September 17, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Notice is hereby given of the intention of NRCS to issue a series of revised conservation practice standards in its National Handbook of Conservation Practices. These standards include: Deep Tillage (Code 324); Waste Transfer (Code 634); and, Road/Trail/Landing Closure and Treatment (Code 654). NRCS State Conservationists who choose to adopt these practices for use within their States will incorporate them into Section IV of their respective electronic Field Office Technical Guide. These practices may be used in conservation systems that treat highly erodible land or on land determined to be a wetland.

This is a notice of the Presidential declaration of a major disaster for the State of New Hampshire (FEMA-1787-DR), dated September 5, 2008, and related determinations.

In accordance with the procedures governing the application for, and the processing of, special permits from the Department of Transportation's Hazardous Material Regulations (49 CFR Part 107, Subpart B), notice is hereby given that the Office of Hazardous Materials Safety has received the application described herein. This notice is abbreviated to expedite docketing and public notice. Because the sections affected, modes of transportation, and the nature of application have been shown in earlier Federal Register publications, they are not repeated here. Request of modifications of special permits (e.g. to provide for additional hazardous materials, packaging design changes, additional mode of transportation, etc.) are described in footnotes to the application number. Application numbers with the suffix ``M'' demote a modification request. There applications have been separated from the new application for special permits to facilitate processing.

This document announces receipt by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of two petitions for a decision that certain 1997-2001 Jeep Cherokee multipurpose passenger vehicles (MPVs) that were not originally manufactured to comply with all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS) are eligible for importation into the United States because (1) they are substantially similar to vehicles that were originally manufactured for sale in the United States and that were certified by their manufacturer as complying with the safety standards, and (2) they are capable of being readily altered to conform to the standards.

The Corporation for National and Community Service (``the Corporation'') is issuing several amendments to existing provisions relating to the AmeriCorps national service program and adding rules to clarify the Corporation's prohibition on making false or misleading statements and requirements for participant evaluations, living allowance disbursements, multiple applications for the same project, use of national service insignia, and other requirements.

The Board is publishing amendments to Regulation B (Equal Credit Opportunity Act) to update the address where questions should be directed concerning creditors for which the Office of Thrift Supervision administers compliance with the regulation.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (the PRA), Federal agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed reinstatement of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the notice. This notice solicits comments on a voluntary consumer survey about food safety.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is proposing to amend its bottled water regulations to require that source water, which is currently subject to weekly microbiological testing, be tested specifically for total coliform as is done for finished bottled water products. Further, FDA is proposing that if any coliform organisms are detected in source water or finished bottled water products, bottled water manufacturers would be required to test for the bacterium Escherichia coli (E. coli), an indicator of fecal contamination. FDA also is proposing to amend the adulteration provision of the bottled water standard to reflect the possibility of adulteration caused by the presence of filth. Bottled water containing E. coli would be considered adulterated, and source water containing E. coli would not be considered to be of a safe, sanitary quality and would be prohibited from use in the production of bottled water. In addition, this rule would require bottlers to rectify or eliminate the source of E. coli contamination in source water and keep records of such actions. Existing regulatory provisions would require bottled water manufacturers to keep records of new testing required by this rule. FDA tentatively concludes that this proposed rule, if finalized, will ensure that FDA's standards for the minimum quality of bottled water, as affected by fecal contamination, will be no less protective of the public health than those set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for public drinking water.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (the PRA), Federal agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the notice. This notice solicits comments on the collection of information associated with the Voluntary Cosmetic Registration Program.

Pursuant to section 472a(c) of the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (NFMA), and the authority delegated at 7 CFR 2.20, the Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment has determined that the substantial overriding public interest (SOPI) justifies the use of market-related contract term adjustments (MRCTA) to extend beyond 10 years, certain existing green timber sale contracts tied to Softwood Lumber index 0811 and Hardwood Lumber index 0812 that were awarded prior to January 1, 2007. This SOPI determination is based on the sustained drastic reduction in softwood lumber prices since 2004 and the more recent hardwood lumber decline.

The USDA, Forest Service is seeking comments on forest certification and its implications for America's national forests. This Federal Register notice is to serve as a formal public solicitation of views on the question of National Forest System certification and its implications, if national forest lands were to become certified under one or both of the two major certification systems being used in the United States. The U.S. Forest Service, which manages 193 million acres, or approximately eight percent of the nation's land, believes that it is important to better understand the implications of third- party certification of National Forest System (NFS) lands and, in 2005, began exploring independent, third party certification as a potential option. To this end, the Forest Service initiated the National Forest Certification Study, which resulted in the report, ``National Forest Certification Study: An Evaluation of the Application of Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) Standards on Five National Forests.'' This report documents the study in which third-party auditors evaluated current forest management practices on five national forest units using the existing certification standards of two certification programs, Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Recognizing that the Forest Service has not decided whether it will seek certification, public outreach and discussion is requested to obtain public and stakeholder views on the National Forest Certification Study and its associated report, as well as the potential implications of NFS certification in general before determining how to proceed. In addition to comments on the National Forest Certification Study, the Forest Service is particularly interested in public views on the following questions: 1. What are your general views on the implications of independent, third party certification of NFS lands? 2. Would certification improve the management of national forests? 3. Could certification make it more difficult to achieve national forest management goals? 4. What questions would certification be able to answer, and what needs would it be able to meet, on national forest lands? 5. Are there key questions or needs that certification would be unable or poorly suited to address? 6. Would independent, third party certification be an appropriate or effective tool, given the unique role of national forests? Or, because of that unique role, would certification be particularly inappropriate or ineffective? Detailed information about the NFS Certification Study is available on the following Web site: https://www.fs.fed.us/projects/ forestcertification/index.shtml.

This regulation establishes tolerances for residues of ethoprop in or on hop, dried cones; peppermint, tops; and spearmint, tops. Interregional Research Project Number 4 (IR-4) requested these tolerances under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).

The Federal Aviation Administration is requesting public comment on the release of land at the Smyrna/Rutherford County Airport in the city of Smyrna, Tennessee. This property, approximately 15.65 acres plus associated buildings, will change to ownership by the Tennessee Air National Guard. This action is taken under the provisions of Section 125 of the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment Reform Act for the 21 Century (AIR 21).

The FAA invites public comments about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget's (0MB) revision of a current information collection. The Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following collection of information was published on June 19, 2008, vol. 73, no. 119, page 34973. The information is used to determine if licensees have complied with financial responsibility requirements (including maximum probable loss determination) as set forth in FAA regulations.

The FAA is issuing this notice to advise the public of a first meeting of RTCA Special Committee 213, Standards for Air Traffic Data Communication Services.

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976, as amended (RCRA), authorizes EPA to grant approval to States to operate their underground storage tank programs in lieu of the Federal program. This action codifies EPA's decision to approve State programs and incorporates by reference those provisions of the State statutes and regulations that will be subject to EPA's inspection and enforcement authorities in accordance with sections 9005 and 9006 of RCRA Subtitle I and other applicable statutory and regulatory provisions. This rule codifies the prior approval of the State of Hawaii's underground storage tank program and incorporates by reference appropriate provisions of State statutes and regulations.

The Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary (CINMS) is seeking applicants for the following vacant seats on its Sanctuary Advisory Council (Council): Commercial Fishing member and alternate, Conservation member and alternate, Tourism member, Non-consumptive Recreational member and alternate, Research member and alternate, Business member and alternate, and two Public-at-large members. Applicants are chosen based upon: Their particular expertise and experience in relation to the seat for which they are applying, community and professional affiliations, views regarding the protection and management of marine resources, and the length of residence in the communities located near the Sanctuary. Applicants who are chosen as members should expect to serve in a volunteer capacity for 2-year terms, pursuant to the Council's Charter.

EPA is approving a revision to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP), submitted by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) on October 9, 2006. The SIP revision EPA is approving would require decreased newspaper notice for proposed air quality Standard Permits with statewide applicability to the following metropolitan areas: Austin, Dallas, Houston, and any other regional newspapers the TCEQ Executive Director designates on a case-by-case basis. TCEQ will publish notice of a proposed air quality Standard Permit in the Texas Register and will issue a press release. In addition, TCEQ may also use electronic means to inform state and local officials of a proposed air quality Standard Permit. EPA is approving this revision pursuant to section 110 of the Federal Clean Air Act (Act).

EPA is finalizing the updates of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Air Regulations proposed in the Federal Register on February 27, 2008. Requirements applying to OCS sources located within 25 miles of states' seaward boundaries must be updated periodically to remain consistent with the requirements of the corresponding onshore area (COA), as mandated by section 328(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (the Act). The portion of the OCS air regulations that is being updated pertains to the requirements for OCS sources in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The intended effect of approving the OCS requirements for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is to regulate emissions from OCS sources in accordance with the requirements onshore.

This notice announces actions taken by the FHWA and other Federal agencies that are final within the meaning of 23 U.S.C. 139(l)(1). The actions relate to a proposed highway project, Southern Beltway project, U.S. 22 to I-79 in Allegheny and Washington Counties, Pennsylvania, and those actions grant licenses, permits, and approvals for the project.