February 23, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold its 137th meeting to consider and take actions on fishery management issues in the Western Pacific Region.

We are amending the regulations to remove vapor heat treatment as an approved treatment for bell pepper, eggplant, Italian squash, and tomato moved interstate from Hawaii. This action is necessary because these four commodities can serve as hosts for the solanum fruit fly, which has been detected in Hawaii. Vapor heat treatment is not an approved treatment for that pest. We are also providing for the use of irradiation as an approved treatment for all Capsicum spp. (peppers) and Cucurbita spp. (squash) moved interstate from Hawaii. This action will relieve unnecessary restrictions on the interstate movement of peppers and squash and allow a greater variety of Capsicum spp. and Cucurbita spp. to be moved interstate from Hawaii.

EPA is proposing to revise the EPA Acquisition Regulation (EPAAR) Subparts 1523 and 1552 to establish policy and procedures for acquiring environmentally preferable meeting and conference services. This proposed EPAAR revision will add a prescription and solicitation provision that Agency employees will be required to use when soliciting quotes or offers for meeting and conference space and services. The solicitation provision will require meeting and conference venues to provide EPA with information about environmentally preferable features and practices in use at their facilities. As stated in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), environmentally preferable products and services are those ``that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment when compared with competing products or services that serve the same purpose.'' The intent of this rule is to ensure that environmental preferability is considered in each purchase of commercial meeting and conference services, which furthers the EPA mission to protect human health and the environment. This action revises the EPAAR, but does not impose any new requirements on Agency contractors. The procedure will require Agency employees to request information from prospective meeting venues about their environmentally preferable (green) practices for consideration in the award decision, thus encouraging the industry to adopt more of these practices so that we will be more likely to do business with them. This rule imposes no requirement or standard that a facility must meet in order to do business with us.

This advance notice of proposed rulemaking is related to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) surface management regulations for mining operations authorized by the Mining Law. In a previous Federal district court proceeding, environmental groups challenged the BLM's regulations on surface management under the Mining Law in 43 CFR subpart 3809, issued by the Department in 2001, in part, because the regulations did not require fair market value payment for the use of Federal lands for mining operations when the lands are ``invalidly claimed'' or unclaimed under the Mining Law. For the most part, the court upheld the 3809 regulations, but remanded them in part to the Department ``for evaluation, in light of Congress's expressed policy goal for the United States to `receive fair market value of the use of the public lands and their resources.' '' This advance notice of proposed rulemaking is intended to assist the BLM in the evaluation ordered by the Court.

The Coast Guard is updating the rates for pilotage service on the Great Lakes for the 2007 navigation season. This increases pilotage rates an average of 22.62% across all three pilotage districts over the last ratemaking that was completed in April of 2006. Annual reviews of pilotage rates are required by law to ensure that sufficient revenues are generated to cover the annual projected allowable expenses, target pilot compensation, and returns on investment of the pilot associations. The Coast Guard requests public comment on its calculation of these rate increases.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone in all navigable waters of the Captain of the Port Baltimore zone. The temporary safety zone restricts vessels from transiting the zone during ice season, unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Baltimore, Maryland or designated representative through the issuance of broadcast notice to mariners and marine safety information bulletins. This safety zone is necessary to protect mariners from the hazards associated with ice.

This action will establish the Class E airspace at Nucla, CO. Additional Class E airspace is necessary to accommodate aircraft using a new Area Navigation (RNAV) Global Positioning System (GPS) Standard Instrument Approach Procedure (SIAP) at Hopkins Field. This will improve the safety of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) aircraft executing the new RNAV GPS SIAP at Hopkins Field, Nucla, CO.

This action proposes to establish Class E airspace at Beaver, UT. Additional controlled airspace is necessary to accommodate aircraft using a new Area Navigation (RNAV) Global Positioning System (GPS) Standard Instrument Approach Procedure (SIAP) at Beaver Municipal Airport. The FAA is proposing this action to enhance the safety and management of aircraft operations at Beaver Municipal Airport, Beaver, UT.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain SAP cast cylinder assemblies installed in Teledyne Continental Motors (TCM) 470, 520, and 550 series reciprocating engines, Lycoming Engines (LE) 320, 360, and 540 series reciprocating engines, Avco Lycoming (AL) 540 series reciprocating engines, and Superior Air Parts, Inc. (SAP) 360 series reciprocating engines. This AD requires removing from service certain SAP part numbered (P/N) cast cylinder assemblies installed in TCM, LE, and AL reciprocating engines. This AD also requires removing from service certain cast cylinder assemblies installed as original equipment in SAP reciprocating engines, or in certain overhauled or repaired SAP reciprocating engines. This AD results from nine separated SAP cylinder assemblies in TCM reciprocating engines and one in LE reciprocating engines. We are issuing this AD to prevent cylinder separation that can lead to engine failure, a possible engine compartment fire, and damage to the airplane.

Pursuant to section 343(a) of the Trade Act of 2002 and implementing regulations, truck carriers and other eligible parties are required to transmit advance electronic truck cargo information to the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) through a CBP-approved electronic data interchange. In a previous notice, CBP designated the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Truck Manifest System as the approved interchange and announced that the requirement that advance electronic cargo information be transmitted through ACE would be phased in by groups of ports of entry. This notice announces that at all land border ports in Michigan and New York, truck carriers will be required to file electronic manifests through the ACE Truck Manifest System.

NMFS is reopening directed fishing for pollock in Statistical Area 630 of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) for 48 hours. This action is necessary to allow full harvest of the A season allowance of the 2007 total allowable catch (TAC) of pollock specified for Statistical Area 630 of the GOA.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing the effective date for the information collection requirements contained in a final rule published in the Federal Register of August 25, 2000 (65 FR 51758). The rule amended FDA's regulations on food additive and color additive petitions to permit an efficient joint review by both FDA and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), of petitions for approval to use a food ingredient or source of radiation in or on meat or poultry products. An information collection requirement cannot be instituted unless it is reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (the PRA), approved by OMB, and assigned an OMB control number. OMB's approval of the information collection requirements of the August 25, 2000, final rule was announced in the Federal Register of March 1, 2001 (66 FR 12938), and these requirements are currently approved under OMB control number 0910-0016. Accordingly, FDA is announcing that the information collection requirements of the August 25, 2000, final rule will go into effect on March 26, 2007.