October 2, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document contains a correction to the final regulations, which were published in the Federal Register of Thursday, November 15, 2007 (72 FR 64155). The regulations allowed agencies to make new Federal records schedules and certain existing approved records schedules applicable to series of records regardless of the medium in which the records are created and maintained.

PHMSA is proposing to issue rules implementing certain inspection, investigation, and enforcement authority conferred on the Secretary of Transportation by the Hazardous Materials Transportation Safety and Security Reauthorization Act of 2005. The proposed rules would establish procedures for: (1) The inspection and opening of packages to identify undeclared or non-compliant shipments; (2) the temporary detention and inspection of suspicious packages; and (3) the issuance of emergency orders (restrictions, prohibitions, recalls, and out-of-service orders) to address unsafe conditions or practices posing an imminent hazard. These new inspection and enforcement procedures will enhance DOT's ability to respond immediately and effectively to conditions or practices that pose serious threats to life, property, or the environment.

EPA is approving a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Ohio which allows the State to discontinue the vehicle inspection and maintenance (I/M) program in the Cincinnati- Hamilton and Dayton-Springfield areas, also known as the E-Check program. The revision specifically requests that the E-Check program regulations be moved from the active control measures portion of the SIP to the contingency measures portion of the Cincinnati-Hamilton and Dayton-Springfield ozone maintenance plans. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) submitted this request on April 4, 2005, and supplemented it on May 20, 2005, February 14, 2006, May 9, 2006, October 6, 2006, and February 19, 2008. EPA is approving Ohio's request because the State has demonstrated that discontinuing the I/M program in the Cincinnati-Hamilton and Dayton-Springfield areas will not interfere with the attainment and maintenance of the 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) and the fine particulate NAAQS or with the attainment and maintenance of other air quality standards.

This final rule amends 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. The Department of the Interior has previously developed two types of natural resource damage assessment regulations: Standard procedures for simplified assessments requiring minimal field observation (the Type A Rule); and site- specific procedures for detailed assessments in individual cases (the Type B Rule). This final rule revises the Type B Rule to emphasize resource restoration over economic damages. It also responds to two court decisions addressing the regulations: State of Ohio v. U.S. Department of the Interior, 880 F.2d 432 (DC Cir. 1989) (Ohio v. Interior); and Kennecott Utah Copper Corp. v. U.S. Department of the Interior, 88 F.3d 1191 (DC Cir. 1996) (Kennecott v. Interior), and includes a technical revision to resolve an apparent inconsistency in the timing provisions for the assessment process set out in the rule.

On October 5, 2007, the FAA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that proposed performance requirements for certain avionics equipment on aircraft operating in specified classes of airspace within the United States National Airspace System. The comment period closed on March 3, 2008. The FAA is reopening the comment period for an additional 30 days to give the public an opportunity to comment on recommendations received from an Aviation Rulemaking Committee established by the Administrator on July 15, 2007.

NHTSA is proposing to amend several aspects of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 218, Motorcycle Helmets. Some of the amendments would help realize the full potential of compliant helmets by aiding state and local law enforcement officials in enforcing state helmet use laws, thereby increasing the percentage of motorcycle riders wearing helmets compliant with FMVSS No. 218. The amendments would do this by adopting additional requirements and revising existing requirements to reduce misleading labeling of novelty helmets that creates the impression that uncertified, noncompliant helmets have been properly certified as compliant. The other amendments would aid NHTSA in enforcing the standard by specifying a quasi-static load application rate for the helmet retention system; revising the impact attenuation test by specifying test velocity and tolerance limits and removing the drop height requirement; providing tolerances for the helmet conditioning specifications; revising requirements related to size labeling and location of the DOT symbol; correcting figures 7 and 8 in the Standard; and updating the reference in S7.1.9 to SAE recommended practice J211.

This document requests comments on a petition for rulemaking filed by Bruce Quinn, requesting the allotment of Channel 231A at Oolitic, Indiana. The coordinates for Channel 231A at Oolitic, Indiana, are 38-59-16 NL and 86-37-47 WL. There is a site restriction of 13.2 kilometers (8.2 miles) northwest of the community. Proposed Channel 231A is short-spaced to the licensed site of Station WQKC-FM, Channel 229B, Seymour, Indiana. However, Station WQKC-FM's license was modified to specify operation on Channel 230A at Sellersburg, Indiana in MB Docket No. 03-98 and the FM Table of Allotments was amended to reflect this change. Therefore, no protection is afforded to this license site. A Petition for Reconsideration of the letter dismissal of this Petition is dismissed as moot.

This document corrects the amendment number to a final rule published in the Federal Register of Thursday, September 25, 2008, regarding requirements for pressurized engine static parts.

EPA is proposing to take action on amendments to the Renewable Fuel Standard program requirements. Following publication of the final rule promulgating the Renewable Fuel Standard regulations, EPA discovered a number of technical errors and areas within the regulations that could benefit from clarification or modification. This proposed rule would amend the regulations to make the appropriate corrections, clarifications and modifications. In the ``Rules and Regulations'' section of this Federal Register, we are amending the Renewable Fuel Standard program requirements as a direct final rule without a prior proposed rule. If we receive no adverse comment, we will not take further action on this proposed rule.

The Employment Standards Administration (ESA) Office of Labor- Management Standards (OLMS) of the Department of Labor publishes this final rule to establish a form to be used by labor organizations to file trust annual financial reports (Form T-1) and to provide appropriate instructions and revise relevant portions of 29 CFR Part 43 relating to such reports. On March 4, 2008, the Department published a notice of proposed rulemaking setting forth the Department's Form T-1 proposal. Under the proposal, certain labor organizations would file annual reports about certain trusts to which they contributed money or otherwise provided financial assistance or over which they exercised managerial control. This document sets forth the Department's review of and response to comments on the proposal. This final rule requires that a labor organization with total annual receipts of $250,000 or more file a Form T-1 for each trust of the type defined by section 3(l) of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) and that meets one of the two following filing triggers: The labor organization, alone or with other labor organizations, either: Appoints or selects a majority of the members of the trust's governing board; or makes contributions to the trust that exceed 50 percent of the trust's receipts during the trust's fiscal year. This final rule provides five exemptions to the Form T-1 filing requirements: A political action committee (PAC) fund, if publicly available reports on the PAC fund are filed with federal or state agencies; any political organization for which reports are filed with the IRS under section 527 of the IRS code; trusts required to file a Form 5500 under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA); federal employee health benefit plans that are subject to the provisions of the Federal Employees Health Benefits Act (FEHBA); and any trust for which an independent audit has been conducted, in accordance with the standards set forth in this final rule. This final rule will apply prospectively.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 90-day finding on a petition to remove the California, Oregon, and Washington population of the marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife (List) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We find that the petition presents substantial information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this notice, we are initiating a status review of the marbled murrelet, which will also serve as our 5-year status review for the species. Concurrent with making our 12-month finding on the petition and conducting a 5-year status review, we intend to review the rangewide status of the species, and if necessary, the configuration and status of any distinct population segments. To ensure a comprehensive review, we are soliciting scientific and commercial data and other information on the marbled murrelet relevant to its listing status under the Act. At the conclusion of our status review, we will issue a 12-month finding on the petition.