October 23, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Federal Election Commission requests comments on proposed changes to its rules implementing new statutory provisions governing the rates and timing of payment for non-commercial campaign travel on aircraft, and a proposed definition of ``Leadership PAC.'' These proposed changes, consistent with the new statutory provisions, would restrict and in some cases prohibit Federal candidates and their political committees from expending campaign funds for non-commercial air travel. The proposed rules would apply to all Federal candidates, including publicly funded presidential candidates. No final decisions have been made by the Commission on any of the proposed revisions in this Notice. Further information is provided in the supplementary information that follows.

This notice is being published in the Federal Register consistent with sections 457(b)(2) and (d) of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA). Section 457 of GEPA authorizes the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) to enter into a compliance agreement with a recipient that is failing to comply substantially with Federal program requirements and for whom the Department determines that full compliance is not feasible until a future date. Section 457(b)(2) requires the Department to publish written findings leading to a compliance agreement, with a copy of the compliance agreement, in the Federal Register. If a recipient fails to comply with the terms and conditions of a compliance agreement, the Secretary may take any action authorized by law with respect to the recipient. On September 23, 2002, the Department entered into a compliance agreement (Agreement) with the U.S. Virgin Islands (VI) because the Department determined from all available information that the VI would not be able to come into full compliance with applicable Federal regulations for the administration of Department programs until a future date. Notwithstanding the Agreement, and intensive and frequent technical assistance by the Department, when the term of the Agreement ended on September 23, 2005, the VI was substantially in non-compliance with Federal requirements. Therefore, the Department has imposed special conditions and has taken a number of other important measures in its continuing effort to bring the VI into full compliance with all Federal requirements pertaining to the administration of Department programs. Most notably, the special conditions currently in effect require the VI to procure, and maintain, the services of a third-party fiduciary agent to perform the financial management duties required under Federal regulations for all Department grants, which the VI accomplished beginning in August 2006.

On July 11, 2007, the Department of Commerce (the Department) published the preliminary results of the administrative review of the antidumping order on certain small diameter seamless carbon and alloy steel standard, line and pressure pipe (seamless pipe) from Brazil. See Certain Small Diameter Seamless Carbon and Alloy Steel Standard, Line and Pressure Pipe from Brazil; Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 72 FR 37723 (July 11, 2007) (Preliminary Results). The review covers one producer/exporter, V&M do Brasil, S.A. (VMB). The period of review (POR) is August 1, 2005, through July 15, 2006.\1\ We invited interested parties to comment on our Preliminary Results. The Department received no comments concerning our preliminary results; therefore, our final results remain unchanged from our preliminary results. The final results are listed in the section ``Final Results of Review'' below.

This notice is being published in the Federal Register consistent with sections 457(b)(2) and (d) of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA). Section 457 of GEPA authorizes the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) to enter into a compliance agreement with a recipient that is failing to comply substantially with Federal program requirements and for whom the Department determines that full compliance is not feasible until a future date. Section 457(b)(2) requires the Department to publish written findings leading to a compliance agreement, with a copy of the compliance agreement, in the Federal Register. If a recipient fails to comply with the terms and conditions of a compliance agreement, the Secretary may take any action authorized by law with respect to the recipient. On October 25, 2004, the Department entered into a compliance agreement (Agreement) with the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico) and the Puerto Rico Department of Education (PRDE) because PRDE was failing to comply substantially with numerous Federal requirements, and it was clear to the Department from all available information that PRDE would not be able to come into full compliance with applicable Federal requirements for the administration of Department programs until a future date. The Agreement applied to all grant funds awarded to Puerto Rico and PRDE by the Department's Offices of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Elementary and Secondary Education; English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement and Academic Achievement for Limited English Proficient Students; Vocational and Adult Education; Innovation and Improvement; and Postsecondary Education. Prior to, and during the term of, the Agreement, the Department and PRDE have been working collaboratively to resolve a backlog of PRDE audits dating back to 1994 and, through jointly developed corrective action plans, to address a range of longstanding problems in PRDE's administration of Federal grants in the areas of grants management, payroll, financial management, property management, and procurement.

Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. app. 2, notice is hereby given that the Judges Panel of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award will meet Monday, November 12, 2007, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Tuesday, November 13, 2007, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Wednesday, November 14, 2007, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Thursday, November 15, 2007, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Friday, November 16, 2007, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The Judges Panel is composed of twelve members prominent in the fields of quality, innovation, and performance excellence and appointed by the Secretary of Commerce. The purpose of this meeting is to review the site visit process, review the final judging process and meeting procedures, and final judging of the 2007 applicants. The review process involves examination of records and discussions of applicant data, and will be closed to the public in accordance with Section 552b(c)(4) of Title 5, United States Code.

The FHWA invites public comments about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval for changes to a currently approved information collection that is summarized below under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. We are required to publish this notice in the Federal Register by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that an Information Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an existing approved collection. The ICR, which is abstracted below, describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated burden and cost.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR is scheduled to expire on June 30, 2008. 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 Copyright Office is publishing a final list of stations listed in affidavits sent to the Copyright Office in which the owner or licensee of the station attests that the station qualifies as a specialty station in accordance with the Federal Communications Commission`s (FCC) definition of specialty station in effect on June 24, 1981. The list shall be used to verify the specialty station status of those stations identified as such by cable systems on their semi- annual statements of account.

On Monday, July 23, 2007, the Department of Energy (DOE) published a notice of revised proposed policy (72 FR 140) setting forth its revised plans for implementing Section 180(c) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (the NWPA). The notice requested comments on the provision of technical assistance and financial assistance for training of public safety officials to States and Indian Tribes through whose jurisdictions the DOE plans to transport spent nuclear fuel or high-level radioactive waste to a facility authorized under Subtitle A or C of the NWPA. The training is to cover safe, routine transport procedures and emergency response procedures as directed in the NWPA. The comment period for this notice of revised proposed policy was scheduled to close on October 22, 2007. Today's notice announces a 90-day extension of the comment period on the revised proposed policy. The Department is taking this action in order to allow additional time for all interested parties to comment on the revised proposed policy.

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), as amended by the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA), section 104(i)(3) [42 U.S.C. 9604(i)(3)] directs the Administrator of ATSDR to prepare toxicological profiles of priority hazardous substances and to revise and publish each updated toxicological profile as necessary. This notice announces the availability of the 21st set of toxicological profiles, which consists of one new draft and six updated drafts, prepared by ATSDR for review and comment.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) proposes to sell a 0.07 acre parcel of federally owned land in Siskiyou County, located in Yreka, California. The public land has been examined and found suitable for disposal utilizing direct sale procedures. The authority for the sale is established under sections 203 and 209 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) (43 U.S.C. 1713 and 1719) and the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (FLTFA) of July 25, 2000, (43 U.S.C. 2301).

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) is forwarding the following Information Collection Requests (ICR's) to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Our ICR's describe the information we seek to collect from the public. Review and approval by OIRA ensures that we impose appropriate paperwork burdens. The RRB invites comments on the proposed collections of information to determine (1) the practical utility of the collection; (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden of the collection; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information that is the subject of collection; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of collections on respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. Comments to RRB or OIRA must contain the OMB control number of the particular ICR. For proper consideration of your comments, it is best if RRB and OIRA receive them within 30 days of publication date. 1. Title and Purpose of Information Collection Request; Railroad Service and Compensation Reports/System Access Application/Report Certification; OMB 3220-0008. Under section 9 of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA) and section 6 of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA), the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) maintains for each railroad employee, a record of compensation paid to that employee by all railroad employers for whom the employee worked after 1936. This record, which is used by the RRB to determine eligibility for, and amount of, benefits due under the laws it administers, is conclusive as to the amount of compensation paid to an employee during such period(s) covered by the report(s) of the compensation by the employee's railroad employer(s), except in cases when an employee files a protest pertaining to his or her reported compensation within the statute of limitations cited in section 9 of the RRA and section 6 of the RUIA. To enable the RRB to establish and maintain the record of compensation, employers are required to file with the RRB, in such manner and form and at such times as the RRB prescribes, reports of compensation of employees. Railroad Employers' Reports and Responsibilities are prescribed in 20 CFR 209. The RRB currently utilizes Form BA-3a, Annual Report of Compensation and Form BA-4, Report of Creditable Compensation Adjustments, to secure required information from railroad employers. Form BA-3a provides the RRB with information regarding annual creditable service and compensation for each individual who worked for a railroad employer covered by the RRA and RUIA in a given year. Form BA-4 provides for the adjustment of any previously submitted reports and also the opportunity to provide any service and compensation that had been previously omitted. Requirements specific to Forms BA-3a and BA-4 are prescribed in 20 CFR 209.8 and 209.9. Employers currently have the option of submitting the reports on the aforementioned forms, electronically via the Internet utilizing the RRB's Employer Reporting System (ERS) (for Form BA-4 (Internet)), or in like format on magnetic tape cartridges, CD-ROM's and PC diskettes. The RRB proposes major changes to the information collection. They are intended to streamline the employer reporting process, ensuring more accurate and timely reporting, while eliminating or reducing the employer reporting burden associated with several other RRB information collections. Form BA-3a will be significantly revised and renamed Form BA-3, Annual Report of Compensation. Revisions to proposed Form BA-3 include the expansion of existing data fields to allow for: The reporting of amounts for Tier I and Tier II compensation greater than $99,999.99 (the annual creditable maximum for Tier I will exceed that amount within the next two years), RUIA daily pay rate amounts of more than $99.99, 4-digit year fields and expansion of the employee's name field. New Items requesting information regarding sick pay and miscellaneous compensation, the employee's current address, maximum benefit RUIA compensation, and employment relationship status for months not worked will be added. Data fields for proposed Form BA-4 and BA-4 (Internet) will be revised to allow for: The reporting of Tier I and Tier II compensation greater than $99,999.99 (the annual creditable maximum for Tier I will exceed that amount within the next two years), RUIA daily pay rate amounts of more than $99.99, 4-digit year fields and expansion of the employee's name field. New Items providing for the reporting of adjustments to the originally reported Tier I and Tier II amounts, sick pay, miscellaneous compensation, RUIA maximum benefit amounts, and an employee's daily pay rate will be added. The RRB also proposes the implementation of two additional electronic equivalent methods of submission for Form BA-3 and Form BA-4 information: File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and secure e-mail. The information collection includes RRB Form BA-12, Application for Employer Reporting Internet Access. Form BA-12 is completed by railroad employers to obtain system access to the RRB's Employer Reporting System (ERS). Once access is obtained, authorized employees may submit reporting forms to the RRB via the Internet. The form determines what degree of access (view/only, data entry/modification or approval/ submission) is appropriate for that employee. It is also used to terminate an employee's access to ERS. No changes are being proposed to Form BA-12. Lastly, the RRB proposes the addition of new Form G-440, Report Specifications Sheet, to the collection. Form G-440 will act as a certification document for various RRB employer reporting forms (Forms BA-3, BA-4, Form BA-6a, BA-6, Address Report (OMB 3220-0005), BA-9, Report of Separation Allowance or Severance Pay (OMB 3220-0173) and BA- 11, Report of Gross Earnings (OMB 3220-0132)). It will also be used to record the type of medium the report was submitted on, and as a summary recapitulation sheet for reports filed on paper. The estimated completion times for Form(s) BA-3, BA-4 and G-440 vary, depending on circumstances and the method of submission. The completion time for Form BA-3 is estimated at 46 hours and 15 minutes per response for electronic submissions to 116 hours and 51 minutes for manual responses. The completion time for Form BA-4 is estimated at 20 minutes for an ERS Internet-based response (BA-4 (Internet)), 60 minutes for an electronic submission (magnetic tape cartridge, CD-ROM, diskette, secure E-mail, FTP) and 75 minutes for a manual response. The completion time for form BA-12 is estimated at 10 minutes when used to terminate system access and 20 minutes when used to obtain system access. The completion time for proposed Form G-440 is estimated at 15 minutes when submitted with a paper form and/or used to file a ``zero'' or ``no employees'' certification, 30 minutes when used as an electronic medium reporting/certification form, and 1 hour and 15 minutes when used as a certification and recapitulation form. Submission of Form BA-3, BA-4, BA-4 (Internet) and G-440 is mandatory. Completion of Form BA-12 is voluntary. It is completed only if an employer wants to submit reports via the Internet. One response is requested of each respondent for all of the forms in the collection. Depending on circumstances and method of submission chosen, multiple responses may be received from a respondent for Form BA-4 and G-440. The annual respondent burden for the information collection is estimated at 7,348 responses and 43,756 hours. Previous Requests for Comments: The RRB has already published the initial 60-day notice (72 FR 46251-46253 on August 17, 2007) required by 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2). The RRB received comments from the Department of Commerce's, Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), strongly supporting the RRB's continued collection of the data on Forms BA-3(a) and BA-4 stating ``these forms are our main data source for key components of BEA's economic statistics''. No other comments were received.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is amending its regulations to modify landowner notification requirements and to require a noise survey following the completion of projects involving compressor facilities undertaken pursuant to blanket certificate authority. The proposed regulatory revisions are intended to enhance public participation in the Commission's consideration of proposed projects and ensure that compressor projects completed under blanket certificate authority will not have a significant adverse environmental impact.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is required to publish notice of permit applications received to conduct activities regulated under the Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978. NSF has published regulations under the Antarctic Conservation Act at Title 45 Part 670 of the Code of Federal Regulations. This is the required notice of permit applications received.

This action proposes to modify Restricted Area 3404 (R-3404) at Crane, IN. The United States (U.S.) Navy requests that the FAA take action to modify R-3404 for the protection of nonparticipating aircraft from fragments generated during the disposal of a variety of types of ordnance.