2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document removes provisions in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) regulations concerning VA's former Board of Contract Appeals and provides authority for other hearing officials to hear certain salary offset matters that formerly could be heard by officials of that Board. A new Civilian Board of Contract Appeals was established within the General Services Administration (GSA) to hear and decide contract disputes between certain Government contractors and Executive agencies. The Board of Contract Appeals that existed at VA was terminated and its cases under the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 were transferred to the new Civilian Board of Contract Appeals. These amendments are necessary due to section 847 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006.

This Treasury decision adopts as a final rule, without change, a temporary rule that allows manufacturers of tobacco products and cigarette papers and tubes to remove these articles without payment of tax for use by Federal agencies in law enforcement activities, and without inclusion of the otherwise required tax-exempt label.

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau is adopting as a final rule, with some clarifying or editorial changes, the temporary regulations concerning transfer of the small domestic producer wine tax credit and computation of the wine bond that were adopted in response to the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996.

The Coast Guard is changing a permanent security zone in waters adjacent to the island of Tinian, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Review of the established zone indicates that its scope is overly-broad and that it imposes an unnecessary and unsustainable enforcement burden on the Coast Guard. This change is intended to narrow the zone's scope so it more accurately reflects current enforcement needs.

Consistent with recommendations from Commission staff in a report (Staff Report), the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) seeks comment on various possible revisions to its hearing aid compatibility policies and requirements pertaining to wireless services, including several tentative conclusions to modify Sec. 20.19 and other requirements along the framework proposed in a consensus plan (Joint Consensus Plan) recently developed jointly by industry and representatives for the deaf and hard of hearing community. In light of the current marketplace and in anticipation of future developments in wireless offerings, the Commission takes steps to ensure that hearing aid users will continue to benefit from the convenience and features offered by the newest wireless communications systems being provided to American consumers. To the extent people who use hearing aids have difficulty finding a wireless mobile telephone that functions effectively with those devices because of interference or compatibility problems, the Commission states that a continued expansion in the number and availability of hearing aid-compatible wireless telephones is warranted.

The EPA is proposing to approve State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions submitted by the State of Maine. These revisions update Maine's criteria pollutant emissions reporting program, and list of terms and associated definitions used in Maine's air pollution control regulations. The intended effect of this action is to propose approval of these items into the Maine SIP. This action is being taken under the Clean Air Act.

This document proposes to amend NHTSA's regulations that prescribe fees authorized by 49 U.S.C. Sec. 30141 for various functions performed by the agency with respect to the importation of motor vehicles that do not conform to all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety and bumper standards. An importer must file with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) a Department of Transportation (DOT) conformance bond at the time that a nonconforming motor vehicle is offered for importation into the United States, or in lieu of such a bond, the importer may post cash deposits or obligations of the United States to ensure that the vehicle will be brought into conformance with all applicable standards within 120 days from the date of importation, or will be exported from, or abandoned to, the United States. To avoid the costs of a DOT conformance bond, some importers have sought to post cash deposits, which would relieve the importers of the bonding costs but cause the agency to expend considerable resources. To permit the government to recover these expenses, this amendment would establish a fee for the agency's processing of these cash deposits or obligations of the United States that are furnished in lieu of a DOT conformance bond.

NMFS issues a proposed rule that would implement Amendment 88 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area. This amendment, if approved, would revise the Aleutian Islands Habitat Conservation Area (AIHCA) boundary to allow nonpelagic trawling in an area historically fished and to prohibit nonpelagic trawling in an area of known coral and sponge occurrence. This action is necessary to ensure the AIHCA protects areas of coral and sponge habitat from the potential effects of nonpelagic trawling and allow nonpelagic trawling in areas historically fished and without evidence of coral and sponge occurrence.

On March 31, 2005, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau published a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish the Calistoga viticultural area in Napa County, California. In light of comments regarding the potential adverse impact on established brand names that we received in response to that prior notice, we issue this new notice of proposed rulemaking to seek comments on our proposal to provide ``grandfather'' protection for certain brand names used on existing certificates of label approval, provided those labels also carry information that would dispel an impression that the wine meets the requirements for using the viticultural area name. We designate viticultural areas to allow vintners to better describe the origin of their wines and to allow consumers to better identify wines they may purchase.

EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). These revisions concern particulate matter (PM) emissions from fugitive dust sources and cement manufacturing plants. We are proposing to approve local rules to regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air Act as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act). We are taking comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a final action.

The National Park Service is proposing this rule to provide for the protection of the Western Snowy Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus), a species listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. Western Snowy Plovers overwinter within Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) at both Crissy Field and Ocean Beach. This rulemaking will provide temporary protection for two areas until a permanent determination is made through the planning process for the entire park. The park is developing a Dog Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and special regulations for dog management at GGNRA is expected to be completed by winter 2009.

This document announces a reopening of the comment period for the above-referenced NPRM. The NPRM proposed the adoption of a new airworthiness directive for certain Airbus Model A330 airplanes and A340-200 and -300 series airplanes. That NPRM invites comments concerning the proposed requirements for the inspection of the fuselage to identify possible permanent skin repairs and permanent longitudinal lap joint repairs and to apply the associated corrective actions. This reopening of the comment period is necessary to provide additional opportunity for public comment on the proposed requirements of that NPRM.

This document announces a reopening of the comment period for the above-referenced NPRM. The NPRM proposed the adoption of a new airworthiness directive for certain Saab Model SAAB-Fairchild SF340A (SAAB/SF340A) and SAAB 340B airplanes. That NPRM invited comments concerning the proposed requirements for doing repetitive ultrasonic inspections to detect cracking in the axle adaptor, replacing the axle adaptor if necessary, and ultimately doing the terminating action of inspecting and modifying the main landing gear shock strut and axle adaptors. This reopening of the comment period is necessary to provide additional opportunity for public comment on the proposed requirements of that NPRM.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is proposing to remove the thresholds for importation, exportation, and domestic distributions of the List I chemicals pseudoephedrine and phenylpropanolamine. This rulemaking is being conducted as part of DEA's implementation of the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act of 2005 and is needed to implement the Act's requirements for import and production quotas and to address the potential diversion of these chemicals. DEA is also clarifying that all transactions of drug products containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, and phenylpropanolamine, except retail transactions, are considered to be regulated transactions.

This document publishes in the Federal Register an amendment adopting Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2007-19-53, which was sent previously to all known U.S. owners and operators of the specified Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc. (BHTI) model helicopters by individual letters. This AD requires replacing each affected tail rotor blade (blade) with an airworthy blade with a serial number not listed in the applicability of this AD. This AD is prompted by three incidents in which blade tip weights were slung from the blades during flight causing significant vibration. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent loss of a blade tip weight, loss of a blade, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Cessna Aircraft Company (Cessna) Model 525B airplanes. This AD requires you to incorporate electrical power relay circuit protection kit part number (P/N) SB525B-24-02. This AD results from both the need to protect aircraft wiring left unprotected in the original design and a report of a Model 525B airplane experiencing in-flight loss of numerous systems, tripped circuit breakers, and burned wiring adjacent to the power distribution panel. We are issuing this AD to correct an incorrect wiring installation and to provide short-circuit protection for all wiring from the aircraft power distribution system. This condition could result in burned wiring and loss of various aircraft electrical systems.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for the products listed above. This AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) issued by an aviation authority of another country to identify and correct an unsafe condition on an aviation product. The MCAI describes the unsafe condition as:

The Department of Transportation (DOT or Department) is seeking comment on whether it should adopt a rule to enhance airline passenger protections in the following seven ways: require carriers to adopt contingency plans for lengthy tarmac delays and incorporate them in their contracts of carriage, require carriers to respond to consumer problems, deem operating a chronically delayed flight to be unfair and deceptive, require carriers to publish delay data, require carriers to publish complaint data, require on-time performance reporting for international flights, and require carriers to audit their compliance with their customer service plans. We are proposing that most of these measures cover certificated or commuter air carriers that operate domestic scheduled passenger service using any aircraft with more than 30 passenger seats. We are proposing that one measure cover the largest U.S. and foreign carriers and that two other measures cover the largest U.S. carriers.

This final rule revises the list of chemicals of interest, or COI, which the Department of Homeland Security (DHS or the Department) included as Appendix A to the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Interim Final Rule. Appendix A lists chemicals of interest and screening threshold quantities, or STQs. Any facility that possesses (or later comes into possession of) the listed chemicals in quantities that meet or exceed the STQ for any applicable security issue must complete and submit a Top-Screen. This will assist the Department in determining whether a facility presents a high level of security risk. In this final rule, DHS, among other things: (i) Adjusts the STQs for certain COI; (ii) defines the specific security issue or issues implicated by each chemical of interest, and in some cases, establishes different STQs for COI based upon the security issue presented; and (iii) adds provisions that instruct facilities on how to calculate the quantities of COI that they have in their possession. These refinements to Appendix A will assist the Department in more precisely identifying facilities that may be designated as high risk, while reducing the burden on facilities that possess chemicals in smaller amounts.

Ancillary terrestrial components (ATC) allow MSS operators to integrate terrestrial services into their satellite networks in order to augment coverage in areas where their satellite signals are largely unavailable due to blocking, by re-using their assigned MSS frequencies. In the Big LEO bands, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) has limited ATC operations to the 1610-1615.5 MHz, 1621.35-1626.5 MHz in the L-band and 2487.5-2493 MHz in the S- band. The Commission seeks comment on expanding the L-band and S-band spectrum in which satellite operator Globalstar, Inc. is authorized to operate ATC. The Commission also seeks comment on what measures would be needed to protect services with which the Mobile-Satellite Service (MSS) shares the S-band.

The Coast Guard is conducting a Port Access Route Study (PARS) on the area east and south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to include the northern right whale critical habitat, mandatory ship reporting system area, and the Great South Channel including Georges Bank out to the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) boundary. The purpose of the PARS is to analyze potential vessel routing measures that might help reduce ship strikes with the highly endangered North Atlantic right whale while minimizing any adverse effects on vessel operations. The recommendations of the study will inform the Coast Guard and may lead to appropriate international actions.

We are amending the citrus canker regulations to modify the conditions under which fruit may be moved interstate from a quarantined area. We are eliminating the requirement that the groves in which the fruit is produced be inspected and found free of citrus canker, and instead are requiring that every lot of fruit produced in the quarantined area be inspected by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service at a packinghouse operating under a compliance agreement and found to be free of visible symptoms of citrus canker. We are retaining the requirement that the fruit be treated with a surface disinfectant and the prohibition on the movement of fruit from a quarantined area into commercial citrus-producing States. These changes will relieve some restrictions on the interstate movement of fresh citrus fruit from Florida while maintaining conditions that will help prevent the artificial spread of citrus canker.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all McDonnell Douglas airplane models identified above. This proposed AD would require revising the FAA-approved maintenance program, or the Airworthiness Limitations (AWLs) section of the Instructions for Continued Airworthiness, as applicable, to incorporate new AWLs for fuel tank systems to satisfy Special Federal Aviation Regulation No. 88 requirements. For certain airplanes, this proposed AD would also require the initial accomplishment of a certain repetitive AWL inspection to phase in that inspection, and repair if necessary. This proposed AD results from a design review of the fuel tank systems. We are proposing this AD to prevent the potential for ignition sources inside fuel tanks caused by latent failures, alterations, repairs, or maintenance actions, which, in combination with flammable fuel vapors, could result in a fuel tank explosion and consequent loss of the airplane.

This action extends the comment period for an NPRM that was published on October 5, 2007. In that document, the FAA proposed performance requirements for certain avionics equipment on aircraft operating in specified classes of airspace within the United States National Airspace System. This extension is a result of requests from the: Air Transport Association of America, Inc., Air Carrier Association of America, Civil Aviation Aerospace Industries Association, National Air Carrier Association, and Regional Airline Association; Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association; and Cargo Airline Association to extend the comment period to the proposal.