2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We are extending further for smaller public companies the dates that were published on September 29, 2005, in Release No. 33-8618 [70 FR 56825], for their compliance with the internal control reporting requirements mandated by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Under the extension, a non-accelerated filer is not required to provide management's report on internal control over financial reporting until it files an annual report for its first fiscal year ending on or after December 15, 2007. If we have not issued additional guidance for management on how to complete its assessment of internal control over financial reporting in time to be of sufficient assistance in connection with annual reports filed for fiscal years ending on or after December 15, 2007, we will consider whether we should further postpone this date. A non-accelerated filer is not required to file the auditor's attestation report on internal control over financial reporting until it files an annual report for its first fiscal year ending on or after December 15, 2008. We will consider further postponing this date after we consider the anticipated revisions to Auditing Standard No. 2. Management's report included in a non-accelerated filer's annual report during the filer's first year of compliance with the Section 404(a) requirements will be deemed ``furnished'' rather than filed. Management's report for foreign private issuers filing on Form 20-F or 40-F that are accelerated filers (but not large accelerated filers) also will be deemed furnished rather than filed for the year that such issuers are only required to provide management's report. Companies that only provide management's report during their first year of compliance in accordance with our rules must state in the annual report that the report does not include the auditor's attestation report and that the company's registered public accounting firm has not attested to management's report on the company's internal control over financial reporting. We also are adopting amendments that provide for a transition period for a newly public company before it becomes subject to the internal control over financial reporting requirements. Under the new amendments, a company will not become subject to these requirements until it either had been required to file an annual report for the prior fiscal year with the Commission or had filed an annual report with the Commission for the prior fiscal year. A newly public company is required to include a statement in its first annual report that the annual report does not include either management's assessment on the company's internal control over financial reporting or the auditor's attestation report.

In accordance with relevant provisions of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is providing notice of its determination of the trade surplus in certain sugar and syrup goods and sugar-containing products of Chile, Morocco, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. As described below, the level of a country's trade surplus in these goods relates to the quantity of sugar and syrup goods and sugar-containing products for which the United States grants preferential tariff treatment under (i) The United StatesChile Free Trade Agreement (Chile FTA), in the case of Chile; (ii) the United StatesMorocco Free Trade Agreement (Morocco FTA), in the case of Morocco; and (iii) the Dominican RepublicCentral AmericaUnited States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), in the case of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521), this notice announces that the Office of Policy, Planning and Preparedness (OPP&P), Department of Veterans Affairs, has submitted the collection of information for the Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission as 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.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-13, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

The Bureau of Prisons (Bureau) is revising its regulations on procedures for reductions in sentence (RIS) for medical reasons. 28 CFR Part 571, Subpart G, is currently entitled ``Compassionate Release (Procedures for the Implementation of 18 U.S.C. 3582(c)(1)(A)(i) and 4205(g)).'' We are revising these regulations to (1) more accurately reflect our authority under these statutes and our current policy, (2) clarify procedures for RIS consideration, and (3) describe procedures for RIS consideration of D.C. Code offenders, for whom the Bureau has responsibility under the National Capital Revitalization and Self- Government Improvement Act of 1997 (D.C. Revitalization Act), D.C. Official Code Sec. 24-101(b). The new Subpart G will be entitled ``Reduction in Sentence for Medical Reasons.''

This document makes a correction to Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2006-23-02, which was published in the Federal Register on November 8, 2006 (71 FR 65390), and applies to certain Raytheon Aircraft Company (RAC) (formerly Beech) Models C90A, B200, B200C, B300, and B300C airplanes. AD 2006-23-02 requires you to inspect the flight controls for improper assembly or damage, and if any improperly assembled or damaged flight controls are found, take corrective action. We proposed in the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) ``unless already done'' credit if the actions were already accomplished. However, we inadvertently left that language out of paragraph (e) of AD 2006-23-02. This document corrects that paragraph by inserting the phrase ``unless already done.''

This proposal would enhance the security of our Nation's rail transportation system. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) proposes security requirements for freight railroad carriers; intercity, commuter, and short-haul passenger train service providers; rail transit systems; and rail operations at certain, fixed-site facilities that ship or receive specified hazardous materials by rail. This rule proposes to codify the scope of TSA's existing inspection program and to require regulated parties to allow TSA and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials to enter, inspect, and test property, facilities, and records relevant to rail security. This rule also proposes that regulated parties designate rail security coordinators and report significant security concerns to DHS. TSA further proposes that freight rail carriers and certain facilities handling hazardous materials be equipped to report location and shipping information to TSA upon request and to implement chain of custody requirements to ensure a positive and secure exchange of specified hazardous materials. TSA also proposes to clarify and extend the sensitive security information (SSI) protections to cover certain information associated with rail transportation. This proposal would allow TSA to enhance rail security by coordinating its activities with other Federal agencies, which would also avoid duplicative inspections and minimize the compliance burden on the regulated parties. This proposed rule is intended to augment existing rail transportation laws and regulations that the Department of Transportation (DOT) administers. In today's edition of the Federal Register, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is publishing an NPRM proposing to revise the current requirements in the Hazardous Materials Regulations applicable to the safe and secure transportation of hazardous materials transported in commerce by rail.

FMCSA proposes regulations for entities offering intermodal chassis to motor carriers for transportation of intermodal containers in interstate commerce. As mandated by section 4118 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), this rulemaking would require intermodal equipment providers (IEPs) to register and file with FMCSA an Intermodal Equipment Provider Identification Report (Form MCS-150C); display the USDOT Number, or other unique identifier, on each intermodal container chassis offered for transportation in interstate commerce; establish a systematic inspection, repair, and maintenance program to ensure the safe operating condition of each intermodal container chassis; maintain documentation of the program; and provide a means to effectively respond to driver and motor carrier reports about intermodal container chassis mechanical defects and deficiencies. The proposed regulations would for the first time make IEPs subject to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). The agency is also proposing additional inspection requirements for motor carriers and drivers operating intermodal equipment. The intent of this rulemaking is to ensure that intermodal equipment used to transport intermodal containers is safe and systematically maintained. Improved maintenance is expected to result in fewer out-of-service orders and highway breakdowns involving intermodal chassis and improved efficiency of the Nation's intermodal transportation system. To whatever extent inadequately maintained intermodal chassis are responsible for, or contribute to, crashes, this proposal would also help to ensure that commercial motor vehicle (CMV) operations are safer.

The Technical Guidelines Development Committee (the ``Development Committee'') was established to act in the public interest to assist the Executive Director of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) in the development of voluntary voting system guidelines. The Committee held their first plenary meeting on July 9, 2004. At this meeting, the Development Committee agreed to a resolution forming three working groups: (1) Human Factors & Privacy; (2) Security & Transparency; and (3) Core Requirements & Testing to gather and analyze information on relevant issues. These working subcommittees propose resolutions to the TGDC on best practices, specifications and standards. Specifically, NIST staff and Committee members will meet via the above scheduled teleconferences to review and discuss progress on tasks defined in resolutions passed at Development Committee plenary meetings. The resolutions define technical work tasks for NIST that will assist the Committee in developing recommendations for voluntary voting system guidelines. The Committee met in its seventh plenary session on December 4-5, 2007. Documents and transcriptions of Committee proceedings are available at: https:// vote.nist.gov/PublicHearingsandMeetings.html.

NMFS announces that the summer flounder commercial quota available to New Jersey has been harvested. Vessels issued a commercial Federal fisheries permit for the summer flounder fishery may not land summer flounder in New Jersey for the remainder of calendar year 2006, unless additional quota becomes available through a transfer from another state. Regulations governing the summer flounder fishery require publication of this notification to advise New Jersey that the quota has been harvested and to advise vessel permit holders and dealer permit holders that no commercial quota is available for landing summer flounder in New Jersey.

This notice announces the fifth meeting of the American Health Information Community Quality Workgroup in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. No. 92-463, 5 U.S.C., App.).

This notice announces the 12th meeting of the American Health Information Community Electronic Health Records Workgroup in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. No. 92-463, 5 U.S.C., App.).

This notice announces the sixth meeting of the American Health Information Community Confidentiality, Privacy and Security Workgroup in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. No. 92- 463, 5 U.S.C., App.).

This notice announces the first meeting of the American Health Information Community Personalized Healthcare Workgroup in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463, 5 U.S.C., App.)