April 17, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Notice is hereby given that NOAA Fisheries Office of Science and Technology (Principal Investigator: Dr. Brandon Southall), Silver Spring, MD, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct scientific research on marine mammals.

This part contains uniform Department of Defense policies for indebtedness of Military Personnel. This updated rule contains editorial changes only as required for internal Department of Defense mandated reconsideration every five years.

On November 24, 2006, the Department of Commerce (the Department) published the preliminary results of review in this proceeding. See Honey from Argentina: Preliminary Results of New Shipper Review, 71 FR 67850 (November 24, 2006) (Preliminary Results). This new shipper review covers one exporter, Patagonik S.A. (Patagonik) and its affiliated supplier, Colmenares Santa Rosa (CSR), of subject merchandise to the United States. The period of review (POR) is December 1, 2004, to December 31, 2005. The petitioners are the Sioux Honey Association and the American Honey Producers Association. Based on our analysis of comments received, the margin calculation for these final results does not differ from the preliminary results.

The proposed information collection requirement described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. The Department is soliciting public comments on the subject proposal.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit a continuing Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This is a request for an existing approved collection. This ICR is scheduled to expire on August 31, 2007. Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described below.

The International Code Council (ICC), under whose auspices the International Codes (``I-Codes'') are developed, maintains a process for updating these model codes based on receipt of proposals from interested individuals and organizations. The ICC's 14 separately published codes are each comprehensively updated and re-published every three years with a supplement released between each edition. The most current versions of the I-Codes are the 2006 editions. The 2007 supplement to the 2006 editions, the subject of this notice, will be released in July of 2007. The purpose of this notice is to invite public participation in the Final Action Hearings of the present code development cycle that concludes in the publication of the 2007 supplement to the 2006 edition. Consistent with the procedures of the Governmental Consensus Process, following committee action taken at the Code Development Hearings held in September 2006, the ICC published the result of the hearings and invited and received public comment. At the Final Action Hearings contested proposals will again be publicly debated followed by membership action to approve or reject each scheduled item. The publication of this notice by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on behalf of ICC is being undertaken as a public service. NIST does not necessarily endorse, approve, or recommend any of the codes or standards referenced in the notice. Session Dates: The Final Action Hearings of the 2006/2007 Code Development Cycle will occur between May 21 and May 26, 2007, at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center, Rochester, New York. The agenda for the hearing as well as updates to the schedule are also posted on the ICC Web site at: https://www.iccsafe.org.

The Defense Trade Advisory Group (DTAG) will meet in open session from 9 a.m. to 12 noon on Thursday, September 20, 2007, in the East Auditorium at the U.S. Department of State, Harry S. Truman Building, Washington, DC. Entry and registration will begin at 8:15 a.m. Please use the building entrance located at 21st Street, NW., Washington, DC between C&D Streets. The membership of this advisory committee consists of private sector defense trade specialists, appointed by the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs, who advise the Department on policies, regulations, and technical issues affecting defense trade. The purpose of the meeting will be to discuss current defense trade issues and topics for further study. Members of the public may attend this open session and will be permitted to participate in the discussion in accordance with the Chairman's instructions. They may also, if they wish, submit a brief statement to the committee in writing. As access to the Department of State facilities is controlled, persons wishing to attend the meeting must notify the DTAG Executive Secretariat by COB Thursday, September 13, 2007. If notified after this date, the DTAG Secretariat cannot guarantee that State's Bureau of Diplomatic Security can complete the necessary processing required to attend the September 20th plenary. Each non-member observer or DTAG member that wishes to attend this plenary session should provide: His/her name; company or organizational affiliation; phone number; date of birth; and identifying data such as driver's license number, U.S. Government ID, or U.S. Military ID, to the DTAG Secretariat contact person, Nicholas Memos, via e-mail at MemosNI@state.gov. A RSVP list will be provided to Diplomatic Security. One of the following forms of valid photo identification will be required for admission: U.S. driver's license, passport, U.S. Government ID, or other valid photo ID.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency invites nominations to fill vacancies on its Children's Health Protection Advisory Committee (CHPAC). The Agency seeks qualified senior-level decisionmakers from diverse sectors throughout the United States to be considered for appointments. EPA encourages interested applicants to send their resumes and qualifications as soon as possible. Additional avenues and resources may be utilized in the solicitation of nominees.

Under current Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program regulations, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) may waive the eligibility requirements for health benefits coverage as an annuitant for an individual when, in its sole discretion, it determines that it would be against equity and good conscience not to allow a person to be enrolled in the FEHB Program as an annuitant. The regulations state that an individual's failure to satisfy eligibility requirements must be due to exceptional circumstances. They also list specific situations where a waiver will not be granted by OPM such as when an individual's retirement is based on a disability or an involuntary separation, or when an individual was misadvised by his/her employing office. This final regulation eliminates these specific situations from the regulation. This final regulation provides OPM with more flexibility when granting waivers.

This notice is to request nominations for the National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center Advisory Board. The seven member terms on the Board expired December 29, 2006. The Board provides advice and recommendations to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on resource management issues associated with the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is confirming the effective date of April 17, 2007, for the direct final rule that was published in the Federal Register on February 1, 2007 (72 FR 4615). This direct final rule amended the NRC's regulations to revise the Transnuclear, Inc., Standardized NUHOMS[supreg] System listing to include Amendment No. 9 to Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1004.

The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed and continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507. The Office of Thrift Supervision within the Department of the Treasury will submit the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Today, OTS is soliciting public comments on its proposal to extend this information collection.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is issuing proposed regulations to revise the criteria for Internal Revenue Service (IRS) broadbanding systems. The proposed regulations would provide the Department of the Treasury with the flexibility, in coordination with OPM, to establish broader bands for covered IRS employees. The proposed regulations also would establish a more direct relationship between pay and performance. Finally, the proposed regulations would revise the criteria consistent with the changes in the General Schedule pay administration rules made by the Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2004 and OPM implementing regulations.

As stipulated by the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is hereby giving notice that the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports will hold a meeting. This meeting is open to the public. A description of the Council's functions is included with this notice.

The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces that a draft environmental assessment (EA) for an interim Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge) Horse and Burro Management Program (Program) is available for review and comment. The EA provides a consolidated and updated National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) evaluation of the Sheldon Refuge Program. The EA analyzes the environmental effects of various alternatives for managing the Refuge's horses and burros until a Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) for the Refuge is completed.

We plan to revise the U.S. standards for Whole Dry Peas, Split Peas, and Lentils to provide applicants for service with an optional grade designation for pea and lentil certification and to remove the requirement that, in the case of Mixed Dry Peas, the percentage of each class in the mixture be shown on the grade line.

The Mid-Pacific Regional Office of the Bureau of Reclamation is proposing guidelines to provide Mid-Pacific Region field, area, and Regional Office employees with the information necessary to consistently and accurately account for water transfers between all contractors who receive CVP water under water service, repayment, settlement, or exchange contracts. Comments on the guidelines are being requested.