March 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In order to facilitate an effective defense of our Nation's critical infrastructure, the Department of Homeland Security is creating the Critical Infrastructure Partnership Advisory Council. Pursuant to the Homeland Security Act of 2002, the Department is taking measures to facilitate strategic planning and effective discussion of critical infrastructure issues and to protect sensitive critical infrastructure information while also observing appropriate public disclosure procedures for the council. Name of Committee: Critical Infrastructure Partnership Advisory Council (CIPAC).

NMFS is closing the shallow-set pelagic longline fishery north of the equator for all vessels registered under the Hawaii longline limited access program. This action is necessary to comply with regulations that govern the pelagic fisheries of the western Pacific region that establish maximum annual limits on the numbers of interactions that occur between longline fishing gear and sea turtles. The 2006 annual limit on physical interactions between longline fishing and sea turtles has been reached, so the fishery must be closed for the remainder of the calendar year.

NMFS is reallocating the projected unused amount of Pacific cod from vessels using jig gear to catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 meters (m)) length overall (LOA) using pot or hook-and-line gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). These actions are necessary to allow the 2006 A season total allowable catch (TAC) of Pacific cod to be harvested.

This action corrects the heading of the legal description and changes the effective date of a direct final rule published in the Federal Register on March 7, 2006 (71 FR 11297), Airspace Docket No. 05-AWP-15. In that rule, the heading of the legal description reads ``Lompoc, CA, Vandenberg AFB [Established]'' and will change to ``AWP CA E6 Lompoc, CA [New]''. Also the effective date was inadvertently published as July 6, 2006. This action changes the effective date to June 8, 2006.

This notice proposes to establish Class E airspace at Tyler Memorial Hospital, PA. The development of an Area Navigation (RNAV), Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAP) and Helicopter RNAV 206 approach for the Tyler Memorial Hospital to serve flights operating into the airport during Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) conditions makes this action necessary. Controlled airspace extending upward from 700 feet Above Ground Level (AGL) is needed to contain aircraft executing an approach. The area would be depicted on aeronautical charts for pilot reference.

The Coast Guard published in the Federal Register of March 1, 2006, a temporary final rule amending bridge regulations. That rule contained the wrong effective date. This document corrects that error.

The EPA is proposing to approve a revision to the North Carolina State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted in final form on March 23, 2005. The SIP revision provides the second 10-year maintenance plan for the Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham, and Winston-Salem Carbon Monoxide Maintenance Areas, which are composed of the following four counties: Mecklenburg (Charlotte Area); Durham and Wake (Raleigh- Durham Area); and Forsyth (Winston-Salem Area). The second 10-year maintenance plan includes new motor vehicle emissions budgets (MVEBs) for carbon monoxide for the year 2015. EPA is proposing to approve this SIP revision, including the new 2015 MVEBs for carbon monoxide, because it satisfies the requirement of the Clean Air Act for the second 10- year maintenance plan for the Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham, and Winston- Salem Areas. In addition, in this rulemaking, EPA is providing information on its transportation conformity adequacy determination for new MVEBs for the year 2015 that are contained in the second 10-year carbon monoxide maintenance plan for the Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham, and Winston-Salem Areas. EPA determined that the 2015 MVEBs are adequate through a previous action. 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 a noncontroversial submittal 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 proposed rule. 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.

This rule updates NARA's regulations related to declassification of classified national security information in records transferred to NARA's legal custody. The rule incorporates changes resulting from amendments to Executive Order 12958, Classified National Security Information, as amended. These changes include establishing procedures for the automatic declassification of records in NARA's legal custody and revising requirements for reclassification of information to meet the provisions of EO 12958, as amended. This rule will affect members of the public and Federal agencies.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Baltimore (NAB) issued a notice of intent (NOI) for the Chesapeake Bay Native Oyster Recovery Project in the Friday, November 26, 2004 issue of the Federal Register (69 FR 68887). That NOI indicated that NAB would prepare a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for native oyster (Crassostrea virginica) recovery activities within Maryland waters of the Chesapeake Bay. The Corps is announcing a major change in the scope of the project. The NAB and Norfolk (NAO) Districts will prepare a single, integrated master plan (MP) and programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS) for native oyster recovery in the entire Chesapeake Bay. This MP is a long-term plan for native oyster recovery and will be written in cooperation with the local sponsors, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and Virginia Marine Resources Commission. The Corps is undertaking native oyster recovery in the Chesapeake Bay to support efforts to reverse the ongoing decline in oyster resources throughout the Bay.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston District intends to prepare a Draft Environmental Statement (DEIS) to assess the social, economic and environmental effects of the proposed widening and deepening of the Matagorda Ship Channel. The DEIS will assess potential impacts of a range of alternatives, including the No Action and preferred alternatives. The Federal action is consideration of a Department of Army Permit application for work under section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403), section 404 of the clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1344), and section 102 of the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuary Act (33 U.S.C. 1412).

In accordance with Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463), announcement is made of the following committee meeting: Name of Committee: Coastal Engineering Research Board (CERB). Date of Meeting: April 26, 2006. Place: Sheraton Gateway Atlanta Airport Hotel, 1900 Sullivan Road, Atlanta, GA 30337. Time: 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Notice is hereby given of the cancellation of the Defense Department Advisory Committee on Women in the Services business meeting, March 27, 2006, 8:30 a.m to March 29, 2006, 5 p.m., Embassy Suites Hotel Crystal CityNational Airport, 1300 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA 22202 which was published in the Federal Register on March 14, 2006, 71 FR 13108-13109. The meeting was cancelled due to a lack of quorum.

In compliance with section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of Civil Rights, Office of the Secretary, Department of the Interior (DOI), announces that it has forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a proposed extension of the public information collection described below. Copies of the proposed information collection request may be obtained by contacting the Clearance Officer at the phone number listed below. Comments and suggestions on the requirement should be made directly to the Office of Management and Budget. A copy of the comments and suggestions should also be sent to the Clearance Officer.

This document contains final regulations under section 417(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code concerning content requirements applicable to explanations of qualified joint and survivor annuities and qualified preretirement survivor annuities payable under certain retirement plans. These regulations affect sponsors, administrators, participants, and beneficiaries of certain retirement plans.

Today's notice publishes a Petition for Waiver from Mitsubishi Electric and Electronics USA, Inc. (MEUS). This Petition for Waiver (hereafter ``MEUS Petition'') requests a waiver of the test procedures applicable to residential and commercial package air conditioners and heat pumps. The Department of Energy (hereafter ``Department'' or ``DOE'') is soliciting comments, data, and information with respect to the MEUS Petition. Furthermore, today's notice includes an alternate test procedure the Department is considering to include in the Decision and Order and for which it is requesting comments. Today's notice also grants an Interim Waiver to MEUS from the existing Department test procedures applicable to residential and commercial package air conditioners and heat pumps.

This notice lists CMS manual instructions, substantive and interpretive regulations, and other Federal Register notices that were published from October 2005 through December 2005, relating to the Medicare and Medicaid programs. This notice provides information on national coverage determinations (NCDs) affecting specific medical and health care services under Medicare. Additionally, this notice identifies certain devices with investigational device exemption (IDE) numbers approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that potentially may be covered under Medicare. This notice also includes listings of all approval numbers from the Office of Management and Budget for collections of information in CMS regulations. Finally, this notice includes a list of Medicare-approved carotid stent facilities. Section 1871(c) of the Social Security Act requires that we publish a list of Medicare issuances in the Federal Register at least every 3 months. Although we are not mandated to do so by statute, for the sake of completeness of the listing, and to foster more open and transparent collaboration efforts, we are also including all Medicaid issuances and Medicare and Medicaid substantive and interpretive regulations (proposed and final) published during this 3-month time frame.

NOA of the DEIS for the Pit 14 Coal LBA, a maintenance lease for Federal coal in the decertified Green River-Hamms Fork Coal Production Region, Wyoming and Notice of Public Hearing.

This notice requests nominations for consideration for membership on the Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee (MCAC). The Committee provides advice and recommendations about whether scientific evidence is adequate to determine whether certain medical items and services are reasonable and necessary under the Medicare statute. This notice also announces a public meeting of the MCAC. The meeting will address the use of non-invasive imaging technologies versus cardiac catheterization in the diagnosis of coronary artery disease. Notice of this meeting is given under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App. 2, section 10(a)). Nominations: Deadline and Address: Nominations will be considered if postmarked by April 23, 2006 and mailed to the Executive Secretary (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). Secretary's Charter: Obtain a copy of the Secretary's Charter for the Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee from Maria Ellis, Office of Clinical Standards and Quality, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 7500 Security Boulevard, Mail Stop: 1-09-06, Baltimore, MD 21244; (410) 786-0309; Maria.Ellis@cms.hhs.gov. This charter is also posted on the following Web site: https://www.cms.hhs.gov/FACA/ downloads/mcaccharter.pdf. Meeting: Date and Location: The public meeting will be held in the main auditorium of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 7500 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21244, on Thursday, May 18, 2006, from 7:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., e.d.t. Presentation and Comments: Interested persons can present data, information, or views orally or in writing on issues pending before the Committee. Please submit written comments to the Executive Secretary by mail or email (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). Deadline for Written Comments and Presentations: Written comments and presentations for the public meeting must be received by April 24, 2006, 5 p.m., e.d.t. The presentation that will be submitted must be your final presentation; no further changes will be accepted. Deadline for Registration to Attend Meeting: For security reasons, individuals wishing to attend this meeting must register by close of business on May 11, 2006. Special Accommodations: Persons attending the meeting who are hearing or visually impaired, or who have a condition that requires special assistance or accommodations, are asked to notify the Executive Secretary by May 11, 2006 (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). Web site: You may access up-to-date information on this meeting at https://www.cms.hhs.gov/FACA/02MCAC.asp#TopOfPage.

This notice announces the dates, time, and location of the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) public meetings to be held in calendar year 2006 to discuss our preliminary coding and payment determinations for all new public requests for revisions to the HCPCS. These meetings provide a forum for interested parties to make oral presentations or to submit written comments in response to preliminary coding and payment determinations. Discussion will be directed toward responses to our specific preliminary recommendations and will include all items on the public meeting agenda.

This notice provides the opportunity for public comment on specific issues regarding the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) implementation of Department of Transportation (DOT) guidance for participants of the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program. This guidance is applicable to recipients of Federal financial assistance from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) located in the states under the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit (California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and Hawaii).

The Department of Commerce (``Department'') has determined that a request to conduct a new shipper review of the antidumping duty order on frozen warmwater shrimp from the People's Republic of China (``PRC''), received on February 22, 2006, meets the statutory and regulatory requirements for initiation. Therefore, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.214(d), we are initiating a new shipper review for Hai Li Aquatic Co., Ltd. Zhao An, Fujian (also known as Haili Aquatic Co. Ltd. Zhaoan, Fujian) (``Hai Li''). The period of review (``POR'') for this new shipper review is July 16, 2004, through January 31, 2006.\1\