2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521), this notice announces that the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), Department of Veterans Affairs, has submitted the collection of information abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment. The PRA submission describes the nature of the information collection and its expected cost and burden; it includes the actual data collection instrument.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521), this notice announces that the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), Department of Veterans Affairs, has submitted the collection of information abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment. The PRA submission describes the nature of the information collection and its expected cost and burden and includes the actual data collection instrument.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521), this notice announces that the Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA), Department of Veterans Affairs, has submitted the collection of information abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment. The PRA submission describes the nature of the information collection and its expected cost and burden; it includes the actual data collection instrument.

NMFS issues a proposed rule that would implement Amendment 69 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (FMP). Amendment 69, if approved, would amend the manner in which the total allowable catch (TAC) for the ``other species'' complex is annually determined in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). The FMP amendment would allow the TAC amount for the ``other species'' complex to be set less than or equal to 5 percent of the sum of groundfish targets species in the GOA. This proposed rule would revise the maximum retainable amount (MRA) of ``other species'' in the directed arrowtooth flounder fishery from 0 to 20 percent. This action would allow conservation and management of species within the ``other species'' category and is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson- Stevens Act), the FMP, and other applicable laws.

The invention listed below is owned by the U.S. Government as represented by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and is available for licensing in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 207 and 37 CFR part 404 and/or Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADA) Collaboration under 15 U.S.C. 3710a to achieve expeditious commercialization of results of Federally-funded research and development. Foreign patents are filed on selected inventions to extend market coverage for U.S. companies and may also be available for licensing.

The Committee is terminating further consideration of requests for safeguard action on imports from China of twenty-four textile and apparel product categories.

We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Missouri regulatory program (Missouri program) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Missouri intends to revise its program to improve operational efficiency. Currently, we are substituting direct Federal enforcement for portions of the Missouri program. With the substitution of Federal enforcement authority, we outlined a process by which Missouri could regain full authority for its program. As part of this process, Missouri proposes to amend its approved regulatory program and submitted a temporary emergency regulatory program rule (emergency rule). The purpose of the emergency rule is to revise Missouri's regulations regarding bonding of surface coal mining and reclamation operations to allow Missouri to transition from a ``bond pool'' approach to a ``full cost bond'' approach. We are announcing receipt of the emergency rule in this rulemaking. Missouri has indicated that, in the near future, it will submit a permanent regulatory program rule (permanent rule) regarding its bonding regulations and that this rule will contain regulatory language that is substantially identical to the language in this emergency rule. If we approve the emergency rule and Missouri submits the permanent rule with language that has the same meaning as the emergency rule, we will publish a final rule and the permanent rule will become part of the Missouri program. This document gives the times and locations that the Missouri program and proposed amendment to that program are available for your inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written comments on the amendment, and the procedures that we will follow for the public hearing, if one is requested.

The invention listed below is owned by the U.S. Government as represented by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and is available for licensing in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 207 and 37 CFR part 404 and/or Cooperative Research and Development Act (CRADA) Collaboration under 15 U.S.C. 3710a to achieve expeditious commercialization of results of Federally-funded research and development. Foreign patents are filed on selected inventions to extend market coverage for U.S. companies and may also be available for licensing.

NMFS issues this 30-day temporary rule to allow shrimp fishermen to continue to use limited tow times as an alternative to Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) in inshore and offshore waters from the Florida/Alabama border, westward to the boundary shared by Matagorda and Brazoria Counties, Texas, and extending offshore 20 nautical miles. The previous 30-day variances of the TED requirements were from September 23 through October 23, 2005; October 11 through November 10, 2005; and from October 22 through November 23, 2005, for waters affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. These variances were for 50 nautical miles offshore. After an investigation, NMFS has determined that excessive debris is still affecting fishermen's ability to use TEDs effectively; however, the debris field has decreased to approximately 20 nautical miles offshore. This action is necessary because environmental conditions resulting from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita persist on the fishing grounds, preventing some fishermen from using TEDs effectively.

Pursuant to section 10(a) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act as amended (5 U.S.C. Appendix 2), notice is hereby given of the 2005 White House Conference on Aging (WHCoA) meeting in December 2005 and the final Annotated Agenda for the 2005 WHCoA. The Policy Committee approved this final Annotated Agenda during a meeting held by conference call on November 3, 2005. The Annotated Agenda covers six broad areas that reflect major issues facing older individuals now and for the next 10 years. The 2005 WHCoA will be open to the public. Individuals who wish to attend should call or email the contact person listed below in advance of the meeting and inform her of the day they wish to attend; since space for the public is limited, attendance will be on a first come first-served basis. Individuals who need special assistance, such as sign language interpretation or other reasonable accommodations, should inform the contact person of the type of assistance that is desired.

Notice is hereby given of the following determinations: Pursuant to the authority vested in me by the Act of October 19, 1965 (79 Stat. 985; 22 U.S.C. 2459), Executive Order 12047 of March 27, 1978, the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 (112 Stat. 2681, et seq.; 22 U.S.C. 6501 note, et seq.), Delegation of Authority No. 234 of October 1, 1999, Delegation of Authority No. 236 of October 19, 1999, as amended, and Delegation of Authority No. 257 of April 15, 2003 [68 FR 19875], I hereby determine that the objects to be included in the exhibition ``The Princess and the Patriot: Ekaterina Dashkova, Benjamin Franklin and the Age of Enlightenment'', imported from abroad for temporary exhibition within the United States, are of cultural significance. The objects are imported pursuant to loan agreements with the foreign owners. I also determine that the exhibition or display of the exhibit objects at The Museum of the American Philosophical Society in Philosophical Hall, Philadelphia, PA, from on or about February 17, 2006, until on or about December 31, 2006, and at possible additional venues yet to be determined, is in the national interest. Public Notice of these Determinations is ordered to be published in the Federal Register.

The Stanislaus National Forest is in the process of preparing an environmental analysis for the Great Hunt Reforestation and Release Project. This project is being planned on National Forest lands encompassing portions of the Groveland, Mi-Wok and Summit Ranger Districts. The proposal to be analyzed consists of conducting site preparation, planting, and plantation release treatments using a combination of methods on approximately 2330 acres. Treatments will include backpack application of the herbicide glyphosate on approximately 545 acres; mechanically shredding or hand cutting competing vegetation on 1,655 acres with follow-up glyphosate applications on 1,530 acres; and burning and hand cutting competing vegetation with follow up glyphosate applications on 30 acres. Treatments are designed to assure adequate survival and growth of planted conifers by reducing competing vegetation. The goals tied to this project in the Stanislaus National Forest Plan Direction 2005 (STF FPD) are to increase the frequency of large trees, improve the continuity and distribution of old forests, and restore forest species composition and structure following large scale, stand-replacing disturbance events (STF FPD page 9). The areas under consideration for management activities are old timber harvest units, as well as areas burned by the following wildfires: Granite Fire, 1973; River Fire, 1987; Cotton Fire, 1990; Ruby Fire, 1992; and Creek Fire, 1994. In areas identified for site preparation and planting, natural regeneration of conifer seedlings following the harvest or fire disturbance events is inadequate due to rapid and vigorous growth of competing vegetation and the lack of a seed source in some areas (STF FPD page 146, Standard and Guideline 15- J: ``Reforest all openings in available, capable, and suitable lands for timber production created by timber harvest, wind, fire, or insect and disease pests (36 CFR 219.27(b)(2))''). These areas are not on track to meet the goals of the STF FPD. As such, the benefits of a forested environment, and all the associated benefits of forest structure have not occurred. Decision to be Made: The decision to be made is whether to implement the proposed action as described above, to meet the purpose and need for action through some other combination of activities, or to take no action at this time. Scoping Process: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received in writing within 15 days of the date of publication of this Notice of Intent in the Federal Register. The project was initially listed in the Forest's July and October 2005 quarterly edition of the Schedule of Proposed Actions (SOPA). Scoping letters were sent in September 1, 2005 to those who responded to the SOPA and to other identified interested and affected individuals and government agencies. In the SOPA, the mode of environmental documentation was predicted as an environmental assessment. It has now been determined that the environmental analysis will be documented in an environmental impact statement. Since there are no changes being made to the proposed action that was previously scoped, the scoping period at this point is brief. Scoping letters previously received by the Forest Service from the first scoping period will continue to be used for this process. A public scoping meeting is not anticipated at this time. The scoping process will be used to identify issues regarding the proposed action. An issue is defined as a point of dispute, debate, or disagreement related to a specific proposed action based on its anticipated effects. Significant issues brought to our attention are used during environmental analysis to develop alternatives to the proposed action. Some issued raised in scoping may be considered non- significant because they are: (1) Beyond the scope of the proposed action and its purpose and need; (2) already decided by law, regulation, or the Land and Resource Management Plan; (3) irrelevant to the decision to be made; or (4) conjectural and not supported by scientific or factual evidence. Alternatives: Alternatives proposed to date are the Proposed Action as described above and the No Action. Identification of Permits or Licenses Required: No permits or licenses have been identified to implement the proposed action. Lead, Joint Lead, and Cooperating Agencies: The USDA Forest Service is the lead agency for this proposal; there are no cooperating agencies. Estimated Dates for Filing: The expected filing date with the Environmental Protection Agency for the draft EIS is March 1, 2006. The expected filing date for the final EIS is July 1, 2006. Person to Whom Comments May Be Mailed: Comments may be submitted to: District Ranger, Mi-Wok Ranger District, P.O. Box 100, Mi-Wuk Village, CA 95346 or (209) 586-0643 (fax) during normal business hours. The Mi-Wok Ranger District business hours are from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m Monday through Friday. Electronic comments, in acceptable plain text (.txt), rich text (.rtf), or Word (.doc) formats, may be submitted to: mgmelin@fs.fed.us using Subject: Great Hunt Reforestation and Release Project. Reviewer's Obligation to Comment: The comment period on the draft EIS will be 45 days from the date the Environmental Protection Agency publishes the notice of availability of the draft EIS in the Federal Register. The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is important to give reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of draft statements must structure their participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewer's position and contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 553 (1978). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the draft environmental impact statement stage but that are not raised until after completion of the final environmental impact statement may be waived or dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d 1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). Because of these court rulings, it is very important that those interested in this proposed action participate by the close of the 45-day comment period so that substantive comments and objections are made available to the Forest Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider them and respond to them in the final environmental impact statement. To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues and concerns with the proposed action, comments on the draft environmental impact statement should be as specific as possible. It is also helpful if comments refer to specific pages or chapters of the draft statement. Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft environmental impact statement or the merits of the alternatives formulated and discussed in the statement. Reviewers may wish to refer to the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points. Further Information: Marty Gmelin, Interdisciplinary Team Leader may be contacted by phone at (209) 586-3234 ex. 629 for more information about the proposed action and the environmental impact statement or at the Mi-Wok Ranger District, P.O. Box 100, Mi-Wuk Village, CA 95348. Responsible Official and Mailing Address: Tom Quinn, Forest Supervisor, 19777 Greenly Road, Sonora, CA 95370.

In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) and the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972 (FACA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Coeur d'Alene District Resource Advisory Council (RAC) will meet as indicated below.

EPA is proposing a correction to the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the State of Georgia regarding the State's general ``nuisance'' rule. EPA has determined that this rule, Georgia Rule 391- 3-1.02(2)(a)1, was erroneously incorporated into the SIP. EPA is proposing to remove this rule from the approved Georgia SIP because the rule is not related to the attainment and maintenance of the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS).

The FHWA is issuing this notice to advise the public that an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be prepared for a proposed highway project in the Towns of Skowhegan and Madison, Maine.