February 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Under the provisions of Section 3507(a)(1)(D) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve the information collection listed below. This proposed information collection was previously published in the Federal Register on December 21, 2007 (Vol. 72, No. 245, p. 72741 and allowed 60-days for public comment. One public comment was received that questioned why the study was not funded by University of Alabama (UAB) funds. A response was made on February 8, 2008, that indicated that UAB was funding this study. The National Institutes of Health may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, an information collection that has been extended, revised, or implemented on or after October 1, 1995, unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Proposed Collection: Title: Cancer Care For Uninsured Individuals: A Feasibility Study. Type of Information Collection Request: New. Need and Use of Information Collection: The purpose of this information collection is to assess the feasibility of obtaining health insurance information for participants of the Prostate, Lung, Colon and Ovarian (PLCO) Cancer Screening Trial participants from health care providers and self reports. The ultimate objective is to compare the health care utilization of insured and uninsured PLCO participants. The PLCO data provides a unique opportunity to study health care seeking behavior after an abnormal cancer screening test and the effect of lack of health insurance. Participants who had positive cancer screening tests were referred to their doctors for follow-up care. No additional care was provided by the trial. The study collected detailed information on tests received for diagnosis, clinical presentation of disease, and cancer treatment. Since the PLCO original data collection had not recorded the health insurance of participants at the time of their screening, it is necessary to collect it retrospectively. This feasibility study will request information from 50 physicians and 150 participants. The aims are to determine the: (1) Total number of physicians to be contacted to obtain insurance information on all PLCO participants who had a positive cancer screening test; (2) Percentage of physicians willing and able to provide insurance information; (3) Percentage of participants with and without insurance; (4) Number of participants for whom insurance status can be only determined by self report; (5) Percentage of PLCO participants who accept to respond to the survey; (6) Percentage of individuals who are willing to provide information on insurance status; and, (7) Potential proportion of PLCO participants without health insurance. These results will be used to design a study to examine the health care behavior of insured and uninsured PLCO participants. This is relevant to understand the results of the PLCO Cancer Screening Trial and other screening trials currently being conducted in the U.S. The success of these trials is conditional on participants' access to care following a recommendation for follow-up. Uninsured individuals may be more likely to join these trials than insured ones in order to get free preventive care. They may also be more likely to not seek, or delay seeking, care after an abnormal screening test even though they are encouraged to get care and they may be highly motivated to receive the best care possible. It is relevant for other decision makers to understand whether uninsured persons are receiving appropriate care after abnormal screening results. The efforts to control cancer disease and the loss of life associated with it are concentrated on population wide screening. These endeavors may be compromised if a significant proportion of the population does not get appropriate follow-up after screening or does not get the care known to be effective for their disease. Frequency of Response: One time. Affected Public: Individuals and households; businesses or other for-profit. Type of Respondents: Individuals older than 55 who participated in the PLCO Screening trial and physicians who provided care for them. The annual reporting burden is shown in the following table.

This interim final rule with comment period implements the continuation of the revisit user fee program for Medicare Survey and Certification activities, in accordance with the statutory authority in the Continuing Appropriations Resolution entitled, ``Making further continuing appropriations for the fiscal year 2008, and for all other purposes,'' Public Law 110-149 (``Continuing Resolution'') signed into law on December 21, 2007. On September 19, 2007, we published a final rule that established a system of revisit user fees applicable to health care facilities that have been cited for deficiencies during initial certification, recertification or substantiated complaint surveys and require a revisit to confirm that previously-identified deficiencies have been corrected.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is revising its existing health standards for asbestos exposure at metal and nonmetal mines, surface coal mines, and surface areas of underground coal mines. This final rule reduces the permissible exposure limits for airborne asbestos fibers and makes clarifying changes to the existing standards. Exposure to asbestos has been associated with lung cancer, mesothelioma, and other cancers, as well as asbestosis and other nonmalignant respiratory diseases. This final rule will help improve health protection for miners who work in an environment where asbestos is present and lower the risk that miners will suffer material impairment of health or functional capacity over their working lifetime.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) is amending its rules of practice to delegate authority to the Office of the Secretary of the Commission to issue orders requiring the use of certain procedures for access to sensitive unclassified information in adjudicatory proceedings. The NRC is also making available final procedures that would allow potential parties to NRC adjudications to gain access to Sensitive Unclassified Non-Safeguards Information (SUNSI) or Safeguards Information (SGI).

In this Final Rule, pursuant to sections 205 and 206 of the Federal Power Act, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is amending its regulations to codify restrictions on affiliate transactions between franchised public utilities that have captive customers or that own or provide transmission service over jurisdictional transmission facilities, and their market-regulated power sales affiliates or non-utility affiliates. These restrictions will supplement other restrictions the Commission has in place to protect captive customers of franchised public utilities or transmission customers of franchised public utilities that own or provide transmission service over jurisdictional transmission facilities from inappropriate cross-subsidization of affiliates.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is amending its regulations pursuant to section 203 of the Federal Power Act (FPA) to provide for additional blanket authorizations under FPA section 203(a)(1). These blanket authorizations will facilitate investment in the electric utility industry and, at the same time, ensure that public utility customers are adequately protected from any adverse effects of such transactions.

EPA is withdrawing the January 30, 2008 (73 FR 5435), direct final rule approving revisions to the State of Illinois' rules for its Emission Reduction Market System (ERMS). In the direct final rule, EPA commented on statements in and implications of a memorandum from Robert Meyers, Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation, to EPA's Regional Administrators dated October 3, 2007. (The rule gave an incorrect date of October 7, 2007.) The memorandum addresses the status of new source review criteria for ozone nonattainment areas based on a decision by the Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit in the case of South Coast Air Quality Management Dist. v. EPA, 472 F.3d 882 (DC Cir. 2006). In commenting upon the memorandum of Robert Meyers in the direct final rule of January 30, 2008, Region 5 unintentionally addressed an issue of national policy. As the issue is one of national policy, the implications of the Court ruling should only be addressed in national guidance and rulemaking. Notwithstanding our observations regarding the implications of the Robert Meyers memorandum, the rationale for proposing to approve the ERMS rule revisions did not rely on these observations, and so the soundness of EPA's proposal is not affected. Therefore, EPA is withdrawing the January 30, 2008, direct final rule, but announcing today that the associated proposed rule will stand as a proposed rule. (See 73 FR 5471). Comments on the proposed rule continue to be due on February 29, 2008. EPA will publish a revised final rule after considering any comments that it may receive. EPA will not institute a second comment period on this action.

The Burley and the Shoshone Field Offices of the Twin Falls District and the Pocatello and Upper Snake Field Offices of the Idaho Falls District of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), located in south-central and eastern Idaho, have prepared a proposed land use plan amendment and environmental impact statement to establish management guidance and objectives for vegetation resources as they relate to fire and fuels. This planning process is in conformance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA), and the Federal Wildland Fire Management Policy of 1995, as revised. The Proposed Plan Amendment is Alternative E, developed in response to public comment. Alternative E, which emphasizes protection and restoration of both rangeland and forest resources, is also considered to be the environmentally preferred alternative.

The Department of Energy (DOE) today is issuing a direct final rule to update the DOE regulations which implement DOE's delegated authority under section 101(c) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (DPA). Section 101(c) provides authority to the President of the United States (President) to require the allocation of, or priority performance under contracts or orders relating to, materials and equipment, services, or facilities, in order to maximize domestic energy supplies, if the President makes certain findings. The President's authority under section 101(c) was delegated to the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of Energy. This final rule makes a number of changes to conform to a 1991 amendment to the DPA which broadens the scope of authority in section 101(c). This final rule also makes conforming changes to Department of Energy Acquisition Regulation (DEAR).

This document adopts a rule prohibiting cable operators from owning or having an attributable interest in cable systems serving more than 30 percent of multichannel video programming subscribers nationwide. It also eliminates the overbuilder exception, which allowed cable operators to count against its horizontal limit only those cable subscribers served by its ``incumbent cable franchises'' and excluding new subscribers gained through overbuilding ``non-incumbent cable systems. Elimination of the exception prevents a cable operator near the horizontal limit from using the exception to exceed the 30 percent limit and thereby reduce the open field below the 70 percent necessary to ensure that no single operator can, by simply refusing to carry a video network, cause it to fail. The revised rule balances the need to ensure that cable operators cannot use their dominant position in the multichannel video programming distribution (MVPD) market to impede unfairly the flow of video programming to consumers with consideration of the efficiencies and other benefits that might be gained through increased ownership or control.

We are proposing to revise certain parts of the natural resource damage assessment regulations for hazardous substances. The regulations provide procedures that natural resource trustees may use to evaluate the need for, and means of restoring, replacing, or acquiring the equivalent of public natural resources that are injured or destroyed as a result of releases of hazardous substances. This notice seeks comment on the proposed revisions to the regulations in response to the biennial statutory review requirement, two court decisions, and the recommendations of the Department of the Interior's Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration Federal Advisory Committee.

The Bureau of Reclamation published a notice in the Federal Register on September 8, 2003, (68 FR 52953) announcing commencement of work under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) on an environmental impact statement for the Southern Delivery System project (SDS). We are now notifying the public that Reclamation has completed the Draft EIS which is now available for public review and comment. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Environmental Protection Agency, Bureau of Land Management, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are cooperating agencies in preparing the Draft EIS. The Draft EIS provides information and analyses on seven alternatives that were developed for the project based on key issues. Ten key issues relevant to the proposed SDS associated with water flow and quality, stream channel morphology, sedimentation, water rights, fish and aquatic life, wetlands, wildlife, socioeconomics, and recreation are addressed in the analysis. Significant effects on natural resources are examined and mitigation measures, where appropriate to avoid or minimize impacts, are incorporated into the alternatives. The Draft EIS includes appendices with technical analyses and supporting documentation of the analysis findings and summaries.

This document would, upon adoption, establish a safe harbor period of 7 business days during which amounts that an employer has received from employees or withheld from wages for contribution to employee benefit plans with fewer than 100 participants would not constitute ``plan assets'' for purposes of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA), and the related prohibited transaction provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. This amendment would provide greater certainty concerning when participant contributions held by an employer do not constitute ``plan assets.'' The proposed rule, if adopted, would affect the sponsors and fiduciaries of contributory group welfare and pension plans covered by ERISA, including 401(k) plans, as well as the participants and beneficiaries covered by such plans and recordkeepers, and other service providers to such plans.

EPA has granted or denied emergency exemptions under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) for use of pesticides as listed in this notice. The exemptions or denials were granted during the period October 1, 2007 through December 31, 2007 to control unforeseen pest outbreaks.

This rule would increase the assessment rate established for the South Texas Onion Committee (Committee) for the 2007-08 and subsequent fiscal periods from $0.02 to $0.03 per 50-pound equivalent of onions handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of onions grown in South Texas. Assessments upon onion handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period begins August 1 and ends July 31. The assessment rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for the A season allowance of the 2008 Pacific cod sideboard limits apportioned to non- American Fisheries Act (AFA) crab vessels catching Pacific cod for processing by the offshore component in the Western Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the A season allowance of the 2008 Pacific cod sideboard limits apportioned to non-AFA crab vessels catching Pacific cod for processing by the offshore component in the Western Regulatory Area of the GOA.

On August 30, 2006, FRA published an Interim Final Rule (IFR) addressing the establishment of emergency relief dockets (ERD) and the procedures for handling petitions for emergency waivers of safety regulations. 71 FR 51517. The IFR provided that each year, FRA will establish an ERD for that year and publish a notice in the Federal Register identifying the docket number of the ERD for that year. This Notice announces the establishment of FRA's ERD for the current year (calendar year 2008). The designated ERD for calendar year 2008 is docket number FRA-2008-0009.

OTS is revising its rules implementing section 19(e) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDIA), which prohibits any person who has been convicted of any criminal offense involving dishonesty, breach of trust, or money laundering (or who has agreed to enter into a pretrial diversion or similar program in connection with a prosecution for such an offense) from holding certain positions with respect to a savings and loan holding company (SLHC). Specifically, OTS is extending the expiration date of a temporary exemption granted to persons who held positions with respect to a SLHC as of the date of the enactment of section 19(e). The revised expiration date for the temporary exemption is June 1, 2008.