moved from CBP to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, on January 1, 2023.

This final rule amends the regulations of the agencies listed above (the ``Agencies'') to clarify protections for beneficiaries and prospective beneficiaries of federally funded social services and the rights and obligations of organizations providing such services. In accordance with the Executive order of February 14, 2021, Establishment of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, this clarification should promote maximum participation by beneficiaries and providers in the Agencies' covered programs and activities and ensure consistency in the implementation of those programs and activities.

CISA will facilitate a public event to build on existing community-led work around Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) on specific SBOM topics. The goal of this meeting is to help the broader software and security community understand the current state of SBOM and what efforts have been made by different parts of the SBOM community, including CISA-facilitated, community-led work and other activity from sectors and governments.

The Coast Guard is correcting regulations that published in the Federal Register on December 28, 2023. The final rule announced changes to the operations of all movable bridges over the River Rouge, Detroit, MI, to improve communications and establish winter hours. This correction fixes incorrect language in the regulations. The language in the final rule inadvertently stated the draw of the Dix Avenue Bridge, mile 2.73, is remotely operated, when it is not equipped or authorized to operate remotely.

The Vulnerability Management (VM) within Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) will submit the following Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public to take this opportunity to comment on a revision of a currently approved information collection. In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice seeks comments concerning the collection of information necessary to allow FEMA to support the needs of States, federally-recognized Tribes, and Territories during disaster situations through the use of other Federal Agency resources.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS or Department) is updating and clarifying its regulations related to the procedures for receiving Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act of 1974 requests.

The Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will be submitting the following information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). The information collection is published in the Federal Register to obtain comments from the public and affected agencies.

Comments are requested on proposed flood hazard determinations, which may include additions or modifications of any Base Flood Elevation (BFE), base flood depth, Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) boundary or zone designation, or regulatory floodway on the Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), and where applicable, in the supporting Flood Insurance Study (FIS) reports for the communities listed in the table below. The purpose of this notice is to seek general information and comment regarding the preliminary FIRM, and where applicable, the FIS report that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has provided to the affected communities. The FIRM and FIS report are the basis of the floodplain management measures that the community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of having in effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

This notice lists communities where the addition or modification of Base Flood Elevations (BFEs), base flood depths, Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) boundaries or zone designations, or the regulatory floodway (hereinafter referred to as flood hazard determinations), as shown on the Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), and where applicable, in the supporting Flood Insurance Study (FIS) reports, prepared by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for each community, is appropriate because of new scientific or technical data. The FIRM, and where applicable, portions of the FIS report, have been revised to reflect these flood hazard determinations through issuance of a Letter of Map Revision (LOMR), in accordance with Federal Regulations. The currently effective community number is shown in the table below and must be used for all new policies and renewals.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is requesting qualified individuals interested in serving on the Technical Mapping Advisory Council (TMAC) apply for appointment. The TMAC, as established in the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012, makes recommendations to the FEMA Administrator on how to improve, in a cost-effective manner, the accuracy, general quality, ease of use, distribution, and dissemination of Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) and risk data; and to define performance metrics and milestones required to map flood risk areas effectively and efficiently in the United States. The appointments are for 3 years each, the terms of which start in spring/summer 2024. Applicants will be considered for any of the seven vacancies on the TMAC for which they are deemed to be qualified.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will submit the information collection abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget for review and clearance in accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. FEMA invites the general public to take this opportunity to comment on a revision of a currently approved information collection. In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice seeks comments concerning the Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP), which includes the State Homeland Security Program (SHSP), the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI), and Operation Stonegarden (OPSG). This revision removes the OPSG Daily Activity Report (FEMA Form FF-207-FY-21-113 (formerly 089-0- 27)) from the collection.

The Coast Guard is temporarily modifying the operating schedule that governs the Loop Parkway Bridge across Long Creek, mile 0.7, Nassau County, NY. The bridge owner, New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), submitted a request to operate the bridge under single leaf openings to perform bridge deck replacement.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) invites public comment on one currently approved Information Collection Request (ICR), Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number 1652-0059, abstracted below that we will submit to OMB for a revision in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). This ICR is being revised to inform the public of the official launch of new TSA PreCheckTM enrollment providers, which has led to multiple price points for enrollments and renewals and additional enrollment locations; exploration of new enrollment capabilities to include remotely proctored enrollment; acceptance of Mobile Drivers Licenses and other Digital Identities upon TSA approval; and, revised customer experience surveys to better service the public. The ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its expected burden. The collection involves the voluntary submission of biographic and biometric information that TSA uses to verify identity and conduct a security threat assessment (STA) for the TSA PreCheckTM Application Program. The STA compares an applicant's information against criminal history, immigration, intelligence, and regulatory violations databases to determine if the person poses a low risk to transportation or national security and should be eligible for expedited screening through TSA PreCheckTM lanes at airports.