May 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold its 133rd meeting to consider and take actions on fishery management issues in the Western Pacific Region.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and its advisory entities will hold public meetings.

In accordance with the provisions of the Privacy Act, as amended, this notice announces the renewal of an existing computer matching program that SSA is currently conducting with BPD.

The NRC is preparing a submittal to OMB for review of continued approval of information collections under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and Miami-Dade Transit (MDT) intend to prepare a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), for the proposed East-West Transit Corridor Study in Miami-Dade County, Florida, between Florida International University (FIU) and the Miami Intermodal Center (MIC) at Miami International Airport (MIA). The SDEIS will evaluate at least three alternatives: a No-Build Alternative; a Transportation System Management (TSM) Alternative; a Build Alternative; and any reasonable alternatives uncovered during the public scoping process. Scoping will be accomplished through meetings and correspondence with interested persons, organizations, the general public, Federal, State and local agencies. MDT will create a Coordination Plan to actively include public and participating agency involvement and comment during the entire NEPA process. The Coordination Plan will be found on the East- West Corridor Web site at https://www.miamidade.gov/transit. The purpose of this Notice of Intent is to re-notify interested parties of the intent to prepare the SDEIS and invite participation in the Study. An Advance Notification for the original East-West Corridor Multimodal Project was issued in 1993. The study area being evaluated in this SDEIS traverses the western portion (i.e., FIU to MIC) of the entire East-West Corridor between FIU and the Port of Miami that was studied in the East-West Multimodal Corridor Major Investment Study/Draft Environmental Impact Statement (MIS/DEIS) in 1995 and the East-West Multimodal Corridor Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) in 1998. A Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA)/Minimum Operable Segment (MOS) emerged from this process and was the subject of a Record of Decision jointly issued by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and FTA in 1998. With approval of the People's Transportation Plan (PTP) by Miami-Dade County voters in 2002, along with changes in growth and development along the western portion of the corridor, a redefinition of planned transit investments resulted in the locally proposed alternative. It is the intention of this action to improve mobility in the East-West Corridor.

PHMSA and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) invite interested persons to participate in a public meeting to address the safe transportation of hazardous materials in railroad tank cars. PHMSA and FRA are initiating a comprehensive review of design and operational factors that affect rail tank car safety.

The Coast Guard proposes to change the drawbridge operation regulations governing the operation of the Beach Channel railroad bridge across Jamaica Bay, at mile 6.7, New York. This proposed rule would allow the Beach Channel Bridge to remain in the closed position during the morning and afternoon commuter rush hours from 6:45 a.m. to 8:20 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 6:45 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. This rule is expected to help facilitate commuter rail traffic while continuing to meet the present and anticipated needs of navigation.

The Coast Guard announces the completion of a Port Access Route Study that analyzed potential vessel routing measures and considered adjusting existing vessel routing measures in order to help reduce the risk of vessel strikes of the highly endangered North Atlantic right whale. The study focused on the northern region off the Atlantic Coast which included Cape Cod Bay, the area off Race Point at the northern end of Cape Cod (Race Point) and the Great South Channel; and in the southern region which included areas along the seacoast in the approaches to the Ports of Jacksonville and Fernandina Beach, Florida, and Brunswick, Georgia. This notice summarizes the study's recommendations. Comments on these recommendations are requested.

In this document, the Commission addresses several pending issues related to the jurisdictional separations process by which incumbent local exchange carriers (incumbent LECs) apportion regulated costs between the intrastate and interstate jurisdictions. The Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeks comment on issues relating to reform of the jurisdictional separations process, including several proposals submitted to the Commission since its adoption of the 2001 Separations Freeze Order.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, this notice advises interested persons that the Federal Communications Commission's (``FCC'') Independent Panel Reviewing the Impact of Hurricane Katrina on Communications Networks (``Independent Panel'' or ``Panel'') will hold its final meeting on June 9, 2006 at 10 a.m. at the Commission Meeting Room of the FCC, 445 12th Street, SW., Room TW- C305, Washington, DC 20554.

In accordance with section 6(f)(1) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as amended, EPA is issuing a notice of receipt of request for amendments by ABERCO, Inc. to delete uses in certain pesticide registrations. Section 6(f)(1) of FIFRA provides that a registrant of a pesticide product may at any time request that any of its pesticide registrations be amended to delete one or more uses. FIFRA further provides that, before acting on the request, EPA must publish a notice of receipt of any request in the Federal Register.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 90-day finding on a petition to remove the California brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants pursuant to section 4(b)(3) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We find that the petition presents substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted. We, therefore, are initiating a status review of the California brown pelican to determine if delisting under the Act is warranted. We note that the taxon on the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Species is the brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis). The petition requests specifically the delisting of the California brown pelican, (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus), rather than the delisting of the entire listed entity. Brown pelicans in coastal States along the Atlantic Coast and in Florida and Alabama were removed from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife on February 4, 1985 (50 FR 4938). The brown pelican remains listed as endangered throughout the remainder of its range in North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean. Because a status review is also required for the 5-year review of listed species under section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Act, we are electing to initiate a 5-year review of the brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) throughout its range and prepare these reviews simultaneously. The purpose of reviews conducted under this section of the Act is to ensure that the classification of species as threatened or endangered on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants is accurate. To ensure that the reviews are comprehensive, we are soliciting scientific and commercial information regarding this species.

In accordance with the Record of Decision for the King Range National Conservation Area (NCA) Approved Resource Management Plan (RMP), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Arcata Field Office, is issuing interim supplementary rules and requesting comments. These interim supplementary rules will apply to public lands within the King Range National Conservation Area management area, and will be effective upon publication and remain in effect until the publication of final supplementary rules. The BLM has determined these interim supplementary rules are necessary to enhance the safety of visitors, protect natural resources, improve recreation opportunities, and protect public health. These supplementary rules do not propose or implement any land use limitations or restrictions other than those included within the BLM's decisions in the King Range NCA Approved RMP, or allowed under existing law or regulation.

NMFS announces that the directed fishery for Loligo squid in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) will be closed effective 0001 hours, May 23, 2006. Vessels issued a Federal permit to harvest Loligo squid may not retain or land more than 2,500 lb (1,134 kg) of Loligo squid per trip for the remainder of the quarter (through June 30, 2006). This action is necessary to prevent the fishery from exceeding its Quarter II quota and to allow for effective management of this stock.