May 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS announces its intent to consider revisions to the Federal lobster regulations in response to the effort control recommendations of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission) in Addenda II, III, IV, V and VI to Amendment 3 of the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for American Lobster (ISFMP), and prepare an EIS to assess the impact on the human environment of controlling fishing effort in the American lobster fishery, in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Written comments are requested from the public regarding issues that NMFS should address in this EIS relative to fishing effort reduction measures as proposed in Addenda II through VI.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reopening until July 11, 2005, the comment period on the questions raised and issues addressed in the notice of public meeting, published in the Federal Register of October 5, 2004 (69 FR 59569), on the use of certain radioactive drugs for research purposes without an investigational new drug application (IND) under the conditions set forth in FDA regulations. We are taking this action in response to requests to extend the comment period and to allow additional time to review agency guidance on a related matter.

These special conditions are issued for Cessna Aircraft Company Model 650 Citation III airplanes modified by Pro Star Aviation, LLC. These airplanes will have novel and unusual design features when compared to the state of technology envisioned in the airworthiness standards for transport category airplanes. The modification incorporates the installation of Honeywell Primus Epic Control Display System (CDS)/Retrofit Electronic Flight Instrument System (EFIS) system, and a second air data computer. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for the protection of these systems from the effects of high-intensity- radiated fields (HIRF). These special conditions contain the additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.

The Commander, Eighth Coast Guard District has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operations of the Rock Island Railroad and Highway Drawbridge, Mile 482.9, Rock Island, Illinois across the Upper Mississippi River. This deviation allows the bridge to remain closed-to-navigation from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m., June 4, 2005. The deviation is necessary to allow time for making repairs to mechanical components essential to the continued safe operation of the drawbridge.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for CFM International CFM56-5, -5B, and -5C series turbofan engines. This AD requires removing certain part number (P/N) air turbine starters from service. This AD results from several reports of uncontained failures of air turbine starters where high-energy particles were not contained within the containment feature of the starter. We are issuing this AD to prevent uncontained failures of air turbine starters, which could result in damage to the airplane.

This document incorporates corrections to clarify the intent of Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2005-08-06, which was published in the Federal Register on April 19, 2005 (70 FR 20271). AD 2005-08-06 applies to all CENTRAIR 101 series gliders. This action clarifies the applicability to point out that the affected hinge pins were installed at manufacturer on serial numbers 101A600 through 101A637 and could be replaced on other serial number gliders with hinge pins that Centrair delivered between February 20, 1995, and February 28, 2001. We are re- issuing the AD in its entirety to help eliminate any confusion that this AD may have created.

The Office of Personnel Management is issuing final regulations to implement a change in law that requires the pay of heads of agencies and other designated employees to be calculated and paid on a biweekly basis instead of on a monthly basis. The final regulations also prescribe the circumstances under which an agency may calculate the pay of an employee on a biweekly pay period basis whose pay otherwise would be calculated on a monthly or other basis.

This document grants an Application for Review filed by Chisholm Trail Broadcasting Co. directed to the earlier Memorandum Opinion and Order in this proceeding to the extent of setting aside three previous actions. See 67 FR 52876, August 14, 2002. Specifically, Channel 259C3 will now be allotted at Tishomingo, Oklahoma, Channel 259C1 will be allotted at Alva, Oklahoma, and Channel 261C1 will be allotted at Woodward, Oklahoma. The reference coordinates for the Channel 259C1 allotment at Alva, Oklahoma, are 36-35-41 and 98-15-38. The reference coordinates for the Channel 261C1 allotment at Woodward, Oklahoma, are 36-25-42 and 99-24-10. The reference coordinates for the Channel 259C3 allotment at Tishomingo, Oklahoma, are 34-21-34 and 96-33-34. With this action, the proceeding is terminated.

We, the NMFS, have completed a comprehensive status review of elkhorn (Acropora palmata) and staghorn (A. cervicornis) corals and determined that a petitioned action to list both species is warranted. We have determined that fused-staghorn coral (A. prolifera) is a hybrid and therefore does not warrant listing. We have made our determination based on the best scientific and commercial data available and efforts being made to protect the species, and we propose to place both elkhorn and staghorn corals on the list of threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). We are announcing that hearings will be held at four locations in June to provide additional opportunities and formats to receive public input.

The EPA is proposing to grant limited approval of revisions to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP) through the parallel processing mechanism. Specifically, we are proposing to grant limited approval of revisions to 30 TAC Chapter 101, General Air Quality Rules concerning excess emissions during startup, shutdown, and malfunction (SSM) activities. The action will have the effect of extending the expiration date of certain provisions from June 30, 2005 to no later than June 30, 2006. Texas is making this change to allow for additional time before these provisions expire from the SIP to submit a revised excess emissions rule for our approval into the SIP. See sections 2 and 3 of this document for more information.

The EPA is proposing to approve the State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions submitted by the State of Georgia, through the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GAEPD), on March 15, 2005. These revisions pertain to Georgia's rules for Air Quality Control and were the subject of a public hearing held on March 18, 2004, and adopted by the Board of Natural Resources on April 28, 2004. The revisions became effective in the State on July 8, 2004. On September 26, 2003, EPA published a final rule in the Federal Register (see 68 FR 55469) reclassifying the Atlanta 1-hour ozone nonattainment area from serious to severe. These revisions satisfy the additional requirements for severe 1-hour ozone nonattainment areas. In the Final Rules section of this Federal Register, EPA is approving the State's SIP revision as a direct final rule without prior proposal because the Agency views this as noncontroversial and anticipates no adverse comments. A detailed rationale for the approval is set forth in the direct final rule. If no significant, material, and adverse comments are received in response to this rule, no further activity is contemplated. If EPA receives adverse comments, the direct final rule will be withdrawn and all public comments received will be addressed in a subsequent final rule based on this rule. The EPA will not institute a second comment period on this document. Any parties interested in commenting on this document should do so at this time.

The Captain of the Port Puget Sound will begin enforcing the Budd Inlet security zone in West Bay, Olympia, WA on Monday, May 9, 2005, at 8 a.m. Pacific daylight time. The security zone provides for the security of Department of Defense assets and military cargo in the navigable waters of Puget Sound and adjacent waters. The security zone will be enforced until Friday, May 13, 2005, at 11:59 p.m. Pacific daylight time.

We are adopting as a final rule, with changes, an interim rule that amended the Karnal bunt regulations to provide for the payment of compensation to custom harvesters for losses they incurred due to the requirement that their equipment be cleaned and disinfected after four counties in northern Texas were declared regulated areas for Karnal bunt during the 2000-2001 crop season. The interim rule also amended the regulations to provide for the payment of compensation to owners or lessees of other equipment that came into contact with Karnal bunt-positive host crops in those counties and was required to be cleaned and disinfected during the 2000-2001 crop season. This final rule amends the interim rule to indicate that affected parties may apply for compensation whenever disinfection was required by an inspector and to extend the deadline by which claims for compensation must have been submitted. The payment of compensation is necessary to reduce the economic burden imposed by the regulations and to encourage the participation of, and obtain cooperation from, affected individuals in our efforts to contain and reduce the presence of Karnal bunt in the United States.

The FAA is revising an earlier proposed airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Raytheon Model HS.125 series 700A airplanes, BAe.125 Series 800A airplanes, and Model Hawker 800 and Hawker 800XP airplanes. The original NPRM would have required an inspection to determine the current rating of the circuit breakers of certain cockpit ventilation and avionics cooling system blowers; and replacing the circuit breakers and modifying the blower wiring, as applicable. The original NPRM was prompted by a report indicating that a blower motor seized up and gave off smoke. This action revises the original NPRM by clarifying the compliance time and removing a reporting requirement. We are proposing this supplemental NPRM to prevent smoke and fumes in the cockpit in the event that a blower motor seizes and overheats due to excessive current draw.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Boeing Model 737-100, -200, and -200C series airplanes. This proposed AD would require a one-time detailed inspection for cracking of the lugs of the inboard attach fittings of the wing leading edge slat tracks at slat numbers 2 and 5; prior or concurrent actions for certain airplanes; repetitive high-frequency eddy current (HFEC) inspections for cracking of the lug surfaces of those inboard attach fittings if necessary; and replacement of the attach fittings with new, improved fittings. This proposed AD is prompted by reports of damage to the lugs of certain inboard attach fittings of the leading edge slat tracks. We are proposing this AD to prevent a lifted slat, which, if the airplane performs any non-normal maneuver during takeoff or landing at very high angles of attack, could lead to the loss of the slat and reduced control of the airplane.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all BAE Systems (Operations) Limited (Jetstream) Model 4101 airplanes. This proposed AD would require repetitive detailed and specialized inspections to detect fatigue damage in the fuselage, replacement of certain bolt assemblies, and corrective actions if necessary. This proposed AD is prompted by a review of primary airframe fatigue test results and Maintenance Steering Group 3 (MSG-3) analysis. We are proposing this AD to detect and correct fatigue damage of the fuselage, door, engine nacelle, empennage, and wing structures, which could result in reduced structural integrity of the airplane.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) (formerly the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Office of Motor Carriers) withdraws two advance notices of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) on using biometric identifiers to provide positive identification of drivers in the Commercial Driver's License Information System (CDLIS) and to prevent drivers from obtaining more than one commercial driver's license (CDL). The ANPRM requesting comments was published on May 15, 1989 at 54 FR 20875; an ANPRM providing additional information was published on March 8, 1991 at 56 FR 9925. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) currently is developing a Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) that will incorporate biometric identifiers. FMCSA does not want to cause a conflict in standards adopted by each agency or place an undue burden on States by imposing two different standards and/or technologies for CDLs and the TWIC. In the future, FMCSA may assess the impact of the TWIC upon the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations.

This rule makes technical corrections to the regulation that governs environmental impact procedures for the FHWA and the FTA. The amendments contained herein make no substantive changes to the FHWA or the FTA regulations, policies, or procedures. This rule corrects the name of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) from its former name, the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA); corrects a reference to ``urban mass transportation''; corrects statutory references that became outdated when Federal transit laws were codified; removes the reference to a program that has been eliminated; corrects references to regulatory ``part'' numbers that have changed; corrects the names of offices within FHWA and FTA; and corrects a spelling error.

The Secretary amends the Department of Health and Human Services regulations implementing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975 to conform with certain statutory amendments made by the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987 (CRRA). The principal conforming amendment is to add definitions of ``program or activity'' or ``program'' that correspond to the statutory definitions enacted under the CRRA.

This amendment adopts a new airworthiness directive (AD) for Agusta S.p.A. (Agusta) Model A109E helicopters that requires visually inspecting each main transmission support fitting (fitting) attachment bolt (bolt) for a fracture, a crack, or looseness, and verifying the torque on each fitting bolt. This amendment is prompted by two incidents of fatigue failure of the bolts that secure the transmission rear support fittings to the helicopter. The actions specified by this AD are intended to detect a fracture, a crack, or looseness of a fitting bolt, and prevent fatigue failure of a fitting bolt and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

This document suspends the meeting of the Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory Committee on Minimum Standards for Driver's Licenses and Personal Identification Cards scheduled for May 10-13, 2005. The reason for the action is impending Congressional action, in the near future, concerning the ``REAL ID Act.'' This legislation would repeal section 7212 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which provides the authority for the negotiated rulemaking on this subject.

This document contains a technical amendment to the agency's Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) requirements. The amendment clarifies the definition of ``model year'' included in that regulation.

This document makes corrections to the Aging Airplane Safety final rule; disposition of comments published in the Federal Register on February 2, 2005 (70 FR 5518). In that document errors in the amendatory language caused certain subparagraphs in sections 121.368 and 129.33 to be inadvertently retained.

NMFS announces that the Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator), is eliminating the daily and maximum haddock trip limits for the groundfish fishery for the remainder of the 2005 fishing year, through April 30, 2006. Accordingly, there is no trip limit on the amount of haddock that can be harvested or landed for the rest of the fishing year for vessels subject to these regulations. The Regional Administrator has projected that less than 75 percent of the haddock target total allowable catch (TAC) will be harvested for the 2005 fishing year under the restrictive daily possession and trip limits. This action is intended to allow fishermen to catch the haddock TAC, without exceeding the TAC.