January 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) is proposing to amend its employee protection regulations to clarify the Commission's authority to impose a civil penalty upon a non-licensee contractor or subcontractor of a Commission licensee, or applicant for a Commission license who violates the NRC's regulations by discriminating against employees for engaging in protected activity. The NRC is also proposing to amend its employee protection regulations related to the operation of Gaseous Diffusion Plants to conform with the NRC's other employee protection regulations and to allow the NRC to impose a civil penalty on the United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC or Corporation), as well as a contractor or subcontractor of USEC.

EPA is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE). This revision pertains to amendments to the regulations for the control of incinerators. This action is being taken under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act).

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Boeing Model 757 airplanes. This proposed AD would require installing a control wheel damper assembly at the first officer's drum bracket assembly and aileron quadrant beneath the flight deck floor in section 41; doing a functional test and adjustment of the new installation; and doing related investigative/corrective actions if necessary. For certain airplanes, this proposed AD would require doing an additional adjustment test of the re-located control wheel position sensor, and an operational test of the flight data recorder and the digital flight data acquisition unit. This proposed AD also would require installing vortex generators (vortilons) on the leading edge of the outboard main flap on certain airplanes. This proposed AD results from several reports that flightcrews experienced unintended roll oscillations during final approach, just before landing. We are proposing this AD to prevent unintended roll oscillations near touchdown, which could result in loss of directional control of the airplane, and consequent airplane damage and/or injury to flightcrew and passengers.

In this document, the Bureau of Prisons (Bureau) proposes to amend its regulations on searching and detaining or arresting non- inmates. This revision reorganizes current rules and makes changes that would subject non-inmates to pat searches, either as random searches or based upon reasonable suspicion, as a condition of entry to a Bureau facility.

On August 16, 2005, the Coast Guard proposed to change the regulations governing the operation of 10 drawbridges, and establish operating regulations for 2 drawbridges, all of which cross the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway in Broward County, FL. The proposed rule would require all of these drawbridges to open twice an hour. The proposed schedule is based on a request from Broward County officials, a test the Coast Guard conducted from December, 2004, until February, 2005, and comments received from the public based on the test. The proposed schedule meets the reasonable needs of navigation while accommodating increased vehicular traffic throughout the county. Due to the active hurricane season and lack of public comments to the previous Notice of Proposed Rulemaking we are reissuing the previous Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

This action corrects a final rule published in the Federal Register on November 28, 2005 (70 FR 71233), Airspace Docket No. 03- AWA-6, FAA Docket No. FAA-2003-15471. In that rule, inadvertent errors were made in the legal description of the Minneapolis Class B airspace area. This action corrects those errors.

NMFS is opening directed fishing for pollock in Statistical Area 610 of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) for 24 hours. This action is necessary to fully use the A season allowance of the 2006 total allowable catch (TAC) of pollock specified for Statistical Area 610 of the GOA.

The Federal Trade Commission (``Commission'') is amending the Appliance Labeling Rule to update ranges of comparability for compact clothes washers, refrigerators, refrigerator-freezers, and freezers. In addition, the Commission announces that ranges of comparability for standard clothes washers will remain in effect until further notice. Finally, the Commission is issuing minor, technical amendments to update the definition of medium base compact fluorescent lamp and to correct a sample heat pump label in the Rule.

The Legal Services Corporation (``Corporation'') is required by law to establish maximum income levels for individuals eligible for legal assistance. This document updates the specified income levels to reflect the annual amendments to the Federal Poverty Guidelines as issued by the Department of Health and Human Services.

The FHWA is revising its regulations relating to project authorization and agreements and the effect on obligations of Federal- aid highway funds under these requirements. The changes in this rulemaking will assist the States and the FHWA in monitoring Federal- aid highway projects and provide greater assurance that the Federal funds obligated reflect the current estimated cost of the project. In the event that Federal funds are de-obligated as a result of these changes, those funds may then be obligated for new or other active projects needing additional funding to the extent permitted by law.

The Federal Election Commission is publishing a revised Explanation and Justification for its definitions of ``agent'' in its regulations on coordinated and independent expenditures, and non- Federal funds, which are commonly referred to as ``soft money.'' The regulations, which are being retained, implement the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 by defining ``agent'' as ``any person who has actual authority, either express or implied'' to perform certain actions. These definitions do not include persons acting only with apparent authority. These revisions to the Explanation and Justification are in response to the decision of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in Shays v. FEC. Further information is provided in the supplementary information that follows.

NMFS proposes to approve and implement changes to the Pacific Halibut Catch Sharing Plan (Plan) for the International Pacific Halibut Commission's (IPHC or Commission) regulatory Area 2A off Washington, Oregon, and California (Area 2A). NMFS proposes to update the tribal season in the Plan to reflect recent IPHC season date-setting trends. NMFS also proposes to implement the portions of the Plan and management measures that are not implemented through the IPHC, which includes the sport fishery management measures for Area 2A, the flexible inseason management provisions in Area 2A, fishery election in Area 2A, and Area 2A non-treaty commercial fishery closed areas. NMFS proposes to codify all but the sport fishery management measures for Area 2A, at 50 CFR part 300, subpart E. These actions are intended to enhance the conservation of Pacific halibut, to protect yelloweye rockfish and other overfished groundfish species from incidental catch in the halibut fisheries, and to provide greater angler opportunity where available.

The FAA proposes to supersede an existing airworthiness directive (AD) for Rolls-Royce plc (RR) models RB211-535E4-37, RB211- 535E4-B-37, RB211-535C-37, RB211-535E4-B-75, RB211-535E4-C, and RB211- 22B-02 turbofan engines. That AD currently requires inspecting certain high pressure (HP) turbine discs, manufactured between 1989 and 1999, for cracks in the rim cooling air holes, and, if necessary, replacing the discs with serviceable parts. This proposed AD would require the same inspections, and would reduce the compliance times for eddy current inspection (ECI) for the RR RB211-22B-02 engines. This proposed AD results from the manufacturer reducing their recommended compliance times for inspections on RB211-22B-02 engines. We are proposing this AD to prevent possible disc failure, which could result in an uncontained engine failure and damage to the airplane.

This action proposes to modify the boundaries of the Restricted Area R-3002 range complex at Fort Benning, GA. The U.S. Army proposed these modifications as a result of a land exchange agreement between Fort Benning and the City of Columbus, GA. Specifically, the proposal would eliminate restricted airspace over a parcel of land that has been transferred from the Army to the City of Columbus. The proposal would also add new restricted airspace over a parcel of land to the south of the current restricted area complex, that was ceded by the City to the Army. In addition, a portion of the southwest section of R-3002, within the existing restricted airspace, would be redesignated as a separate restricted area, R-3002G, to better accommodate instrument approach procedures at Lawson Army Air Field (AAF). The internal boundaries between restricted area subdivisions would also be realigned slightly to permit more efficient scheduling and utilization of the range complex. Finally, the names of the controlling agency and using agency for the restricted areas would be changed to reflect their current titles.

This advance notice of proposed rulemaking provides interested parties with the opportunity to comment on the characteristics and requirements proposed by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for a new capital investment program. This new program, ``Small Starts'', is a discretionary grant program for public transportation capital projects that run along a dedicated corridor or a fixed guideway, have a total project cost of less than $250 million, and are seeking less than $75 million in Small Starts program funding. This Small Starts program is a component of the existing New Starts program, but will offer project sponsors an expedited and streamlined application and review process. Consistent with the intent and provisions of the new public transit statute, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity ActA Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), FTA hopes to simplify the planning and project development process for proposed Small Starts projects in a number of ways. In addition to the reduced number of evaluation measures specified in SAFETEA-LU, the process may be further simplified by allowing small projects to conduct alternatives analysis with a reduced set of alternatives, allowing evaluation measures for mobility and cost-effectiveness to be developed without having to rely on complicated travel demand modeling procedures in some cases, and possibly defining some classes of low-cost improvements that are pre- approved as effective and cost-effective in certain contexts.

On December 17, 2004, HUD published an interim rule implementing certain regulations for the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Credit Watch Termination Initiative. Under the initiative, FHA systematically reviews the early default and claim rates of mortgagees that have been approved to participate in the FHA single family mortgage insurance programs. Mortgagees with excessive default and claim rates are considered to be on Credit Watch status and, in cases of more severe performance deficiencies, HUD may terminate the mortgagee's loan origination approval authority. Credit Watch status constitutes a warning to a mortgagee that its default and claim rates are in excess of permissible levels and that failure to achieve improvement may lead to the termination of its origination approval agreement. The final rule follows publication of the December 17, 2004, interim rule, takes into consideration the public comments received on the interim rule, and makes no changes at this final rule stage.

We are amending the regulations by adding Argentina to the list of regions considered free of exotic Newcastle disease. We have conducted a risk evaluation and have determined that Argentina has met our requirements for being recognized as free of this disease. This action eliminates certain restrictions on the importation into the United States of poultry and poultry products from Argentina. We are also adding Argentina to the list of regions that, although declared free of exotic Newcastle disease, must provide an additional certification to confirm that any poultry or poultry products offered for importation into the United States originate in a region free of exotic Newcastle disease and that, prior to importation into the United States, such poultry or poultry products were not commingled with poultry or poultry products from regions where exotic Newcastle disease exists.

The Office of Personnel Management is issuing a final rule to change the timing of local wage surveys in the Harrison, Mississippi, nonappropriated fund Federal Wage System wage area. The purpose of this change is to avoid conducting future surveys in this area during the hurricane season.

This action summarizes the results under the criteria contained in section 610 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), of an Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) review of Marketing Order No. 989, regulating the handling of raisins produced from grapes grown in California.

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) have agreed to withdraw the proposed rule, FAR case 2003-008, Share-in-Savings Contracting, which was published in the Federal Register on July 2, 2004. The rule proposed amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) as it pertains to types of contracts and acquisition of information technology to address the inclusion of Share-in-Savings (SIS) contracting. However, the SIS concept was not reauthorized by Congress.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary security zone on the Detroit River, Detroit, Michigan. This zone is intended to restrict vessels from a portion of the Detroit River in order to ensure the safety of up to 450,000 people expected to attend Super Bowl XL at Ford Field as well as related events at Cobo Hall, Hart Plaza and the Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit.

This rule identifies communities, where the sale of flood insurance has been authorized under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), that are scheduled for suspension on the effective dates listed within this rule because of noncompliance with the floodplain management requirements of the program. If FEMA receives documentation that the community has adopted the required floodplain management measures prior to the effective suspension date given in this rule, the suspension will not occur and a notice of this will be provided by publication in the Federal Register on a subsequent date.

This document contains final regulations providing an alternative method of valuing assets for purposes of apportioning expenses under the tax book value method of Sec. 1.861-9T. The alternative tax book value method, which is elective, allows taxpayers to determine, for purposes of apportioning expenses, the tax book value of all tangible property that is subject to a depreciation deduction under section 168 by using the straight line method, conventions, and recovery periods of the alternative depreciation system under section 168(g)(2). The alternative tax book value method is intended to minimize basis disparities between foreign and domestic assets of taxpayers that may arise when taxpayers use adjusted tax basis to value assets under the tax book value method of expense apportionment. These final regulations may affect taxpayers that are required to apportion expenses under section 861.

NCUA is issuing proposed amendments to its rules regarding service to underserved areas. These amendments are being proposed because of NCUA's experience addressing field of membership issues and the uncertainty resulting from recent litigation challenging existing chartering policy. This proposed rule will ensure continued reliable and efficient service to federal credit union members located in underserved areas.

On November 30, 2005, at 70 FR 71892, CDC published a proposed rule, ``Control of Communicable Diseases,'' to revise existing regulations related to preventing the introduction, transmission, or spread of communicable diseases from foreign countries into the U.S. and from one state or possession into another. CDC provided a 60 day public comment period. Written comments were to be received on or before January 30, 2006. We have received requests asking for an extension of the comment period. In consideration of these requests, CDC is extending the comment period by 30 days to March 1, 2006.