July 13, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document contains corrections to final regulations that were published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, April 17, 2007 (73 FR 19234), relating to section 409A.

This rule decreases the assessment rate established for the Washington-Oregon Fresh Prune Marketing Committee (Committee) for the 2007-2008 and subsequent fiscal periods from $1.75 to $1.00 per ton of prunes handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order, which regulates the handling of fresh prunes grown in designated counties in Washington and in Umatilla County, Oregon. Assessments upon fresh prune handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period began April 1 and ends March 31. The assessment rate will remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

This rule would increase the assessment rate established for the Washington Apricot Marketing Committee (Committee) for the 2007- 2008 and subsequent fiscal periods from $1.00 to $1.50 per ton for Washington apricots. The Committee is responsible for local administration of the marketing order regulating the handling of apricots grown in designated counties in Washington. Assessments upon handlers of apricots are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period for the marketing order begins April 1 and ends March 31. The assessment rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended or terminated.

The Coast Guard will enforce the Milwaukee Harbor Safety Zone in Milwaukee Harbor during June through September 2007. This action is necessary to protect vessels and people from the hazards associated with fireworks displays. This safety zone will restrict vessel traffic from a portion of the Captain of the Port Lake Michigan Zone.

The Employment Standards Administration's Office of Labor- Management Standards (``OLMS'') of the Department of Labor is correcting a final rule that appeared in the Federal Register of July 2, 2007, (72 FR 36106). That document revised the Form LM-30, Labor Organization Officer and Employee Report, its instructions, and related provisions in the Department's regulations. In that document, the effective date of the final rule (August 16, 2007) was omitted from one paragraph in the preamble and the beginning date for the mandatory submission of Form LM-30 reports filed under the final rule (November 16, 2008) was inadvertently omitted from the same paragraph. This document corrects those omissions.

This document contains proposed regulations relating to the information reporting requirements, information reporting penalties, and backup withholding requirements for payment card transactions. The proposed regulations in this document affect payors (and their authorized agents) and payees of certain reportable payments and provide guidance necessary to comply with the law. The proposed regulations are necessary to address implementation and notice furnishing issues that arose after publication of final regulations under section 3406(g) that were published in the Federal Register on July 13, 2004 in Treasury decision 9136 (69 FR 41928). This document also provides notice of a public hearing on these proposed regulations.

The Rural Utilities Service, an agency delivering the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Utilities Programs, hereinafter referred to as Rural Development, proposes to amend its regulation on accounting policies and procedures for Rural Development Electric Programs borrowers as set forth in 7 CFR Part 1767, Accounting Requirements for Rural Development Electric Program Borrowers. This proposed rule seeks to reconcile Part 1767 with the Uniform System of Accounts as set forth by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC); to adopt FERC accounting guidance for Regional Transmission Organizations, Asset Retirement Obligations with modifications, Other Comprehensive Income, and Derivatives and Hedging Instruments; to amend accounting interpretations for Special Equipment Accounting, Storm Damage, Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant Program and Consolidated Financial Statements; to set forth accounting interpretations that establish uniform reporting procedures for Accounting for Cushion of Credit Accounts and Renewable Energy Credits, and to codify guidance on records retention currently published in Bulletin 180-2. This proposed rule also seeks to correct a number of administrative errors currently existing within this part.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through the United States Coast Guard (Coast Guard), issues this final rule to extend compliance dates for the redesignation of secure areas. The Coast Guard is delaying the date by which facilities wishing to redefine their secure areas must submit an amendment to their facility security plan. Amendments to facility security plans are now due by September 4, 2007.

This decision proposes amendments to Marketing Order No. 984, which regulates the handling of walnuts grown in California (order), and provides growers with the opportunity to vote in a referendum to determine if they favor the changes. The amendments were proposed by the Walnut Marketing Board (Board), which is responsible for local administration of the order. The amendments would: change the marketing year; include ``pack'' as a handler function; restructure the Board and revise nomination procedures; rename the Board and add authority to change Board composition; modify Board meeting and voting procedures; add authority for marketing promotion and paid advertising; add authority to accept voluntary financial contributions and to carry over excess assessment funds; broaden the scope of the quality control provisions and add the authority to recommend different regulations for different market destinations; add authority for the Board to appoint more than one inspection service; replace outdated order language with current industry terminology; and other related amendments. The Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposed three additional amendments: To establish tenure limitations for Board members, to require that continuance referenda be conducted on a periodic basis to ascertain producer support for the order, and to make any necessary conforming changes. The proposed amendments are intended to improve the operation and functioning of the marketing order program.

This final rule amends Medicaid regulations to implement the provision of the Deficit Reduction Act that requires States to obtain satisfactory documentary evidence of an applicant's or recipient's citizenship and identity in order to receive Federal financial participation. It also incorporates changes made to these requirements through section 405(c)(1)(A) of Division B of the Tax Relief and Health Care Act (TRHCA), Pub. L. 109-432, enacted December 20, 2006. This regulation provides States with guidance on the types of documentary evidence that may be accepted, including alternative forms of documentary evidence in addition to those described in the statute and the conditions under which this documentary evidence can be accepted to establish the applicant's citizenship.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing that it is designating the State of New Mexico as a State to receive Federal inspection with respect to operations and transactions involving meat and poultry products within the State because representatives of the State have requested such designation. In response to the State's request, FSIS will assume responsibility for the meat and poultry inspection programs in the State of New Mexico on August 13, 2007. Therefore, FSIS is amending the Federal meat and poultry products inspection regulations by adding New Mexico to the list of designated States.

This document proposes superseding an existing airworthiness directive (AD) for the specified Eurocopter France (ECF) helicopters. That AD currently requires certain checks of the magnetic chip detector plug (chip detector) and the main gearbox (MGB) oil-sight glass, certain inspections of the lubrication pump (pump), and replacing the MGB and the pump with an airworthy MGB and pump, if necessary. Also, the AD requires that before an MGB or pump with any hours time-in- service (TIS) can be installed, it must meet the AD requirements. This action would retain those requirements but would add all serial- numbered pumps to the applicability. This proposal is prompted by additional cases of MGB lubrication pump deterioration and a further investigation that determined that all serial-numbered pumps might be affected. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to detect sludge on the chip detector and dark oil in the MGB, to prevent failure of the MGB pump, seizure of the MGB, loss of drive to an engine and main rotor, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

This interim rule lists communities where modification of the Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) is appropriate because of new scientific or technical data. New flood insurance premium rates will be calculated from the modified BFEs for new buildings and their contents.

Technical information or comments are requested on the proposed Base (1% annual chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and proposed BFEs modifications for the communities listed below. The BFEs are the basis for the floodplain management measures that the community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of being already in effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

This document proposes adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for the Trimble or FreeFlight Systems 2101 I/O Approach Plus global positioning system (GPS) navigation system (2101 I/O Approach Plus system). The AD would require a software upgrade for this system. This proposal is prompted by an incident that led to the discovery of several annunciation errors with the 2101 I/O Approach Plus system. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to prevent a pilot from making an unsafe decision based on erroneous information provided by the 2101 I/O Approach Plus system, which could result in loss of control of the aircraft.