September 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Raytheon Aircraft Company (RAC) Models 1900, 1900C, and 1900D airplanes. This AD contains the same information as emergency AD 2006- 18-51 and publishes the action in the Federal Register. This AD requires you to do a one-time visual inspection of both the left and right wing rear spar lower caps for cracking and other damage such as loose or missing fasteners; repair any cracks or damage found; and report any cracks or damage found to the FAA and RAC. This AD results from extensive cracks found in the wing rear spar lower caps and rear spar web of two of the affected airplanes. One of the airplanes also had missing fasteners. We are issuing this AD to detect and correct cracking and other damage in the wing rear spar lower caps of the affected airplanes before the cracks or damage lead to failure. Such a wing failure could result in the wing separating from the airplane with consequent loss of control.

EPA is proposing amendments to the ``Standards of Performance for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills'' (Landfills NSPS), to the ``Emission Guidelines and Compliance Times for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills'' (landfills emission guidelines), to the ``National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Municipal Solid Waste Landfills'' (Landfills NESHAP), and to the ``Federal Plan Requirements for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills that Commenced Construction Prior to May 30, 1991 and Have Not Been Modified or Reconstructed since May 30, 1991'' (landfills Federal plan). The proposed amendments to the Landfills NSPS are supplemental amendments to those proposed on May 23, 2002. Based on public comments on the proposed amendments and additional analysis, we are proposing supplemental amendments to the Landfills NSPS to clarify what constitutes treated landfill gas. We are also proposing amendments to the Landfills NSPS, emission guidelines, Federal plan, and Landfills NESHAP to clarify who is responsible for compliance activities where multiple parties are involved in the ownership or operation of a landfill and the associated landfill gas collection, control, and/or treatment systems. In addition, we are proposing revisions to both the Landfills NSPS and the Landfills NESHAP regarding startup, shutdown, malfunction, and routine maintenance. The proposed amendments to the Landfills NSPS would also serve to amend the emission guidelines and the Federal plan for existing municipal solid waste landfills because these rules incorporate the provisions of the ``Standards of Performance for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills.'' We are proposing changes to the emission guidelines and Federal plan themselves to reflect the proposed changes to the Landfills NSPS where these rules did not directly incorporate the provisions of the Landfills NSPS.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is adopting amendments to the disclosure requirements for executive and director compensation, related person transactions, director independence and other corporate governance matters and security ownership of officers and directors. These amendments apply to disclosure in proxy and information statements, periodic reports, current reports and other filings under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and to registration statements under the Exchange Act and the Securities Act of 1933. We are also adopting a requirement that disclosure under the amended items generally be provided in plain English. The amendments are intended to make proxy and information statements, reports and registration statements easier to understand. They are also intended to provide investors with a clearer and more complete picture of the compensation earned by a company's principal executive officer, principal financial officer and highest paid executive officers and members of its board of directors. In addition, they are intended to provide better information about key financial relationships among companies and their executive officers, directors, significant shareholders and their respective immediate family members. In Release No. 33-8735, published elsewhere in the proposed rules section of this issue of the Federal Register, we also request additional comments regarding the proposal to require compensation disclosure for three additional highly compensated employees.

The Commander, First Coast Guard District, has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the U.S. 1 Bridge, across the Housatonic River, mile 3.5, at Stratford, Connecticut. Under this temporary deviation, only one of the two moveable bascule spans will be opened for the passage of vessel traffic. This deviation is necessary to facilitate scheduled bridge maintenance.

This notice proposes special conditions for the Airbus A380- 800 airplane. This airplane will have novel or unusual design features when compared to the state of technology envisioned in the airworthiness standards for transport category airplanes. The Airbus A380-800 will incorporate the use of high capacity lithium ion battery technology in on-board systems. For this design feature, the applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards regarding lithium ion batteries. These proposed 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. Additional special conditions will be issued for other novel or unusual design features of the Airbus Model A380-800 airplane.

This final rule revises delegations of authority to carry out the Federal hazardous material transportation law, as amended by the Hazardous Materials Transportation Safety and Security Reauthorization Act of 2005 (Title VII of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users or ``SAFETEA-LU''), and in accordance with the Norman Y. Mineta Research and Special Programs Improvement Act, Public Law 108-426, 118 Stat. 2423 (November 30, 2004) (Mineta Act) that were previously published in 71 FR 30828 (May 31, 2006). This final rule also adds delegations of authority to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) to carry out certain provisions of SAFETEA-LU.

The Federal Communications Commission published a document in the Federal Register on December 28, 2005, revising Commission rules. That document contained discrepancies between the text of the order and the final rules set forth at Sec. 90.677. This document corrects the final regulations by revising 47 CFR 90.677.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is adopting, as a final rule, without change, an interim final rule revising the quantity of Class 3 (Native) spearmint oil that handlers may purchase from, or handle for, producers during the 2006-2007 marketing year. This rule continues in effect the action that increased the Native spearmint oil salable quantity from 1,007,886 pounds to 1,161,260 pounds, and the allotment percentage from 46 percent to 53 percent. The marketing order regulates the handling of spearmint oil produced in the Far West and is administered locally by the Spearmint Oil Administrative Committee (Committee). The Committee recommended this rule for the purpose of avoiding extreme fluctuations in supplies and prices to help maintain stability in the Far West spearmint oil market.

This rule changes how the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) handles certain claims under the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) for ``tropical'' regions, including Hawaii, Puerto Rico and other specified areas. The changes will reduce the burden on the affected program participants and ease program administration in the affected areas.

The Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS or Sanctuary) was designated in January 1992, and consists of three separate areas in the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico, known as East Flower Garden, West Flower Garden and Stetson Banks. The present management plan for the Sanctuary was completed at the time of designation. In accordance with Section 304(e) of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, as amended, (NMSA) (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.), the National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is initiating a review of the management plan, to evaluate substantive progress toward implementing the goals for the Sanctuary, and to make revisions to the plan and regulations as necessary to fulfill the purposes and policies of the NMSA. The proposed revised management plan will likely involve changes to existing policies and regulations of the Sanctuary, to address contemporary issues and challenges, and to better protect and manage the Sanctuary's resources and qualities. The review process is composed of four major stages: Information collection and characterization; preparation and release of a draft management plan/environmental impact statement, and any proposed amendments to the regulations; public review and comment; and preparation and release of a final management plan/environmental impact statement, and any final amendments to the regulations. NOAA anticipates completion of the revised management plan and concomitant documents will require approximately eighteen to twenty-four months. NOAA will conduct public scoping meetings to gather information and other comments from individuals, organizations, and government agencies on the scope, types and significance of issues related to the Sanctuary's management plan and regulations. The scoping meetings are scheduled for October 17, 19, and 24, 2006, as detailed below.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) maintains the Commerce Control List (CCL), which identifies items subject to Department of Commerce export controls. This final rule revises the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to implement changes made to the Wassenaar Arrangement's List of Dual-Use Goods and Technologies (Wassenaar List), and Statements of Understanding maintained and agreed to by governments participating in the Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies (Wassenaar Arrangement, or WA.) The Wassenaar Arrangement advocates implementation of effective export controls on strategic items with the objective of improving regional and international security and stability. To accommodate the changes to the Wassenaar List, this rule revises the EAR by amending certain entries that are controlled for national security reasons in Categories 1, 2, 3, 5 Part I (Telecommunications), 5 Part II (Information Security), 6, 8, and 9, and by amending the EAR Definitions. The purpose of this final rule is to make the necessary changes to the CCL, definitions of terms used in the EAR, and Wassenaar reporting requirements to implement Wassenaar List revisions that were agreed upon in the December 2005 Wassenaar Arrangement Plenary Meeting. In addition, this rule adds Croatia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, South Africa, and Malta to the list of Wassenaar participating states in the EAR, which brings the total number of participating states to 40. This rule also adds or expands unilateral U.S. controls and national security controls on certain items to make them consistent with the amendments made to implement the Wassenaar Arrangement's decisions.

These special conditions are issued for the installation of an AmSafe, Inc., Inflatable Three-Point Restraint Safety Belt with an Integrated Airbag Device on Diamond models DA40 and DA42. These airplanes, as modified by the installation of this Inflatable Safety Belt, will have novel and unusual design features associated with the upper-torso restraint portions of the three-point safety belt, which contains an integrated airbag device. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. 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.

This action proposes to modify VOR Federal Airway V-2 over the East Central United States to support modified arrival and departure procedures to the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), Detroit, Michigan. These procedures were modified in conjunction with the Midwest AirSpace Enhancement (MASE) project. The FAA is proposing this action to enhance safety and to improve the efficient use of the navigable airspace assigned to the Chicago and Cleveland Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCC).

The Bureau of Industry and Security is revising the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) by amending a general order published on June 5, 2006 in the Federal Register to add nine additional entities related to Mayrow General Trading. That general order imposed a license requirement for exports and reexports of all items subject to EAR where the transaction involved Mayrow General Trading or entities related, as specified in that general order. The order also prohibited the use of License Exceptions for exports or reexports of any items subject to the EAR involving such entities. This rule will add the following entities related to Mayrow General Trading to that general order: Akbar Ashraf Vaghefi (Germany and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)), Neda Overseas Electronics L.L.C. (UAE), Mostafa Salehi (UAE), IKCO Trading GmbH (Germany), Pyramid Technologies (UAE), A.H. Shamnad (UAE), S. Basheer (UAE), Hamed Athari (UAE), and Mayrow Technics Co. (UAE). In addition, this rule will spell out the full name and provide a pseudonym of one of the previous entities listed in the general order, F.N. Yaghmaei, as Farrokh Nia Yaghmaei, a.k.a., Farrokh Nia Yaghmayi.

This document amends the Federal Management Regulation (FMR) to extend the implementation date of the Real Property Policies section entitled ``What standards must facilities subject to the Architectural Barriers Act meet?,'' which was published in the Federal Register, at 70 FR 67846, on November 8, 2005. The implementation date of the section previously was extended to August 7, 2006, but only with respect to leasing actions. The implementation date of the section, currently August 7, 2006, is hereby further extended to February 6, 2007, but only for leasing actions (other than those where the Government expressly requires new construction to meet its needs) where solicitations have not been issued by February 6, 2007. The May 8, 2006, implementation date remains unchanged with respect to Federal construction or alteration projects. The August 7, 2006, implementation date remains unchanged with respect to lease projects where new construction is required by the Government to meet its needs. Except as expressly modified by this final rule, all other terms and conditions of the Architectural Barriers Act standards remain in full force and effect.

EPA is taking direct final action to amend the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) section 8(a) Inventory Update Reporting (IUR) regulations to allow the electronic submission of information and to make several minor corrections. For the first time, in 2006, reporters of IUR data will be able to use the Internet, through EPA's Central Data Exchange (CDX), to submit information on their chemicals to EPA. In addition, EPA will continue to allow IUR submissions either on CD ROM or on paper. EPA is also correcting two paragraph cross- references and a section heading. Additionally, EPA is clarifying requirements for the reporting of company identification information.

EPA is revising the format of materials submitted by the state of Michigan that are incorporated by reference (IBR) into its State Implementation Plan (SIP). The regulations affected by this format change have all been previously submitted by Michigan and approved by EPA. This format revision will primarily affect the ``Identification of plan'' section, as well as the format of the SIP materials that will be available for public inspection at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center located at EPA Headquarters in Washington, DC, and the EPA Region 5 Office. EPA is also adding a table in the ``Identification of plan'' section which summarizes the approval actions that EPA has taken on the non-regulatory and quasi-regulatory portions of the Michigan SIP. The sections pertaining to provisions promulgated by EPA or state- submitted materials not subject to IBR review remain unchanged.

The Office of Justice Programs (``OJP'') is finalizing the following regulation with minor modifications as a result of comments concerning the original notice of proposed rulemaking published at 70 FR 49518-49525, on August 24, 2005. This regulation implements provisions of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (the ``VOCA'') (42 U.S.C. 10601 et seq.), which authorize the Director of the Office for Victims of Crime (``OVC''), a component of OJP, to establish an International Terrorism Victim Expense Reimbursement Program (hereinafter referred to as the ``ITVERP'') to reimburse eligible ``direct'' victims of acts of international terrorism that occur outside the United States for ``expenses associated with that victimization.''

NMFS announces that the New England Fishery Management Council (Council) has submitted Amendment 1 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan (FMP) (Amendment 1), incorporating the draft Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS), Regulatory Impact Review (RIR), and the Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA), for Secretarial review and is requesting comments from the public. The proposed measures include: A limited access program; an open access incidental catch permit; a change in the management area boundaries; establishment of a purse seine/fixed gear-only area; establishment of a Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) proxy; an approach to determining the distribution of area-specific total allowable catches (TACs); a multi- year specifications process; a research quota set-aside for herring- related research; set-asides for fixed gear fisheries; a change in the midwater trawl gear definition; and additional measures that could be implemented through the framework adjustment process. The intent of this action is to provide efficient management of the Atlantic herring fishery and to meet conservation objectives.

This regulation establishes increased tolerances for residues of propoxycarbazone in or on wheat forage, meat byproducts and milk. Bayer CropScience requested this tolerance under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), as amended by the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA).

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain aviation tires installed on various transport category airplanes. This AD requires a one-time inspection of the nosewheel tires to determine if they are within a designated serial number range, and replacement if necessary. This AD results from reports of tread separations and tread-area bulges on the nosewheel tires. We are issuing this AD to prevent tread separation from a nosewheel tire during takeoff or landing, which could result in compromised nosewheel steering or ingestion of separated tread by an engine, and consequent reduced controllability of the airplane on the runway or in the air.

The FAA is superseding an existing airworthiness directive (AD), which applies to certain McDonnell Douglas Model DC-9-10, DC-9- 20, DC-9-30, DC-9-40, and DC-9-50 series airplanes. That AD currently requires a one-time inspection at a certain disconnect panel in the left forward cargo compartment to find contamination of electrical connectors and to determine if a dripshield is installed over the disconnect panel, and corrective actions if necessary. This new AD revises the applicability of the existing AD by removing certain airplanes and adding others. This AD results from a report of electrical arcing that resulted in a fire. We are issuing this AD to prevent contamination of certain electrical connectors, which could cause electrical arcing and consequent fire on the airplane.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Airbus Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 airplanes. This AD requires revising the Limitations section of the airplane flight manual (AFM); performing a one-time hardness test of certain ribs of the left- and right-hand engine pylons, as applicable, which would terminate the AFM limitations; and performing related corrective actions if necessary. This AD results from a report that certain stainless steel ribs installed in the engine pylon may not have been heat-treated during manufacture, which could result in significantly reduced structural integrity of the pylon. We are issuing this AD to detect and correct reduced structural integrity of the engine pylon, which could lead to separation of the engine from the airplane.

EPA is proposing to approve a January 4, 2006, request from Illinois for a site specific revision to the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the Ford Motor Company (Ford). The revision will allow Ford to discontinue use of its Stage II vapor recovery system (Stage II) at its Chicago Assembly Plant. In place of Stage II, Ford will comply with the standards of the Federal onboard refueling vapor recovery (ORVR) regulations, as well as meet other minor conditions. The exclusive use of ORVR will provide at least an equivalent amount of gasoline vapor capture as Stage II.